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Experts deliberate on challenges faced by Indian families
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Monday, 26 July, 2021, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Our Bureau, Mumbai
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Almond Board of California hosted a virtual panel discussion around the topic, ‘Challenges in ensuring optimal family health, amidst fast changing lifestyles in the post pandemic world’, featuring eminent personalities from India and USA.
Stressing on the need to undertake serious dietary and lifestyle interventions, the panel featured prominent Bollywood actor and author, Soha Ali Khan, regional head – Dietetics, Max Healthcare – Delhi, Ritika Samaddar, nutrition and wellness consultant, Sheela Krishnaswamy and Emily Fleischmann, VP – Global Market Development, Almond Board of California. The panel was moderated by RJ Shezzi.
As the world around us changes and rapidly evolves, and uncertainty for the future rages – the need to ensure proper family health has emerged as a key focus area for several Indians, as this is something which is under every individual’s control. The notion that a nutritious and well-balanced diet has the ability to support good health has been discussed for years.
What to eat – and not to eat – regularly grabs headlines, as consumers in general and mothers in particular, try to balance scientific advice and trends with their own culinary beliefs, familial traditions and recipes and local food availability.
While several regions across the country continue to wade through the aftermath of the pandemic’s second wave, many Indians now need to restyle their lives to adjust to a post pandemic world. Addressing this, the discussion highlighted the various facets of the road to recovery, and the requirement to make every family member’s health a top concern. During the discussion, panelists shared examples and experiences from their personal lives urging families across India to invest more in building the quality of their health and lifestyles.
Emphasising on the need to ensure better nutrition to boost every family member’s immunity and lower the risks posed by lifestyle diseases which are on the rise, the panel stressed on the necessity to prioritise nutrition and include healthy foods like almonds to the diet. The panelists also spoke at length about the requirement to look at health from a more holistic perspective and look at every function separately coming together to achieve a larger goal. To do so, the panelists discussed that there is a strong need to pair consuming a wholesome diet with regular exercise and mindful snacking while also making a serious effort to control stress. In the long run, each of these elements combined will help in promoting better health for every family member.
Soha Ali Khan said, “In today’s world, it isn’t easy to be a mom – there are so many things that concern and worry us – and many a times we also feel personally accountable. For me, as for any mother, making sure my family is healthy and safe is a constant stress. But if there is one thing I have learnt in the past year and a half, it is that – while a lot of things might not be under my control, my family’s well – being certainly is. As part of our family’s plan to ensure wellness, we eat a handful of almonds every day. Almonds make for a healthy and nutrient dense snack, which can be consumed raw or added to oats, smoothies, and shakes. Eating them regularly also helps strengthen my own and my family’s immunity as they are known to contain copper, zinc, iron and Vitamin E – each of which are nutrients which contribute to growth, development, maintenance and normal functioning of the immune system.”
Sheela Krishnaswamy said, “When we look at the world around us now, a lot has changed, and along with this many of us have too. Having gone through this difficult time, it’s important to learn from the past, and enable the path to a good recovery by replacing old habits with new and improved ones. For this, my top suggestion to families is to do a thorough cleanse of the household pantry, and replace unhealthy and calorie high foods with nutritious options like almonds or fresh fruits. This change in snacking patterns, can aid in better heart health amongst family members. In fact, according to a study, participants who had been replacing typical snacks with almonds saw improved measures of Heart Rate Variability during mental stress, which is a key indicator of cardiac health and function.”
Emily Fleischman said, “In a post pandemic world, good nutrition and a healthy lifestyle is key. For several years now, and even during the pandemic, we have been committed to building better awareness amongst families across the world, and in India in particular, around the importance of eating nutritious and balanced meals, and regular exercise. ABC continues to encourage this by investing in scientific research to understand the merits of including almonds in healthy dietary patterns. As we all continue to adapt and amend our lives to fit into this ever-altering world, it’s important to re-assess one’s own and the family’s diet and lifestyle and adopt changes that can enable a better future.”
It is paramount for families across India to make these small yet important dietary and lifestyle interventions to their lives, as the long-term benefits of these changes are innumerable. An easy way to do this is by including a handful of almonds to the diet. Whether it’s bolstering heart health, helping support healthy blood sugar levels and a person’s weight, or positively impacting skin health – daily almond consumption is sure to impact overall family health in many a positive way. In fact, a healthy and sustainable lifestyle including a daily dose of almonds can also aid in building a strengthened immune system that can help in preventing other ailments in the future.
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