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Acidity – Its Symptoms and Prevention

Home-Remedies-To-Treat-Heartburn

Acidity is one of the most common problems that most individuals face. This is largely due to wrong eating habits and sometimes even stress. Bad eating, stress in a way is all connected. One leads to another and that, in turn, leads to unhealthy living and problems such as acidity.

But, to find a solution to the problem it is first important to understand what is Acidity?

Acidity is a term used for a set of symptoms caused by excess production of acid by the gastric glands of the stomach. The stomach normally secretes hydrochloric acid which is required for the breakdown and digestion of food that we eat. Acidity causes symptoms like dyspepsia, heartburn gastric inflammation, and ulcers in the stomach.

Now, there are some factors which cause acidity such as eating habits, fad diets, stress, smoking and alcohol consumption, lack of physical activity, irregularity in eating pattern, consumption of oily and spicy foods. Apart from these certain medicines are too responsible for the cause of acidity.

Some of the symptoms which can be felt as a result of acidity can be:

  1. Burning session in the stomach
  2. Burning session in the throat
  3. Restlessness
  4. Belching
  5. Nausea
  6. Sour taste
  7. Indigestion
  8. Constipation

As correctly said, “Prevention is better than cure”

So let us look at some of the parameters to prevent acidity.

  1. Don’t consume spicy food or fried foods too often.
  2. Eat more fruits and vegetables. One should be taking at least 2 servings of fruits and 3-4 servings of vegetables. Green leafy vegetables would be a really good choice to go for.
  3. Eat small, regular meals. Try to reduce the gap between meals to not more than 3 hours.
  4. Consume your last meal at least a few hours before sleeping.
  5. Chew tulsi leaves, cloves, saunf (Aniseed), etc.
  6. Avoid medications like NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) and steroids
  7. Reduce stress. Deep breathing, going for a walk and being in nature are some of the activities which can help in reducing stress.

However, if you are already suffering from acidity, I am discussing below some of the home remedies of acidity which really work. So before you start with antacids for the treatment, do try these home remedies and you may get rid of the problem.

  1. Basil leaves: Eat basil leaves thoroughly at first sign of acidity. Can also boil 4-5 leaves in a cup of water for 15 minutes.
  2. Cinnamon: Add half spoon of cinnamon powder in a cup of water, boil for few minutes and drink this 2-3 times a day.
  3. Buttermilk:
  • Grind half to one teaspoon of methi (fenugreek) seeds with little water to make a paste. Mix it in a glass of buttermilk and have it.
  • Add a tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to a cup of buttermilk and keep it for 5 minutes before drinking.
  • Mix a pinch of black pepper in a glass of buttermilk.
  • Mix a tablespoon of coriander leaf juice in a glass of buttermilk.
  1. Apple Cider vinegar:
  • Mix 1-2 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in half a cup of water and drink.
  • Mix 2 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar with 1 teaspoon of organic honey and drink before eating a spicy meal.
  1. Cloves: Chew 2-3 cloves thoroughly
  2. Jaggery: Jaggery is high in potassium. After each meal, take a small piece.
  3. Ginger:
  • Can take 2-3 teaspoon of ginger juice in a day for combating acidity.
  • Can boil ginger in water and drink the water twice a day.
  1. Cumin seeds:
  • Crush roasted cumin seeds and stir in a glass of water. Drink after each meal.
  • Boil seeds in water, strain and drink.
  • Mix 1 teaspoon of coriander seed powder, a teaspoon of cumin seed powder and a teaspoon of fennel seed powder and some sugar in half cup of water and drink empty stomach.
  1. Aniseed: Soak a teaspoon of aniseed in a cup of boiled water overnight. In the morning, strain the water add a teaspoon of organic honey and sip it at least 3 times during the day.
  2. Cold milk: After a meal, drink a glass of cold milk, not iced milk.
  3. Lemon and ginger juice 15 minutes post meal, zaps acidity quickly.

If eating right and proper preventive measures are adhered to, Acidity can be averted.

We trust that this article has provided you with valuable insights into understanding and preventing acidity-related issues. Have you discovered effective home remedies or preventive measures for acidity? Feel free to share your experiences and insights in the comments section below. For more tips on maintaining digestive health and overall well-being, check our Healthy Reads. If you’re seeking personalised guidance and support from certified experts, don’t hesitate to subscribe to GOQii’s Personalised Health Coaching here.

Start your journey towards better digestive health and a happier life today!

