Mental Tension and Worry- The disease of the modern world

The other day Sindhu, a B Tech final year student told me that she   forgot to write her roll number in the answer book of the examination.

I asked her why?

She answered that she was under  mental tension and as such forgot to write her roll number.

People of all ages starting from a kindergarten student to a senior citizen from all strata of the society -  house wife, engineer, doctor, politician etc  all are under tension in one way or the other.

But is it possible to avoid this mental tension?

Swami Vivekananda says “The calmer we are, the less disturbed our nerves, the more shall we learn, the better our work be”. But seldom we can find a  person leading a calm and peaceful life. Now a days nervous tension has become a regular phenomenon. Some of the stress induced diseases are heart attack and high blood pressure. The degree of tension may differ depending on the place and situation. Some may be undergoing tension in his office , others may suffer in their home and some others may be undergoing both in their office and home as well.

Stress can’t be completely avoided but it can be controlled to a certain extent. Stress can be positive as well as negative. It is the negative stress which causes nerves tension, anger, jealousy and other problems.

If we are able to remain calm under any provocation, to a large extent tension can be minimized. For this we should have strong will power and faith in our self. We should learn to live in the present forgetting the past. By practicing meditation, to a large extent, tranquility can be maintained and also  regular   practice will help in removing negative feelings.

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Happy and Comfortable Life

Key words- Happy life, health, human being, emotions

Everybody in this world  want  to lead a healthy and happy life.  But is it possible to quantify happiness?

Definitely not.  It is a state of mind and depends on the attitude of the person concerned.

The basic requirements of a human being are food, shelter and clothing. One can have a meal of a small quantity of cereal while another can have a five star meal; one can have a small one room hut  for self and family while another can have a multi storey house in a large estate; while one can have a single piece cheap dress while anther can have a gold laced costly three piece suit.

In addition to the basic amenities, one should have good physical and mental health . Then only one should be able to enjoy life to its full extent.

But what is the  state of most of the people of this present day world. From a small baby to a grownup youth to a senior citizen, almost all are under some sort of pressure due to the mental agony ,worry and tension. It can be on the personal account, official account or on social account.

Is there a remedy for all these problems? Yes, it is there; but one has to find the solutions himself and practice accordingly..

If one can control his emotions, his anger, resentment and greediness and then have a positive outlook towards life, one will be able to lead  a happy and joyf

 

Environment and Value Education

Key words: environment, value ,education, natural resources

Education can be through formal and informal channels. Value education with respect to environment should help  to bring  a new sustainable way of life. The environmental value education should inculcate   natural and cultural values, social justice, human heritage, equitable use of resources, managing common property resources in the minds of all persons.

In the present day world we are giving importance to development only with out understanding thee problems caused due to destruction of our environment. Our mind set should be changed so that the development should be with due regard to sustainability or equitable use of resources. The unsustainable development leads to economic growth of the rich and powerful while it makes the poor more poorer

Values in general sense deal with ones own principles and standards.

Values in environment education focus on the following aspects- effective utilization of natural resources, keeping the surroundings clean, excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides in farms, effective use of water and power etc. All these issues are connected to the quality of human life.  They deal with respect for nature. These  values  will help  in leading a  healthy, productive and happy lives in harmony with nature.

Environmental values are the feelings that help us in preserving nature. Values are not constant. Concepts of what constitutes 'right' and 'wrong' behavior change with time. Once shooting of animals was taken as a sport. But now it is considered as a crime. It indicates that value system changes with time.

We have to develop a sense of values that are linked with a better and more sustainable way of life for all people. The positive feelings that support environment include a value for nature, cultures, heritage, and equity. We must also pay attention to  aspects that have negative impacts on the environment. These include our attitude towards the degradation of the environment, loss of species, pollution, poverty, corruption in environmental management and the rights of future generations.

We need to adopt the values to bring about a better way of life on earth for all people and all living creatures.

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 Brisk Walking – The remedy for all diseases

Key words - Blood pressure, Cholesterol, Blood Sugar, Over weight

Everybody in this world want to lead a healthy and comfortable life devoid of diseases. In the present day world, lot of persons are suffering from life style diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes, overweight, high cholesterol etc. At the age of seventeen itself  the youngsters are forced to lead the life of   seventy year old persons

Is there a remedy for this? Yes, sure it is there. Brisk walking is a simple and easy exercise to reduce the ill effects of all these life style diseases. It also helps to improve metabolism. Along with exercise, it is very essential to control the diet.

According to the World Health Organisation “ A walker loses weight, ,reduces conditions associated with hypertension, lowers cholesterol, slows ageing and  increases strength ,flexibility and stamina.” Thirty minutes of brisk walking helps to burn off around 200 calories.

