Neha Morche, Author at GOQii

September 7, 2017 By Neha Morche 2 Comments

Acidity: Its symptoms, causes and cure

Acidity is a very common problem among people. Most usually complaint of acidity due to various reasons. And, many take temporary treatment but, know what has caused it or what is it exactly?

This aspect of not knowing what the problem is worrying me. If the issue of acidity relapses then one has to develop certain habits which will help permanently. Just because it is a disorder most tend to ignore it. But, acidity over a period of time can get worse.

The acid in our body is needed to digest the food. If there is less secretion then it can cause indigestion and if it is in excess then it causes ‘Acidity’. Today, I would like to tell you more about Acidity and what are its symptoms, causes and cure.

Symptoms of Acidity:

Restless, heartburn, nausea and vomiting, sour belching of food you have consumed, aversion to certain food items, indigestion, severe constipation in some cases.

Possible causes of acidity

Oily food, food with more salt, sweet and spices (overeating)
Food or drinks containing a lot of acids or food that taste sour increases the secretion of hydrochloric acid in the stomach.
Tension, worries and pressure on mind create more acid in the stomach.
Frequent drinking of coffee, alcohol, smoking and drugs etc
Lack of physical activities, going to sleep immediately after food will produce excess acid.
Taking of frequent allopathic medicines like aspirin or pain killers will increase acidity.
Any illness related to the alimentary canal or the organs connected with the digestive organs may lead to acidity.
Keeping long gaps between two meals.
Having acidic food (which are mentioned below)
Highly emotionally and nervous individuals.
Overeating.

Acidic foods :

Butter, Lentils, White refined flour, Whole-wheat cooked spaghetti, Peanuts(dry-roasted), Walnuts, Chicken, Whole egg, Oats, Brown rice, salmon, tuna, cheese, tomato

Alkaline food:

Honey, Asparagus, Margarine, White and red wine, Broccoli, Watermelon, Apples, Zucchini, Hazelnuts, Green beans, Cherries, Radishes, Cauliflower, Potatoes, Apricots, Carrots, Celery, Bananas, leafy vegetables, Raisins.

Home remedies for Acidity:

Cold milk with 1 tsp of ghee.
Banana
Eating 4-5 basil leaves(tulsi) after every meal.
Boil fennel seeds(sound) in water, leave it overnight and drink next day when you get a bout of acidity.
Chew cumin seeds (jeera) has calming effect
Bite cloves so juice is released and keep it in the mouth for a while
Boil cardamom, cool it and drink that cool water
Boil mint leaves, cool it and drink that cool water
Crush ginger and eat with a piece of Jaggery
Have Amla powder 2/day to refrain from acidity.

July 4, 2017 By Neha Morche 3 Comments

Tips for Healthy Skin

Having flawless skin is every girl’s dream and why not? It only adds to the beauty of her personality. Most girls and women especially try every possible thing to make their skin look healthy and glowing. However, all these efforts are only for the betterment of the outward appearance which means that the actual overall nourishment that is required for the skin is not met. Let me inform you that skin is the largest organ of the body so you can imagine the urge of nutrients that skin needs.

So many people visit a dermatologist for some or the other reason and they do prescribe medicine or foods accordingly. Every now and then you will find a column written on the skin in newspapers and magazines for every season. Still, we don’t pay heed and try to follow the artificially made or let’s say wrongly marketed products for instant results.

There are three types of skin: dry, oily and normal. So accordingly we must look after it in a natural way.

As it is said that ‘You reflect what you eat’.. quality of food does matter to the skin. Here are the precautions we can take to make our skin healthy.

Drink 2.5 litres of water every day to eliminate toxins, to clear your bowel movements, to increase blood circulations.
Include fresh fruits and vegetables like oranges, all types of berries, tomatoes, leafy vegetables etc, Oilseeds, green tea to get anti-oxidants, vitamin A, C, E, zinc which also protects your skin from free radicals produced in your body and from ageing.
Wash your face twice a day at least to keep it clean from dirt and sweat.
15 minutes of activity daily will improve blood circulation and hence provide nutrients to the skin.

5 . Do include Amla juice, Aloe Vera juice early in the morning on empty stomach. You can revisit my blog on Aloe Vera

Try and include a variety of foods to receive a variety of nutrients.
Be patient for at least 3 months to a year to see the improvement in your skin.
Include first class proteins and good quality proteins in your diet like milk and it’s products, eggs, chicken etc.
Include whole grains cereals to get a good amount of fibre to improve digestion.
Include omega 3 food items like flax seeds, fish, walnuts, soybean etc.

Things to Avoid

Avoid meat, fish, eggs, fried foods, white flour and it’s products, coffee, tea, soft drinks, alcohol, tobacco.
Avoid wearing too much of make- up .and do use mineral rich products if you do have to wear make- up.
Avoid long exposure to the sun (10 am to 4 pm). Do apply sunscreen even if it’s cloudy.
Avoid dehydration as dryness as it leads to wrinkled skin.

You have got an idea on how to maintain healthy skin but, the most important aspect that one should not forget is ‘Keep Smiling’ the best exercise for the face because happy face will always make you look beautiful.

March 15, 2016 By Neha Morche Leave a Comment

Salty Facts

Most of us are of the opinion is too much salt is not good for our health after all salt is nothing but Sodium Chloride. Salt is processed from salt mines or by the evaporation of seawater. Salt is also present in foodstuff like meats, vegetables, fruits in small quantity.

