Punjab News- Nutritious food mela held at Max Hospital Mohali

Mohali, September 5, 2013: In celebration of the ongoing National Nutrition Week, Max Super Speciality Hospital Mohali organized a Food Mela where various nutritious foods were displayed for people and patients as well. The exhibition was inaugurated by Madhu Arora, Clinical Nutritionist and Chief Dietician, Dept of Dietetics at GMCH-32, Chandigarh.

Among others, Dr Ashutosh Sood, GM- Operations and Shivani Gulati, Sr Clinical Nutritionist, Department of Dietetics, Max Super Speciality Hospital, Mohali were also presented. The various stalls at exhibition displayed health products like skimmed milk, soya snacks, probiotic foods, protein powders and other foods for weight management. During occasions, the hospital Dieticians gave free consultation to the people regarding diet needs besides busting many myths about healthy eating.

The hospital organized a special session on ‘Obesity-a growing concern’ which was attended by more than 100 people, including doctors, physicians and general public. Speaking on the growing epidemic of obesity that has engulfed the urban Indian population, Shivani Gulati said that obesity reached epidemic proportions in Indian in 21st century, with morbid obesity affecting 5% of the country's population. In Northern India obesity was most prevalent in urban populations. With urbanization, the country was becoming richer and the citizens were becoming obese simply due to bad lifestyles and seeking medical help for weight reduction. Statistics showed that the country was on the verge of becoming a nation with more than half of its population being obese or suffering from weight related illnesses and diseases, pointed out Gulati.

Gulati further added that processed food contains a huge percentage of trans-fat, sugars, and other unhealthy ingredients that may cause chronic diseases and severe illnesses. The fundamental cause of obesity and overweight was an imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended because of an increased intake of energy-dense foods that are high in fat, and physical inactivity. Foods of different colours have different nutritional values. For example, spinach and carrots are rich in  vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. White and beige foods like white rice, white flour and white sugar and even cheese should be eaten in moderation, because they are either high in saturated or trans fats, or overly processed and lacking in nutritional value.

Dr Ashutosh Sood said that most diseases today were lifestyle oriented and could be prevented to a great extent by amending our eating and exercising habits. Obesity was a global nutritional concern. He said data revealed that 37.5 percent women in Punjab were obese. Considering this burgeoning rise of obesity in the state, we decided to celebrate the National Nutrition Week at hospital. As part of this special week, our team of expert dieticians was educating the residents of the tricity about the nutritional components of various foods and the significance of exercising in order to avoid obesity and related disorders, Dr Sood remarked.

Meanwhile the hospital has also offered free BMI check-up and diet assessment to all those presented at the exhibition.