#BeTheForce

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5 Interesting Ways To Include Citrus Fruits In Your Diet

citrus fruitsThe moment one imagines citrus fruits, you get the image of yellow-orange coloured tangy fruits which can instantly add taste to a dish. Citrus fruits mainly include lemon, sweet lime, orange, grapefruit and tangerine. They are packed with nutrients like Vitamin C, antioxidants, flavonoids, potassium and citric acid which have many health benefits like maintaining electrolyte balance, regulate acid-alkaline balance in the body, prevent heart disease, manage acidity and improve digestion also prevent constipation, build good immunity, etc. 

While lemon is widely used in beauty products for its immense benefits on hair and skin, including it in your diet adds to its taste and nutrients. Citrus fruits can be included in your diet easily to make your meals more appetizing and tasty. All this while also giving you the much required health benefits. 

How To Add Citrus Fruits To Your Diet 

  1. Breakfast: Include vegetable and citrus fruit smoothies like tomato and orange juice or celery, sweet lime and spinach juice or whole fruits to your breakfast. It is an easy and quick way to add nutrients to your meal especially if you’re running late for work. You can replace your morning coffee with orange juice or add lemon juice to your green tea instead of drinking milk tea with breakfast. 
  2. Sprinkle Lemon Juice: on your sprouts or peanut salad or include lemon slices as a salad. You can have this as your mid-morning or evening snack. This may help you reduce stress eating and also aid weight loss as well as manage acidity as these snacks are low on fat and loaded with a good amount of micronutrients.
  3. Make a Dessert: using citrus fruits or citrus fruit juices. You can also add lemon zest to your cakes and puddings or add orange juice to your nutrition bars instead of sugar. This will enhance the taste and up the nutrient content, making your dish more flavorful.
  4. Pickling: citrus foods is the oldest and most widely known method of preserving them. It can be stored for the whole year and can be had during seasons when we do not get foods rich in Vitamin C. These fruits can also be used in making jams which can be stored for quite some time.
  5. Detox Water: Add lemon, orange or grapefruit slices to your water. This helps clean your system by removing toxins from your body. It also improves energy levels, keeps the skin clear and healthy, improves sleep quality and also your mood with its potassium levels! It also supports weight loss.  

We hope this article helps you. Is there an interesting way you add citrus fruits to your diet? Let us know in the comments below. For more interesting tips on diet and nutrition, check out Healthy Reads or speak to a certified expert by subscribing to GOQii’s Personalised Health Coaching here.

#BeTheForce 

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Healthy Evening Snacks

food-nuts-peanuts-39345

It is 4 o’ clock in the evening and you are thinking about what to have for your evening snacks? Something which will serve the taste buds and is healthy too. Right?

Also, you’re “hunger hormone” levels rise and your “satiety hormone” levels drop in the evening. Hence it is important to bridge the gap between your lunch & dinner with a filling evening snack. Also, this habit will help you keep your dinner lighter which is ideal.

So if you’re bored of having fruits, buttermilk, nuts, peanuts, chana, etc. for your snacks, here are some easy healthy options to quench your hunger.

open sandwich

1. Open bread sandwich: Take 1 slice of multi-grain bread, apply green chutney to it and arrange slices of tomato, potato, cucumber, beetroot, etc. on it. And do not close it with one more slice of bread, just shred some Paneer to it and enjoy the fibrous meal.

rice oats cutlet 2. Rice oats cutlets: if you have leftover rice from lunch, try this out. Take 1 cup boiled rice and add ½ cup of       roasted oats, add some crushed salad or finely chopped vegetables like onions, cabbage, carrot, beetroot, etc.             Add some ginger chilli paste, salt, garam masala, red chilli powder and turmeric powder. Make small flat cutlets out of this batter and roast with some oil on a pan. Enjoy them hot with green chutney or curd.

masala khakra

3. Masala khakhra: take 1 khakhra and add finely chopped tomato, onion, cucumber and coriander on the khakhra. Squeeze some lemon on it and sprinkle rock salt on it. Quick and best.

date oats ball

4. Dates oats Ladoo: take 1 cup of seedless dates and crush them with a fork, add ½ cup of roasted ground oats, 2 tbsp of honey or jaggery and 2 tbsp of mix nuts powder. Best energy supplier. You can carry 2 of them along with your lunch tiffin to have in the evening.

mix fruits with curd

5. Mix fruits with curd: give some variety to your regular fruits with this. Take 1 cup of mix fruits of your choice, add 1 cup of yoghurt or hung curd to the fruits, add 1 tsp flax seeds, 5-6 crushed walnuts and 1 tsp of honey.

peanut chaat

6. Peanut/chana/ mung chat: boil pulse of your own choice, add finely chopped onion, tomatoes, carrot, capsicum, etc, squeeze some lemon juice on it and sprinkle some rock salt and garnish with coriander seeds. Best to satisfy your hunger hormones.

spinach omlette

7. Spinach omelette: If you are an egg lover and want some variety, try this one. Blanch 1 cup of spinach in hot water and transfer it to cold water. Take 2 eggs, add the spinach, 1 tsp of ginger chilli paste, and add salt and some black pepper. Make an omelette in a pan and enjoy it hot.

rotipizza

8. Roti Pizza: Oh yes! Take your wheat roti and apply pasta sauce if you have or ketchup and chilli sauce mixture. Add chopped onions, tomatoes, olives, lettuce, olives, and all the veggies you find in your fridge. Top it with cheese, panner, chilli flakes, oregano, mix herbs and bake it in the oven or on a pan. Enjoy.

