The coronavirus pandemic has forced many nations across the globe to come to a standstill. It has forces us to make significant lifestyle changes which indirectly affect our physical and psychological well-being. Lock-down, quarantine and self-isolation imposed on people have led them to consume the most basic home cooked food. Also, there aren’t really very many things people could buy or order-in. With few to no choices for eating out, the movement towards home cooking and consuming homemade food is significantly rising. Whether the impact of the pandemic lasts a year or more, the one thing that we can all agree on is that our eating habits will not be the same anymore! Our food preferences and food culture are likely to see a huge transformation in the times ahead. Since we all are aware of the damage this virus causes, it is essential for us to adopt healthier practices in our lives for combating the virus effectively. What type of diet would you suggest to a person who has COVID or is recovering from it? Due to vulnerable conditions across the nation, it is turning out to be more difficult for people not to be prone to the virus. I have personally worked with few clients affected by COVID and most of them have complained about the loss of taste, appetite, weight loss and extreme fatigue. Even if the individual has a mild strain of the COVID, you can still see that they are struggling to get back to their normal self. So my strategy has been to put them on a combination of foods which has energy giving carbohydrates, good quality proteins, essential fats and loads of vitamins. At this stage and they can’t be put on an intermittent fast or like a no-carbs dinner. A wholesome meal needs to be planned and it is essential for me to work on bringing their immunity and energy back. Since there is a lack of appetite even post the COVID, it’s important to continue on the vitamins course for few more months. This will help them keep their vitamin profile in check and bring their energy back sooner. When you lose UR appetite, what can you eat? Should we stick to basic food? Consuming foods that are small in volume but high in calorie like a kahjoor laddo or having soft foods that have a lesser load on the digestive track would be recommended. For example: Porridge with Banana Dry fruit and nut smoothie Moong dal-ka-sheera Dahi Chawal Khichdi Carrot Oats Muffin Avoid a plate full of salad or meat which can be a bit stressful on your digestive tract as it requires more energy for digestion. Make UR meals smaller, and spread them through the day. Small meals are digested faster and doesn’t waste a lot of energy while digesting.

Kinita Kadakia Patel 3 min read August 12, 2020

 

There are so many diets out there with food 'rules' that are sometimes very demanding and difficult to keep up with. One needs to remember, what’s most important is eating the three macronutrients in our routine diet which include; carbohydrates, protein and fats to have an efficient gut microbiota. ‘Food Combining’ these three major nutrients help one make their gut work at an optimum level. What Is Food Combining? Food combining is deeply rooted in Ayurvedic Medicine which is considered by many to be one of the most holistic ways of working with your gut. Another application of food combining came into play in the 1920s, when a physician named William Howard Hay, who adapted and viewed this practice with a medical perspective. The Hay Diet was known for using food to heal and achieve optimum health. Current food combining methods have combined Ayurveda and The Hay Diet principles to make it more appealing to the masses and your gut. These principles believe that specific food combinations don't work well with your gut. For example, when fish is combined with yogurt or when milk is combined with vegetables. But, the science of nutrition thinks otherwise; it propagates in making your gut stronger and healthy with a lot of pre and probiotics. Your gut is basically designed to digest anything, but some food combinations can work well for few people and have opposite results for others. Many don't respond well to certain combinations and can feel sick when they mix various food combinations.  Even though some combinations may sound a bit bizarre at first, like apple, lemon juice and yogurt, but surprisingly, this recipe works in favour of your gut. This recipe has like a cooling effect for UR gut and also makes your system more alkaline by dropping the acidic levels. Ideal Food Combinations: Turmeric and ghee Almond and yogurt Hard-boiled egg and green salad Can people feel when something is not working with their body? What do you recommend for them? It's completely normal and natural for anyone to instantaneously feel a reaction when they eat something that doesn't suit their gut. They may feel bloated, sick or maybe have an allergic reaction. That’s why I always ask my clients for feedback after every diet I recommend. I do this to ensure if the diet is suiting their gut and body. I start by asking them a series of questions to understand them better and this is why what I prescribe is different for every individual. I have various packages for instance; a 12-diet package or a 24- diet package and at times, I have clients requesting me to share all the diet plans together; this is where I chime in and help them understand that this process doesn't work in such a manner, no matter what your end goal is. Only after I get a client's feedback, do I know how their body functions and then I create a plan which is nutritional without causing any discomfort. Until and unless my clients tell me what is happening in their body, I am not able to formulate the next plan. An individual’s body changes with age. There are certain immunoglobulins and allergens that keep changing in the body, so one may realize that suddenly at 50 you may not be able to digest milk easily, or at 45 gluten causes you to bloat up. Whether you might've had milk or eaten chapattis your entire life, you wake up one day feeling uncomfortable. That’s because, allergens change with age and hormones. These changes frequently happen with women due to their changing hormone levels. Hence, it is even more vital for us as women to listen to our body and understand the changes it undergoes with age, food preferences and lifestyle choices. A detailed feedback helps me understand my clients progress levels, current nutrient absorption rate and food reactions which helps me to personalise their diet. Results and improvement don't happen overnight. Working collectively with your nutritionist or dietician will help you improve UR overall well-being.