There is a saying in China  that “ Old age is inevitable but there is no excuse for senility’. Sedentary living and passive life style lead to weak muscles and reduced stamina. Few minutes of brisk walking every morning will help in reducing the bad effects of ageing. Mental fitness is also very important just like physical fitness.

Walking can help prevent osteoporosis (thinning of the bones), control diabetes and also relieve from back pain.  It will also be having a tranquillising effect on the ill effects of sedentary life as well as that  of the  highly stressed environment .

Walking can be in the morning or in the evening.  An early morning walk warms up body and also mind. Mind will be filled up with positive thoughts. Evening walk is the time for taking stock of one’s day time activities. It will also help in having a good sleep in the night.

A large number of scientific studies have shown that brisk walking develops cardiovascular health and protects against heart diseases.

Walking increases the amount of oxygen supplied to all tissues, increases HDL 

Welcome 2021

Time and tide wait for no man, thus goes the old adage.

Year 2020 will be down in a couple of hours from now. Year 2021 has reached our door steps.

Doctors advise that all persons (children and grownups) should have an annual check up of their body to find out any disorder and take corrective steps. But seldom one has a mental check to identify their drawbacks and take corrective steps. In the present day world, majority of persons are undergoing mental tension and  worry resulting in agony.

No doubt every body would like to lead a healthy and happy life. But unfortunately for various reasons people are not able to remain happy. It follows the old dictum:

                        “ Water water every where                           

                            But not a drop to drink”

So what to do?

Fill your mind with pleasant thoughts, Be positive.

Have balanced food, regular physical exercise.

Do your duty and forget about the result.

Wish you all a very happy year 2021!

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Ageing - the natural process

Ageing - the natural process

tags: ageing, life style, diseases, free radicals, antioxidants

Everybody in this world  want to remain youthful always. But unfortunately as days pass, one gets older and changes take place both physically and mentally, On getting older many problems and diseases crop up. The diseases can be classified as life style diseases like blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol etc. 

Ageing is a natural process which affects the whole body. Since it is a natural process, it can’t be stopped altogether but can only  be slowed down to a certain extent. The rate of ageing will speed up on account of lack of exercise, improper food, lack of sleep and mental worry, 

By correcting the lifestyle, the rate of ageing can be slowed down considerably.

In old age skin loses its elasticity, eye sight gets weakened, muscles weaken, black hair turns to white, teeth get decayed and various other diseases increase. Heredity plays a very important role in ageing. Highly corrosive oxidising elements called free radicals attack our body. 

The main causes of free radicals are air pollution, strong sun light, cigarette smoking and absence of nutritious food. As  a remedial step, antioxidants should be taken which break down the free radicals. The main anti oxidants are vitamins - A, C and E and the mineral selenium.

The main effects of ageing are:

Increased chances for heart attack, arthritis , cancer

Impaired hearing, loss of teeth, cataract etc

Black hair turninng white

Poor sleep, irritability

Due to loss of calcium bones turn more brittle

As mentioned earlier, ageing is a natural  process which can’t be stopped but can be only slowed down by changing the life style.

M

AVIAL

(A special mixed vegetable curry of Kerala)

Avial is a special dish of Kerala. It is a mixed vegetable curry and invariably is a must for all feasts in connection with marriage, birthday etc.

The legend behind the origin of Avial is as follows- In connection with the marriage of the daughter of  Maharaja, there was a grand feast. After the feast, lot of vegetables were left over. The Maharaja who saw these left over vegetables, asked his chief cook whether he can prepare any curry with it. The cook then used all the left over vegetables and prepared a new curry and called it Avial.

Ingredients (for 10 persons)

Carrots                      3

Beans                        10

Raw banana               2

Drum stick                 2

Ash gourd                  200g

Yam                           200g

Snake gourd               200g

Coconut (small)          1

Green Chillies             8

Curd                            1 cup

Turmeric powder        ¼ tea spoon

Salt                              1 tea spoon

Coconut (Refined) oil  1 table spoon

Curry leaves                3 sprigs

Water                           1 cup

Preparation

*Wash thoroughly all the vegetables.

*Cut them into small pieces of approximately 40 mm.

*Put these cut vegetables into a pressure cooker, add

 Water , salt , turmeric powder and mix it.

*Boil these vegetables for 10 minutes with out keeping

 the weight of the cooker.

*Grind the grated coconut and green chillies into a thick paste.

*Add curd to it and mix.

*Take out the cooker , open the lid and add the coconut - curd mix.

*Pour the oil over it and add the curry leaves.

*Mix thoroughly and Avial is ready.

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NB: Since Avial contains lot of green vegetables and is prepared without much

masalas it is  specially recommended  for diabetic patients.