Salt is used for various purposes, the most common of which is adding flavour to foods. Salt is also used as a food preservative, because bacteria have trouble growing in a salt-rich environment.

It is added to processed foods like canned foods, salted foods, and pickled foods, snack foods where it functions as both a preservative and flavouring. The main sources of salt in the diet, apart from traces of sodium found in excess in foods such as breads, cereal products, meat products, and milk and dairy products like Cheese. In addition, salt is also used as a preservative; texture aid, binder, colordeveloper, and for fermentation Control.

Health effects

Table salt 6 g serving (1 teaspoon) contains about 2,300 mg of sodium. Sodium serves a vital purpose in the human body

* It helps brain nerves and muscles to create electric impulses

* It balances fluid in cells

The World Health Organization recommends that all adults should consume less than 2,000 mg of sodium which is contained in 5 g of salt per day. Guidelines by the United States in 2010 recommended that people with hypertension should limit consumption to no more than 1,500 mg of sodium per day.

The body has natural mechanism for storing water and ions (Na+) sodium and potassium ( K+ ) just as excess calories gets stored as fat in the body. Thus, it constantly maintains sodium level in cells.

Salt substitutes

Here are few salt substitutes specially to make food palatable for low salt meals.

Spices,herbs,ginger powder, lot of onion and garlic in cooking or garlic and onion powder,vinegars,lemon juice,Kokum,tamarind paste, mango powder, sour yogurt, dried thyme leaves,paprika,celery seeds, white pepper, dry mustard, dried lemon peel, ground black pepper etc.

Types of Salt:

Salt while is one of the most important ingredients for cooking, not all salts are created equal and there are many types to choose from. We have Himalayan Pink Salt, Kosher Salt, Sea Salt to name a few and then we have the very old plain refined table salt. Not only do all these various salts differ in their taste and texture but, they also have differences in minerals and sodium content.

Let us take a look at the few of these salts and their benefits

Refined Salt (Regular Table Salt)

The most commonly used salt. It is highly refined to remove most of the impurities and trace minerals. It has 97% of sodium chloride or even higher. This type of salt is always added with Iodine.

Sea Salt

Sea salt is made by evaporating seawater. Like table salt, it is mostly just sodium chloride.However, it also has some traces of minerals such as potassium, iron and zinc depending on the place of harvesting and the way of processing.The darker the sea salt, the higher its concentration of impurities. Sea salt is often less ground than regular refined salt has a different taste than the regular table salt. It has a very potent “flavor burst” than refined salt.

Himalayan Pink Salt

Himalayan Pink salt contains traces of iron oxide which gives it the pink color.These salts are covered by lava and surrounded by ice hence remains untouched. These salts are also away from pollution. It does contain small amounts of calcium, iron, sulphate, potassium and magnesium, and slightly lower amounts of sodium than regular salt.

Kosher Salt

Kosher salt has a flaky structure that makes it easy to spread on top of your food. There is very little difference compared to regular salt and it has added iodine.

Epsom salt

It is also called as Magnesium sulphate salt which contains Magnesium, sulphur and Oxygen compounds. It is used both internally and externally. It is commonly used in bath salts and in beauty products. Internally it is used as saline laxative which is given intravenously.

The above mentioned salts can be replaced with your regular table salt for cooking for its various benefits that it has.

August 6, 2015 By Neha Morche Leave a Comment

How to cultivate new habits?

What is habit? Is it just Good or bad? It does not just end here. It holds a deep meaning. Habit is an interesting element of our lifestyle. It is a routine behaviour which gets repeated unconsciously.

As they say ‘Old Habits die hard’ and New Habits are hard to form because the behavioural patterns that we repeat gets embossed in us. Having said that, I would say it is possible to form new habits through continuation. Research says that at least 21 days are required to form one new habit.

How can you cultivate these new habits? Is there any particular way?

Habits can be analyzed in three parts:

*Cue – Cue is the thing which triggers our habitual behaviour. This could be anything that our mind associates with particularly and we automatically form a habit out of it.

*Behavior – The behavior is the actual habit that we demonstrate.

*Reward– This is absolutely a positive feeling. This is a receipt of our hard work.

As I mentioned earlier that habits could be good or bad. But, how do we distinguish it?

A key factor in distinguishing a bad habit from an addiction or mental disease is will power. If we have control over our behaviour, then it is a habit. Good intentions can override the negative effect of bad habits.

Eliminating bad habits:

There are many techniques for eliminating old established bad habits. Identifying and removing factors that trigger and reinforce the habit is key. Recognizing and eliminating them as soon as possible is advised. Habit elimination becomes more difficult with age because repetitions reinforce habits cumulatively over the lifespan.

Focus on rewiring habits:

I have been asked what diet plan to follow to lose weight (Is there a long term goal). To reach there we need to first achieve micro goals or habits.

These micro habits set our routine to lead a healthier lifestyle and weight loss is just the by-product.

Getting into a dietary routine will not be difficult as long as we are able to maintain regularity. Regarding the diet plan what my experience is people follow it for some time to achieve their goal but after certain period when they get into their old routine they are back to square one, which means it’s only giving you temporary results.

At GOQii we believe in developing all small and positive habits which them becomes a routine. (You may agree with me that breaking certain routines takes time as we discussed earlier) that means it stays with you for longer time. Eventually, this routine adds on to our disciplinary lifestyle.

Ultimately what is it that we are looking for? A permanent or temporary solution to our health?