Kinita Kadakia Patel 4 min read August 12, 2020

 

Fad diets are trendy but do they work? There's always some new diet trend that makes news and goes viral giving promising weight loss techniques. Unfortunately, these various diet concepts leave us confused and overwhelmed. The only solution to this is we need to educate ourselves about food. Knowing that certain foods [which are considered taboo] are actually rich in certain nutrients, will help you make a progressive shift in UR food and diet choices. Q & A with Kinita Kadakia Patel With so many diets going viral, how do you formulate your client’s diets? Fad diets are just like seasonal changes. For me, any diet which is not sustainable is a fad diet. I have an effortless way of defining this; if you can't keep up with it, then it's not meant for you to try! Adapting to any diet takes time but it works on you eventually. For this reason, I follow up with my clients weekly, I take their feedback to know and understand whether the diet I recommend is suiting their body, improving their health and energy levels. This crucial information helps me formulate customised sustainable plans for my clients. What do you feel about following an intermittent fasting as a diet preference? Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern/style, which cycles between the period of fasting and eating. This has rapidly become a phenomenon globally. This style of fasting is less of a diet plan and more of a lifestyle choice for many. What I understand and believe is that intermittent fasting doesn't make you withdraw any food group. However, fasting requires some discipline and patience to adjust to. Intermittent fasting can be challenging but it’s not misleading like some other trends such as- high-fat, high protein, gluten-free, dairy-free, raw foods, low carbs etc. and hence I wouldn’t consider it to be a fad diet. What according to you is "The Perfect Diet Full of Nutrition"? Maintaining a balanced ratio between carbohydrate, protein & fats is critical. A perfect diet is not about calories, it’s about where the calories are coming from. All foods are rich in nutrients and the key is to include them in UR diet at the right time and in the right quantity to attain maximum benefits. Thumb Rules of a Balanced Diet  Finish UR fruits and grains in the first half of your day  Spread UR dose of nuts and seeds evenly through the day  Every single meal throughout UR day should have 15-20 grams of protein.  Keep a tab on the visible fats like oil, ghee, butter, etc…  Know the foods rich in invisible fats such as nuts, avocados, flaxseeds, etc…  Hydrate well and remember your fluid intake depends on your weight, activity level and nutritional intake. Fun Fact: There are good fats in the Indian diet which can be found in ghee, coconut oil, flaxseeds and nuts. With a little mindfulness along with a pinch of expert nutrition advice, one can make the right choices in their nutritional intake and sustain a healthy diet.

Kinita Kadakia Patel 3 min read August 12, 2020

 

The fresh food you eat is filled with nutrients yet many times we do not get enough nutrients from the diets and some even show a deficiency of vitamins. Many times, there could be an issue with nutrient absorption and hence in some cases supplements become essential and critical. While my goal as a nutritionist is to give my clients a diet with all nutrients in it, but if they show certain symptoms of hair fall, lack of energy, pigmentation, etc… then they may need some help in getting their daily vitamin intake from supplements. For example:  Vitamin B-complex helps in correcting hormones and improves the nutrient absorption in your body.  Vitamin A helps with vision  Vitamin C helps with collagen synthesis  Omega-3 rich foods are anti-inflammatory and help prevent pigmentation  Minerals such as Magnesium and Selenium work on the hair I would definitely recommend for men and women to take vitamins only when it is necessary or prescribed by a medical professional. But, don't forget to be mindful of the varied requirements depending on your age, sex and body's needs. There is no thumb rule for a prescription; it is very individualistic, as it keeps changing over time as you age. UR dietary preference also plays a major role in deciding your daily intake, whether you are vegetarian, non-vegetarian or vegan. Table Source: Harvard Health Publishing Good food sources of important nutrients NUTRIENT SOURCE Vitamin B Tuna, sunflower seeds, spinach and other leafy greens and eggs Vitamin D Salmon, tuna, vitamin D-fortified milk and yogurt, fortified orange juice and egg yolk Iron Liver, chickpeas, beans, lentils, and sesame seeds Magnesium Spinach, kale, other leafy green vegetables; unrefined grains and legumes Calcium Dairy products, salmon, sardines and dark leafy greens. Quick Wisdom Don't change UR diet abruptly. Consult a nutritionist before making any changes to your daily diet which can affect your overall health. Give UR nutritionists honest feedback. This helps me and other nutritionists understand what is working in favour of their health. Be mindful of UR body. Give your body time to adapt to a diet, don't go on unsustainable diets to lose weight or follow a trend. This can cause more harm than good.

Kinita Kadakia Patel 2 min read August 12, 2020