NUTRISHALA: A PAATHSHALA FOR NUTRITION AND A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE

“The doctor of the future will no longer treat the human frame with drugs but rather will cure and prevent disease with nutrition.” – Thomas Edison

Nutrishala is a Paathshala of Nutrition where all the diet and nutrition-related queries and problems get a solution. It was started on 12th July 2020 by an ambitious girl studying Home Science, but her dreams were not so tiny- Rakshita Mehra is her name, who is now the Founder and CEO of Nutrishala India Private Limited. 

In the past two years, Nutrishala is the most trusted partner for health care. They have almost modified more than a hundred investors’ health and helped in reversing and healing from chronic diseases. At Nutrishala the main aim is to heal health investors and improve their health and lifestyle with therapeutic diet treatment and intelligent personalized diet plans.

“Those who think they have no time for healthy eating will sooner or later have to find time for illness.”

Ms. Rakshita Mehra is a Food and Nutrition Expert. She holds a degree in B.Sc. Home Science with specialization in Food and Nutrition from Lady Irwin College Delhi University. She is a Certified COVID-19 and Food Safety Supervisor by FSSAI. She is a Certified Diabetes Educator. She has done internships at Safdarjung and Max Hospital, which are a few of the esteemed hospitals of Delhi. She is the Founder and Director of a Health and Wellness company, Nutrishala. She is an expert at conducting webinars and workshops. She is a Nutri-writer. Her work has been published in renowned newspapers such as Hindustan Times, Dainik Savera and magazines for instance Aces magazine, Damnfitt magazine. Her aim is to lead India into a healthy nation. She has also contributed to a lot of magazines such as Travel Chapes magazine, Aces Magazine, Damnfitt Magazine. One of her poems written on Health has been published in a book named Panacea.

“When diet is wrong medicine is of no use, when the diet is correct medicine is of no need.”

Ms. Mehra suggests that deadly coronavirus has taken a toll on our health during 2020-21. Good Nutrition, Exercise and Mental health are the key components to keep the immune system in top shape. Hydration plays an extremely crucial role in the body’s response and recovery from the coronavirus. Plain water, coconut water, milk, buttermilk, soups, fruits such as melons, kiwi are excellent sources of hydration. Nutrients such as Proteins, Complex carbohydrates, Vitamins and Minerals and Omega 3 fatty acids are required for tissue building, maintenance of energy levels, enhancing and reinforcing immunity respectively. Grandmother’s herbs and spices such as giloy, ginger, turmeric, cinnamon and fenugreek seeds again came into the limelight because of their antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties. One must incorporate all the nutrients in balanced portions so as to keep up the immunity levels.

 She further explains that the spike in COVID-19, an evil virus was due to its communicable nature. The virus spread through close contact and via air and respiratory droplets. For as long as more than one new person on average contracts the disease from each infected person, COVID-19 will continue to spread. Another factor can be Human casual behaviour. There were still some people who did not follow the precautionary measures such as physical distancing, hand washing or sanitizing and mask-wearing. Due to this behaviour, COVID-19 spread in no time and affected a lot of lives. Therefore, even if the cases have dropped down, everyone should wear masks, maintain physical distance in public places and wash hands frequently because Precaution is always better than cure!

“The first wealth is health.”

Her view on the hype created by social media platforms for following specific diet plans is that with the advancement of social media, a lot of pseudo nutrition tips and diets have become popular. However, as a well-qualified Dietitian and Clinical Nutritionist, she believes that there is no magical diet that works overnight. Fad diet eliminates a lot of essential nutrients and comes with a list of strict and arbitrary rules to follow which is not sustainable at all. Following a diet is a lifelong investment and investing in fad diets is just like we are sending an invitation to nutritional deficiencies and diseases. Quick fixes eventually make us weak, irritable, deprived, constipated and depressed which can lead to hair loss, muscle atrophy, acne, anorexia nervosa and malnutrition. A healthy diet plan does not come with a fancy name or a long list of bad foods to avoid. Diet should be wholesome, simple, balanced and sustainable and should make us fall in love with the food.

