WORLD HEALTH DAY 2021

 

April 7th of every year is celebrated as a "world health day"since the year of 1950.The main aim of celebrating this day is to create awareness about quality of life and the importance of health among the people.

   The Theme for World Health Day 2021 is

 "Building a fairer healthier world for everyone".

There are many phrases that emphasis about health they are "Health is our wealth","Good health is a gift given to us by God" and so on.

According to World Health Organization "Health is a state of complete physical,mental and social well being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity". 

For more than a year our world is facing a hard time due to covid 19 pandemic and now it is not  yet over, health professionals across the world are expecting a second wave of this dreadful  disease and now it is in our hands to deal this situation in a smarter way by ensuring better and healthier lifestyle.

Ways to improve health:

1. Eat healthy and stay healthy

Eating whole plant foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes are rich in nutrients and antioxidants.

Eat food stuffs which are rich in vitamin C like lemon,goose berries,orange,guava,strawberries,litchi,pineapple and spinach have antioxidants which  destroys the free radicals and fight against infections.

Replace saturated fats with unsaturated fats in your diet - saturated fat is a type of dietary fat along with Trans fat it is one of the unhealthy fat which increases the risk of heart diseases and causes weight gain , food stuffs like( butter,ghee,coconut oil,palm oil,full cream dairy products) will come under this category. 

• unsaturated fats it is also a dietary fat but it is a healthy fat which enhances the health by lowering risk of cardiovascular disease and over all mortalilty, food stuffs like ( olive oil,ground nut  oil, soya beans most of the nuts and seeds etc) will come under this category ,these foods are rich in omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids.
• Avoid usage of alcohol.
• Reduce intake salt - 5 gram/day is recommended.

2.Eat a balanced diet

• A balanced diet should provide around 60-70 % of total calories from carbohydrates,10-12% from proteins and 20-25% of total calories from fats .
  

3. A perfect fuel for gut- Fermented foods.

• Fermented foods are rich in "probiotics"which act as a gut health promoter and immune booster.
• The food includes are curd,yogurt,butter milk,toddy water,idly(rice cakes).

4. Beware of refined carbs

• Avoid usage of refined carbs like sugars, white flours ( maida,rice flour),white bread and processed grains which are likely to increase the changes of obesity,type 2 diabetes and heart disease  among the individual and reduces the health.

5. keep calm and drink plenty of water

• Dehydration makes the body more susceptible for infection,so make sure to drink plenty of water each day.
• WHO recommends daily fluid intake 2 litres- 6 litres per day which may varries according to the gender,physical activity and the region where
  they live.

6. A good laugh and a long sleep are the two best cures for anything

• Sleep and immunity are inter-linked adequate rest makes the mind and body strong and helps to boost up natural immunity.
• It is recommended that an adults should aim to get 7 or more hours of sleep each night, while teens need 8–10 hours and younger children and infants up to 14 hours. 
• Strict sleep hygiene should be followed to maintain a proper circadian rhythm,which includes sleeping in a completely dark room,going to bed at the same time every night and minimal stretch exercise before going to bed.
• Lowering your stress levels through meditation,pranayama,yoga,laughing therapy and exercises will boost up your serotonin levels, which keeps you calm and healthy.

7.Be fit and fab - do moderate exercise every day

• Regular and moderate exercise are indicated for healthier life.
• Moderate exercise includes brisk walking, bicycling,jogging,swimming and light hiking .
• It is recommended to aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week or at least 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity per week.

8.Bring on the shine - choose your supplements keen

• Vitamin D plays an important role in helping immune system and produce anti bodies,low levels of vitamin D leads to higher risk of respiratory infections.
• Exposure to sunlight in between 10 AM to 3 PM for 15 minutes daily will help you to get RDA of vitamin D. Natural foods like sea foods, milk and dairy products are richest source of this vitamin.
• Vitamin A - low levels of this vitamin will cause skin,eyes and infertility issues,so daily use of this vitamin is mandatory this vitamin is abundant in foods like carrots,bell peppers,mango papaya and apricots.
• Vitamin E - low levels of this causes infertility, foods rich in vitamin E are mostly all nuts and seeds.
• zinc- supplementing 15-30 mg of elemental zinc daily will improve immunity,lowers blood sugar level and promotes skin,eye and heart health.
• zinc rich food stuffs are pumpkin seeds,cashew nuts,water melon seeds,dates,fig etc.
• Vitamin B and vitamin C- are  water soluble vitamins which also helps in good health.

9.Add spice to your life by adding this

• Food stuffs like garlic,ginger,black pepper, turmeric ,long pepper,liquorice,coriander seeds etc, not only enhances taste to your foods but also enhances immunity to your body.

10. Herb is the unification of mankind

• Herbs like tulsi,karpooravalli,,adathoda and thoodhuvalai are filled with anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties, it is good for all respiratory type of illness.
• Herbs like vishnu kiranthui,seenthilkodi and nilavembu have anti-pyretic properties and it is used to treat all type of infections.