Azmeh Khan, 30, is a housewife and mother of two. When I first met her in college, she was a short, stout girl, who loved junk food, wore XL sizes, struggled with acne and had begun losing hair. We lost touch for years until last month when Azmeh and I decided to meet up.
The minute Azmeh walked in, I could hardly recognise her. She had lost a lot of weight, had a clear, flawless skin and her lush black hair hung well below her shoulders. I was pleasantly taken aback.
“You look great, Azmeh. What’s your secret?” I put forth a clichéd question.
Eating large amounts of junk food can cause you to gain an unhealthy amount of weight and increase your risk of chronic health problems
Azmeh giggled but her reply was rather boring. “I quit junk food!” she says triumphantly.
“That can’t be true. Quitting junk food can’t catalyse such a transformation!” I reply, refusing to accept her explanation.
“It can. Unhealthy food inevitably affects our bodies in the worst possible ways. We don’t realise but merely nibbling on a seemingly small packet of crisps or wafers can add pounds to our weight, raise blood sugar level, cause headaches, and induce acne,” she explains.
“Did you go on a diet or take any weight-reducing medicines that are extremely popular these days?” I was fishing for more information, wanting to know the secret to her lovely transformation.
“No, I simply began consuming a healthy and well-balanced diet. I cut back on carbonated drinks, stopped munching on sugary treats and began incorporating fruits and vegetables in my daily diet,” Azmeh says. “Also, I began eating smaller portions of healthy food five times a day to avoid overeating during lunches and dinners. Don’t get lured by all that seemingly delicious food, which is actually bad for your health. Be determined to make nutritious meals a part of your life.”
Azmeh is right. Many weight-watchers resolve to quit eating unhealthy, spicy and oily food, but instinctively resume their ‘bad eating habits’ once the designated timeframe of their respective diets is over. The dilemma is that they give in to their food temptations very easily. Indulgence, once in a while is acceptable — even the most conscious weight watchers amongst us can’t resist the temptation to gobble crisps or biscuits or gorge on cheesy pizzas when those mid-afternoon hunger pangs kick-in.
Eating healthy food should be one’s lifestyle not a compulsion. It shouldn’t be the last resort, but a conscious choice for a better and active life independent of any medical or other reasons.
However, making these seemingly innocent food indulgences a part of one’s daily diet is worrisome.
Azmeh is an example of those people whose daily meals would only consist of unwholesome food in the past “I was dependent on fast food in college, which was the root cause of most of my health problems,” she says. “Instead of drinking water, I would sip carbonated drinks, munch on Skittles instead of fruits or nuts and eat out every other night.”
Many people, especially teenagers and young adults in their 20s, follow the same diet which Azmeh followed years ago. As a result, they develop different medical problems like stomach ulcers, kidney and liver problems, high blood sugar and blood pressure. Those who are obese are at a high risk of heart diseases and might even experience episodes of mild depression.
Only when they begin to face serious medical problems or when their physical appearance begin to affect their social and romantic lives, junk food lovers realise that they need to start eating better. Typically, women eat healthy food because they want to lose weight and get married, though men too wish to lose weight, look younger and appear more agile and hence revert to fruits and vegetables.