Culturally, we are afraid of stepping outside of comfort zones in Kolkata. We have become conditioned to it. Our trusting, welcoming attitude has led us to misery, grief, colonization and even slavery through generations. So we pendulum swing to the opposite direction. We mistrust everything.
Fitness may be trending around the world. Not so in Kolkata. Despite the rise of lifestyle diseases like high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes around us, few wish to listen to reason. "No time, no time, very, very busy", many tell me, as they rush to get away. Ignorance, it seems, is bliss. Knowing means worrying, several say. Many, well aware of their unfit condition, hide their embarrassment behind ire.
Ensconced in comfortable lifestyles, most people don't want their boat rocked. So what if they are a little bit overweight, a little bit diabetic and have a little bit of high blood pressure? Nothing has broken yet, so what is there to fix? A middle-aged man with a prominent midline spread claims he's very fit. The young mother piling on the pounds post-pregnancy, claims she already has too much to do. Thus, lifestyle diseases are left to fester as they will. Until medical assistance is unavoidable.
Generally, it is frustrating to campaign for social awareness of health and fitness in this scenario. Nevertheless, I notice a slight movement away from the stonewalling mindset - among the ageing population. They are tired, they say, of having to reach for meds to keep going. They like the idea of being healthy and active, medicine-free. Fitness fits their happy requirement!
Nutritional advice has always seemed like blah, blah to me. I mean, we eat pretty well, right? That’s more than enough to meet nutritional requirements, surely. Besides, in common knowledge, India is No.1 in the underweight population.
We need to rethink our premises. India, reportedly, is now in the top five bracket in obesity. Visceral fat afflicts the young and the old.
I took a nutritional health check to investigate. It was a rude shock to discover that my body fat content now exceeds the muscle mass! I joined the wellness industry immediately to restore equilibrium!
Elder sister was incensed when I offered her a free nutritional health assessment. Aren’t you a physiologist, she demanded, how do you get duped by such skulduggery? Don’t you know that wellness is only in the mind? I tell you, you’re in for a terrible let-down!
I do have a few academic degrees, so perhaps, I can think for myself. Fact is our habits have become sedentary. Culturally popular foods stimulate our taste-buds, but their regular intake doesn’t help our waistline. Their nutritional values may be compromised.
The assessment is a good indicator of our current state of health. The knowledge helps us make informed decisions. What we do about our lifestyles thereafter is entirely our own choice.
I continued my explorations of this micro-nutrition business. I did feel a difference in a few weeks. There was 1% decrease in my body fat and, concomitantly, 0.3% increase in my muscle content.
Elder sister would need to perceive pretty obvious results to calm down. Hopefully, we shall get there - to wellness in body and mind.
