Health

3 Wonderful Benefits of Practicing Gratitude

Swathy · January 10, 2024 · 1 Comment

Update: Publishing an old post about How Practicing Gratitude Daily has made my life better. This was originally published around the covid times. Hope you find it helpful too.

practicing gratitude, being thankful — Image Courtesy : Photo by Gabrielle Hernderson on Unsplash

The pandemic has not been easy for the best of us. Being cooped up and losing the freedom to choose is a demanding situation. From the change in the work scenarios to opportunities lost and created, the corona has sure taken a toll on all of us mentally and emotionally. In reality, the truth is we do not give our mental health their due. For leading the life you deserve, it is important that you give as much importance to your mental and emotional health as much as your physical health. So, let us begin with something really simple and really amazing – practicing gratitude.

What exactly I mean by Practicing Gratitude?

Just jot down 3 things every single day which you are thankful for. You do this either the first thing in the morning or the last thing at night before you go to sleep.

The Science Behind Food Cravings

Swathy · September 14, 2023 · Leave a Comment

Originally published in April 2018.

food cravings, why do cravings happen, reasons for cravings, why do we get food cravings

This entire journey of finding out what exactly are food cravings and why do we have them is a result of my own cravings which I have been having since a few months. I have been wanting to eat sweets all the time. I either craved for ice creams at the middle of the night or the cakes and sweetmeats during the day or after every meal.

“If cravings were an indicator of nutritional deficiency, we’d all crave fruits and vegetables,” says Karen Ansel, MS, RD, CDN. “The fact that we all want high carb, high fat comfort foods, along with the research, is a pretty good indicator that cravings aren’t related to deficiencies. (Source)”

And, curiously, I do not have a sweet tooth. I, in fact, mix my sweets with snacks so as to balance out my palate. And, that made me concerned if I was getting diabetes or suffering from pre-diabetes.

I confirmed the same with my doctor since I am getting treated for my acute folic acid deficiency. He completely denied the assertion that cravings have anything to do with diabetes or pre-diabetes for that matter.

Anyways, getting back to the topic, turns out that it is quite normal to crave any food which stabilizes you emotionally. Hunger and emotions play a huge role in onset of cravings but there is a lot more involved in it. So, let us see why do cravings happen?

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Are you pregnant?

If yes, it is quite prevalent that pregnant women have the craziest food cravings ever! So, moving on.

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What are Free Radicals?

Swathy · September 12, 2023 · 2 Comments

The very air you breathe is killing you! Yes, oxygen goes into our bodies and gets converted to free radicals.

healthy food, free radicals, oxidation, anti-oxidants

I first encountered this piece of knowledge when I was reading The Immortals of Meluha by Amish Tripathi. So, lets find out why?

Table of Contents

Also Read : Nutrova collagen + Anti-Oxidants Nutritional Supplement Product Review

What Happens when you Breathe in Oxygen?

Once you inhale oxygen, it travels through the air pipe to the left and right lung. The lungs have bronchioles which end up in balloon-like air sacs called the alveoli. These air sacs have thin membranes of capillaries through which the blood flows and the gas exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide happens.

When you inhale, the oxygen moves across the thin membranes in the alveoli to the blood where it is absorbed by the haemoglobin and at the same time, the blood releases carbon dioxide into the air sacs to be breathed out of the body.

Freshly oxygenated blood is carried from the lungs to the heart which pumps blood around the body through the arteries. Once the oxygen has been used up in the tissues of the body, the blood returns, through the veins, to the heart.[1]

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