 Nutrishala is a Paathshala of Nutrition where all the diet and nutrition-related queries, doubts and myths get solved and debunked. Well, in the coming years Ms. Mehra would like Nutrishala to reach out to more people and create awareness about the authentic nutrition insights. She sees it as the leading Health and Wellness Company that would be serving people in all aspects of life. Also, she wants people to know Nutrishala by its worth, work and respect the hard work which has led it to become successful.

“Junk food satisfies you for a minute, healthy food satisfies you for a lifetime.”

Her opinion on fasting was that food is the fuel for the body and mind. Just as a car needs petrol to drive, similarly the body needs fuel to perform the tasks. Fasting and skipping meals demand avoiding this fuel which does more harm than good. Fasting leads to deprivation of essential nutrients and food groups which plays a central role in maintaining our health and immunity. Following strict fasting and skipping meals leads to weight loss but at the cost of one’s health. If fasting is followed for a prolonged period of time, it can lead to nutritional deficiencies and malnutrition. Even for detoxification, organs like kidneys and liver are there, hence there is no such requirement of detox diets.

“I would like to request everybody that let’s just not eliminate any nutrient from our diet be it carbohydrates or fats. Let’s not fall into traps of fad and crash diets. Let’s worship our food instead of getting scared of it. By following a fad or crash DIET, by starving yourself, by practising a strict diet and by skipping meals you are yourself sending an invitation to diseases and deficiencies. You are losing weight at the cost of your health and immunity. A healthy diet must make you healthy. A healthy diet does not come with a fancy name and strict rules. It is sustainable, simple and balanced. It must make your relationship with food stronger and better.”

 Vegan diets demand to eliminate all the animal food items be it egg or dairy. This diet lacks several essential nutrients as well. If anyone is following this diet, they should be vigilant that they are getting the optimum amount of all the nutrients such as protein, vitamin B12, iron and calcium otherwise eventually it can lead to nutritional deficiencies of these crucial nutrients. She adds further that you can be healthy if you are a vegetarian or a non-vegetarian and you are practising the tips of portion, control and moderation.

“You must decide your own regime because you are your own boss.”

  As a nutritionist she recommends that in our day-to-day life we must make sure that the regime we are incorporating has these essential four key points:

1. Nutritious balanced diet: Include all the nutrients in adequate portions. Try to limit the intake of processed, junk and fast foods. Keep yourself hydrated. Eat plenty of naturally occurring fruits and vegetables.

2. Exercise: Spare just thirty minutes five days a week and indulge in some kind of exercise. Exercise must be enjoyable and not forcefully done, be it dancing, aerobics, brisk walk or swimming.

3. Mental Peace: Mental health is as significant as physical health. Therefore, take out some me-time from your busy schedule and listen to some soothing songs, go for a walk in nature, grab a self-help book and read it or cook something for yourself.

4. Sound Sleep: Good seven to eight hours of sleep is extremely important for your recovery and rest.

“Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food.”

According to her in the field of Nutrition one size fits all approach doesn’t apply. Everybody is unique in their own way. However, she feels that we are forgetting our traditional roots. Balance and Simplicity of the meal are of utmost importance which is missing from our diets. Our diet must be homemade, simple and balanced. Our diet must include portions of all the essential nutrients, for instance, carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals, fibre, water and lots of love and gratitude. This will make a balanced diet and will help us in preventing diseases and maintaining better moderation.

Rakshita adds further that junk food is a little bit hard to stay away from. To be really honest, we can enjoy fast food once in a while. Furthermore, controlling the portions especially when we are consuming fried foods, sweets or other unhealthy options is extremely crucial. Hence, we must try to eat our favourite food items and sweets in small portions. We can also follow the mool-mantra of eating slowly to avoid binging sugary and fatty foods. Few ingredients that we can tweak in our dishes and make them healthier are by replacing refined flour with whole wheat flour or buckwheat flour, refined sugar with dates or fruits, sugary cold drinks with coconut water and chips and crisps with roasted makhana and bhuna chana.

And so, Nutrishala’s vision is to create a healthy community in which all the people achieve their full potential for health and wellness. Diet therapy is the safest option in comparison with medicines and antibiotics.

𝗗𝗜𝗘𝗧𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗥𝗔𝗞𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗧𝗔 𝗠𝗘𝗛𝗥𝗔 : @nutrishala

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