Every cloud has a silver lining

I know the title sounds real clichéd, but somehow it rings true in context to the ensuing perspective.

Some people eat to live; others live to eat. I fall hopelessly in the second category
Delicious, mouth watering, luscious food have always been my weakness .So you can imagine my plight when I turn up in a place, which does not cater to my voracious Indian taste-buds.
Being newly married and not proficient in the art of cooking, restaurant delicacies always held a special appeal. But I was duly disappointed on both accounts. My dear husband unable to bear my misery and lack of expertise in cooking graciously took me to numerous restaurants. But alas American (bland) food was hardly able to compete with my desire for fine food. This led to further experiments and disappointments with various cuisines. Being almost next to tears I told my mom how much I missed her (and her scrumptious cooking).
Well I had reasons for complaining, I love Chinese food but surely not the sweet chicken and mushy noodles served here. Indian food provided no respite, with curries tasting like concoctions of spices and dessert lacking in sweetness. By this time I had reached the end of my patience and abhorred the sight of yellow cheese, present in all the Mexican dishes I had tasted.

So with a heavy heart I took up the kitchen utensils and decided to give cooking a second chance. Luckily for me the dishes churned out were better and gave me hope. Maybe all was not lost.. Not yet. With renewed vigour I relentlessly pursued home economics. In a week’s time I had significantly improved and at a fortnight’s time my husband started looking forward to meals cooked by me.

I guess then every cloud has a silver lining; being away from home gave me the opportunity to experiment with cooking. Lately I realized that cooking wasn’t just a tedious chore but an art .To the dubious ones raising an eyebrow upon my statement let me put forth a simple question, ‘ Paintings, music, dance are regarding as true forms of art namely coz they appeal to our senses, so why not delectable cuisine which captivate our senses of taste, smell, touch and sight.’

Detoxify your life

As promised earlier I am continuing about the detox diet and how to go about it ..

The Detox Diet

Many people want to follow the detox routine but don’t known from where to begin .This basic cleansing diet should clean out the toxins from your system and also allow your body to rest from over indulgence .
Detox routine to achieve natural cleaning can be done through proper diet, herbs, skin cleansing, detox baths,caloric restriction, juice fasting and many others .

The Detox diet controls a persons eating habits , and through this this restrictive eating routine cleanses the internal organs .But we should keep in mind that this diet should not be continued for more than three days at a stretch .

To follow the Detox Diet we must eat food rich in dietary fibre , so as to clean the bowel.Fresh and raw ,unpeeled fruits and vegetables ,dry fruits ,wholegrain wheat bread,high-bran cereals ,wholewheat crackers ,brown rice ,oats are some of the best sources of dietary fibre.

Liquid is very important ,be it water or any other fruit juice.Fresh fruit and vegetable juices are very good and also iced rooibos tea with honey and lemon is very helpful in detoxifying the body .Fruit cocktails are excellent but it should be consumed immediately ,otherwise vitamin C is easily destroyed. We must remember that a high intake of water and liquids will enhance in flushing out the kidneys,liver and the bowels .

Also during the Detox diet we should try and maintain a restful state of body and mind .Because its only by the proper harmony of body and mind that good health can be achieved and maintained .try and spend some time meditating and relaxing while listening to soothing music .Also you can arrange aromatherapy and massage sessions and achieve excellent benefits .Turning off mobile phones ,TV and other irritating stimuli can enhance this experience .


While being on the detox diet sometimes people might feel fatigue or dizziness ,hnce its always advisable not to indulge in strenuous activities or driving .You need to spend most of your time in relaxing and purifying your system .

Its also important to keep in mind that dairy ,sugar ,processed food, cigarette,
caffeine and alcohol are strictly prohibited .



Alternative view

Though there are many positive results achieved from the detox diet ,there are many who feel that its not safe and effective .Various people argue that detox diet eliminates the consumtion of dairy products, this may lead to serious later on in life .Calcium contained in dairy products ,strengthens teeth and bones .lack of calcium may lead to serious ailments like osteoporosis.The main problem with detox diet is that its short on many nutrients, leading to certain deficiencies and lowered immunity. This strict diet may also result in you craving your favourite foods and may also result in developing an unhealthy obsession with food and a potential eating disorder.

Detox diets are healthy if we follow them for a short duration of time .Also its very healthy ,as it encourages good habits like eating more of vegetables and fruits, doing away with caffeine , processed food .In addition to it drinking more water and reducing alcohol and sodas is advised .

We should keep in mind that healthy eating and exercising is the mantra to good health. Moreover its motivating to keep an eye on our diet and take charge of our own health.

Health is Wealth

‘Health is wealth’, as a wise man once said. And by good health we mean the well being of both the body and mind .Only when the body and mind are in perfect harmony can we achieve a optimum healthy life .
The vigourous activities of our daily life sometimes leave us drained and exhausted .We are so caught up in the daily grind that our health takes a back seat .only when our body screams for attention are we jolted out of our stupor .

Lets face it most of us do take our health for granted. The smoke and polluction,bad eating habits and stressful lifestyle do take a toil on our health .And soon we complain of constipation, chronic fatigue, acid reflux, skin and hair problem and severe gas and bloating among other problems .We know that our body is naturally equipped to remove toxic wastes from our bodies ,but sometimes its unable to do so properly .

Its really sad how people waste their health to get money , and then spend their money to get back their health . But if we are careful and maintain a healthy lifestyle then we may stop these illness from unnecessarily plaguing us .
There are variety of medicines and diets available in the market which boast of improving health conditions without any side effects .But most of them are just fads and not of much consequence .So we must first decide what are the changes we are willing to make, which offer results .The Detox Diet is one such notion.The best thing about this diet is that it helps us to cleanses our system from within , and hence shows positive results .

