Being Healthy In Smarter Cities

Good health has many facets , many assume that having muscles and flaunting them in a gymnasium or being able to run a distance is equal to being healthy . This begging the norm the debate started when we lost the doyen of the Raj Kumar family Punith Rajkumar .A completely fit person who frequented the gym even on the day of his demise , seen on screen doing perfect burpies and jumping to heights not many his age could. But alas Appu is dead and those who never went to the gym have survived to their ninth decade even after abusing liquor and smoking all their lives .This brings us to an important question “WHAT IS GOOD HEALTH ?”.

  Here is where the catch , the WHO defines health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity. So merely going to the gym and flexing your muscles cannot make you healthy. Humans are not like  other animals , we think , we judge , we feel, we have an emotional quotient , we need friends , we need social interactions, we need companionship.

Unfortunately  today we have good biceps but not peace of mind , we have six packs but no friends to chill out with . This is what is going wrong with the happening citizens of the so called smart cities .

Actually exercise is just part of healthy living .Exercise has many types , some focusing on you muscles , others in your breathing capacity and in turn you stamina . Good exercise schedule is not overdoing any one type of exercise but balancing both to achieve fitness.

We roughly call them cardio and weight training .The problem is that we do not exercise for ourselves but want to display a perfect figure .In doing so we resort to artificial food supplements and steroids .These anabolic steroids while increasing muscle bulk definitely have long terms effects on the normal body structure .Weak bones , a susceptible dilated heart and a damaged kidney can result with inadvertent use of the same .We have fallen to stereotyping of body shape and society has set recommendations to qualify as fit .This puts extreme pressure especially on the young and teenaged who then in their quest to look good will resort to irrational exercise schedules and diets .Keto diet , Atkins , cactus , sugar free , rice free , once only, twice only , intermittent diet and so on .Eventually there is depression , suicidal ideation and this results in poor mental status in the society .

At the home, relationships have also stopped providing cushions to the emotionally liable .India had a glorified tradition of joint family’s. The stresses of surviving were distributed and the weak were given cover by the stronger ones. Interpersonal relationships were maintained and there was always someone to open up to.The was always a person to tell when someone was going wrong and when relationships were going sour .In today’s world of nuclear families there is less scope for  person contact , children hardly get to see their parents who often are both employed .There is neither control over finances not emotions .Children and youngsters are often left alone and develop habits which are detrimental to growth and academic progression .The ever increasing rates of divorces and suicides are but the acute effects of this change .This over time leads to depression and poor life styles , the stress is then life taking .

The scenario is no better in the offices .Office environments whether online or offline are  increasingly stressful . Unreasonable targets , lengthy working hours and job insecurity all add to the poor working environments .Lack of sleep is an important cause of sudden cardiac death and most youngsters these days are sleep deprived with long working hours and unhealthy indulgence in social media. These stressful work environment and pressure to perform or perish are breaking not only your back and brains but also the hearts .There is just no time to pay attention to self and the body then is reduced to a pile of junk .

You also need to understand that not everyone who dies a cardiac death dies because of an heart attack. Heart attack, is a loose term which is used for myocardial infarction where the blood supply to the heart is compromised by blocks in the arteries supplying the heart called the coronaries. There are other causes too , the heart is a muscle and has a electrical circuit which maintains rhythm called the conduction system .So the heart muscles can get swollen , these patient’s die suddenly while exercising .Such patients usually have a family history .The conduction system just like any circuit can go wrong and patients may die of arrhythmias too .There are other genetic factors too which can result in conditions causing sudden death .This should however not alarm you or scare you , you merely need to be careful especially after forty years .A routine screening at a doctors place after forty years or in females after menopause would be very helpful

    So if you have a successful movie star who is extremely fit , he also needs good companions and  to stop worrying about getting new films and producing hits every time.

    All is however not lost , we can still take things in our hands , there is still hope to return to a healthier and stress free life . Exercise is a necessity , it keeps your body in tone , however the body has its limits , we have to learn to identify these limits and keep our exercise well within those limits . Lifting weights and overdoing cardio sometimes with poor postures put unnecessary stress over the heart and the bones , this needs to be avoided .

   Diet needs to be balanced , proteins , fats and carbohydrates are basic building blocks , added to this are macro and micro nutrients like vitamins and minerals , all these are absolutely necessary for the body .A good diet should balance your calories so that the gain is less than loss .Diets should not be overdone .Micronutrients can also cause cardiac problems which remain unrecognized.Our genes are thrifty which means they are programmed to store and save , thus because of this we tend to put on readily hence we need to know what portions our body actually needs .The most important thing is to not let weight gain effect you mentally ,if you gain weight carry it around in style .If you can reduce try to , but if you can’t don’t overdo it , you look as beautiful or even more ,be confident and consistent. Ignore body shamers they see not worth it. Some dieticians recommend eating locally grown foods, the argument being your genes are used to those foods your ancestors are .This may be right but then important is to balance the nutrients .

   There is a need to change your attitude at home too .Spend time with your family , keep that time reserved , find love it is scientifically good for your heart. Stop displacing your anger and frustration on your family , they are your cushions not your punching bags .Take advise from your elders they are wise and experienced , they have survived so long , they must have done something differently .Keep yourself engaged in creative endeavors , express yourself , don’t keep your emotions pent up , they will harm you .Read a good book , listen to some good music , write something , give wings to your passions , only this will make your mind and heart healthy.

   At work organize yourself , plan your time , things done in hurry are stressful and outcomes are seldom good .Let your juniors know their targets in advance and let them relax too .Let your seniors know your limits and give them advanced intimations .If you are in charge . Change the working environment , get in some music , some time and space for yoga or meditation. There is no end to targets or to competition , just decide what is important to you .

   What is important is that you take health in its holistic sense , its not your physical attributed that are definitions of good health , you need good social and mental health too .When someone asks me why we are loosing so many young , why did Appu die , why do people with habits survive and people who are fit die .The answer for that is surely that , we are like blind men looking at each part separately but missing the elephant called good health. A healthy body , a healthy mind and a healthy social life is the only way for a healthy heart. Take care of your heart and it will give you a long long life .