Abbreviations: 1 cup = 200ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml, 1 tbsp = 15 ml.

If you found these snack ideas helpful and would like to share your thoughts or have more questions, please feel free to leave a comment below. For further insights and tips on maintaining a nutritious diet, explore our extensive collection of articles here. If you desire personalized guidance for your nutrition and overall well-being, consider subscribing to GOQii’s Personalised Health Coaching here.

 

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Cue to happiness

Happiness is a very subjective matter and differs from person to person and ultimately all our efforts and desires lead us to one underlying fact of attaining happiness in life.  Don’t we all live to be happy?

Many thought processes exist within us. These ‘thoughts’ create our belief systems, these beliefs urge us to have ‘emotions’, these emotions seep into our ‘energy body’ or the ‘aura’ and then finally settle down in our ‘physical body’ or ‘physical world’.

To elaborate, the brain sends out electromagnetic waves to the body for any action or reaction and basic functions of the body, including breathing, heartbeat, hormone secretion etc. are controlled by the mind whether we are awake, asleep or in a state of trance.

So, if the Mind can do all this, it would be natural for us to assume that the mind is also capable of restricting the blood flow, heart rate and movement. It can even restrict the functioning of the digestive and liver thereby decreasing metabolism and adding weight, causing BP, Cholesterol etc. At the end of the day, we may call this Disease and one of the most important factors of its cause is dependent largely on our thought process or rather how we think.

Disease originates from our mind-activity and it has been researched subjectively that worry affects your spleen, fear affects the kidney, and grief targets your heart and so on. The impact of our thinking mind has a resultant effect on our physical body, good and bad.

Therefore, when it comes to healing yourself, you have to also sort it out at the thought level and soon you will realize that it will have a positive and long-lasting effect on your physical body. The same goes with your physical world and surrounding. It is the inner workings that have the most result.

All this energy and thought process also reflects our real-life circumstances. You may have experienced that if you feel upset one morning, there is a chance that your entire day would be bad. Repeated negative thinking, once ingrained into the mind can create repeated negative experiences outside control. The good news is that it is not permanent and can be changed!

Here’s why and how,

Happiness in itself is a HABIT- a conditioning or association the Mind has received from a very early age through REPETITIVE thinking. All habits are created through repetition. So, learning to be thankful and having gratitude for simple things, even the very oxygen we breathe, is essential, so as to understand how not react to troubled situations but instead respond with ease, peace and compassion.

With our awareness and understanding and wisdom to respond positively to a situation, we find that the issues in life that used to upset us miraculously feel minuscule and sometimes even disintegrate. Our energy body changes in frequency and vibration thereby attracting more positive opportunities and experiences to us.

How we cultivate this habit of happiness, can vary widely, we can choose to;

1) Meditate regularly teaching the body and mind to regularly let go of stress and create an environment of peace and calm

2) Use a hobby as a trigger for happiness

3) Use a technique called ‘Affirmations’; where we use a statement that is completely opposite to our current limiting belief, and repeat the sentence as many times with feeling. It is to pass a command from the conscious mind to the subconscious mind. The subconscious mind has the ability, to accept anything as true, to do whatever it takes to turn it into reality, creating a new neuro-pathways in the brain. For eg; Limiting belief – It’s hard to lose weight. New belief you want to cultivate – Losing weight is easy for me

4) Express gratitude or keep a journal of thankfulness

5) Not to identify with suffering, loss, or illness as being who you are. Being kind to yourself and others is a skill and developed with practice and mindfulness, which leads to happiness.

Lastly and most importantly, is to keep consistent because we are all human. Emotions and experiences are a part of growth and learning and wisdom of a wonderful life, meanwhile, we can always train our minds to ‘let go’ of things that affect us adversely.

Learn Happiness!

We hope this article helps you become your health detective. If you found this information valuable, share your thoughts in the comments below. You can find more articles to help you manage stress here. For further guidance on managing stress and lifestyle, speak to a certified expert by subscribing to GOQii’s Personalised Health Coaching here.

#BeTheForce  

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