What is the theory of detox diet

Detox is derived from the word detoxifyinge.A toxin maybe a chemical or poison which may have dangerous effect on the body .Our body is naturally prepared to fight these toxins and eliminate them in the form of urine ,sweat and feces .But sometimes the body is not able to naturally remove the toxins in the body and these may have a negative impact on the body .This is when the detox diet comes into use .

According to the theory behind the detox diets ,our bodies are continually overloaded with toxins from, for example, pollution, pesticides ,cigarette smoke, insufficient diet, food additives, alcohol and caffeine. As these toxins build up in our system, many health problems can occur, including weight gain, cellulite, headaches, dull skin, bloating, fatigue, lowered immunity, aches and pains, and a general lack of good health. The process of detoxifying helps to remove these toxins from the body with the added benefit of loss in weight, reduced bloating ,glowing skin and less health problems .The benefits of the Detox Diet range from helping you to lose weight, get rid of cellulite and feel more energetic to banishing colds, making you feel calmer and lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

Well it seems like a wonder diet ,so more about this amazing detox diet in my next post. wait and watch!

Women:God's most beautiful Creation

Women from time immemorial have always remained an 'enigma' .they have excelled in the different roles of a mother ,daughter,lover,wife ,career woman ,and fulfilled each role with aplomb. Personally i have encountered such lovely and talented women in my life ,that I wanted to dedicate some words to them .
Views of women vary considerably today and have varied even more throughout the last two millennia, evolving along with or counter to the societies in which have lived. Women play vital roles in every facet of modern society .In numerous areas of social, scientific and technological development ,women have historically been responsible for crucial advances
Women can play as important a role in society as they choose to play. The options open to women in our society range from being the CEO of a company, to doing volunteer work, to raising children or pursuing academics. Our society recognizes that gender does not determine giftedness. Therefore, a woman's contribution to society depends mostly on what she desires to do with the resources she has available to her (the same way for a man).There have been women as writers, scientists, charitable workers , missionaries etc. Madame Curie , Princess Diana ,Mother Teresa, are some of the women who have excelled in their respective fields.
The greatest concern for women is, however with respect to the huge number of options available today. To be a successful woman today, it is extremely important to set goals in the different stages of a woman's life and continue to assess those goals as time goes on. This ensures that the goals you set at one time still hold, and you can make yourself accountable to see the progress you are making with respect to those goals. Sometimes the goals need to be altered and sometimes you need to be more creative in the ways you plan to reach the goals you are happy with.
More than ever life is a balancing act in which the demands of personal life, married life, family life and societal demands need to be assessed, and a plan set in motion for how you are going to handle those demands. In doing this, you will find satisfaction in life and the roles you have as a woman.On a personal note, relationship with God gives the strength and the hope to set ambitious goals and to find satisfaction in your relationship with Him - even when other things in life are not going so well.

' The Namesake '

Being away from home makes one nostalgic and a bit lonely .The land of opportunities does provide adequate comforts and materialistic pleasures but the important question is for how long will it suffice? Musing along these lines went to see the much-awaited ‘Namesake’. Frankly I didn’t expect it to be as brilliant as Jhumpa Lahiri’s book. But to say the least we weren’t disappointed.
Cruising through the lively crowd we made our way, and by the time we took our seats in the packed amphitheatre, we were almost 15 minutes late. Amazingly there were loads of Americans around which lead me to wonder what would they understand in this movie sprinkled with Bengali words and characters so different from them. But I was wrong it’s not just the language, which people understand it’s the emotions, and sentiments, which are etched on a person’s, face, which carries across the meaning.
So we missed Ashima and Ashoke’s marriage and are only in time to see the birth of Gogol the protagonist. A note Tabu looks breath taking and her Bengali is so flawless that it’s hard to believe of her non-Bengali origin.

The story revolves around the immigrant Bengali (Ganguli) family and their lifelong balancing act to blend into a new world without forgetting the old and deals. Also the cultural and ideological differences are brought out vividly. Gogol (Kal Penn) named after his father’s favourite author Nikolai Gogol is an archetype of a person caught between two contrasting cultures and subsistence .He wants to be a modern American man yet his parents desire him to retain Indian values. There are several touching scenes and moments, like when Ashima says she cannot understand her son, who wants to spend Christmas with his American girlfriend’s family and yet doesn’t have time to visit his own parents. Simple yet poignant. Tabu delivers a subtle yet powerful performance as Ashima, she brings to life her character’s thoughts and fears. Irfan Khan as Ashoke Ganguli puts in as usual a sterling act.
But the surprise package I would say has to be Kal Penn (or Kalpen Modi if you like). After having watched him in ‘Harold and Kumar go to White Castle’ and other Indo –American flicks, I hardly expected this somber yet enchanting portrayal of Gogol Ganguli, a person wedged between finding his own unique identity without forgoing his Indian heritage. Even Gogol's name represents the family's journey into the unknown.

The movie ends with a promising note of man’s never-ending hope and eternal quest for happiness and victory of the indomitable human spirit. The movie is beautifully show cased and a definitely worth a see and the astounding applause at the end confirmed the general public opinion.

The Namesake made me realize how often we tend to take for granted our relationships and loved ones. It leads you to value relationships and family and prompts you to reconnect with your loved ones and tell them how much you cherish them. And realize the gravity of Ashoke Ganguli’s words, ‘everyday is a gift.’