Eating Healthy

Bini Dahal

Over the years, my relationship with food has changed drastically. Before it was more about enjoying whatever I felt like I wanted. Now, it is more about practising mindfulness and understanding how my body reacts to what I consume. How did this change come about? I point this to the growing scope and influence of social media. By remaining an integral part of our lives, social media has also led to a change in our food habits. This is why there is a growing consciousness among people about health and nutrition these days.

To simply state, the world of food is highly complex. When we talk about a balanced meal, it is about consuming different micronutrients like carbohydrates, protein, fibres and even probiotics in the required proportion. Because people today suffer from a myriad of health problems, the concept of mindful consumption is not stressed enough. However, lately, a large number of social media influencers have been found promoting healthy meal plans and ideas that incorporate both a mixture of diet and exercise. 

The idea of human health is simple. Just like scoring well in exams requires a certain level of effort and rigour, the same thing applies to our health as well. To build good health, people need to put in a certain level of effort and even sacrifice consuming fixed food items. Through such self-discipline, we are basically rewarding ourselves with an improved health system. Subsequently, this gets reflected externally through our physical appearance. 

While healthy meals are getting promoted, there still remains a large population who believe they cannot sacrifice the ‘happiness that comes from certain food’. But by saying this, we cannot live without sugar and gluten-based products. We are practically ignoring the health hazards these ingredients cause to us. Obviously, consuming these items sometimes is not a problem. But sometimes become every day if we are unable to control ourselves. 

And it’s not like there are no alternatives. Just by looking up on the internet, we come across different recipes that are healthier and more delicious than preservative-filled food. It’s just that putting in effort is very difficult for us. Each day, I go on the internet for some tips and techniques on food. The more I search about it and reflect on my habits, the more I am able to identify and improve the lapses in my consumption pattern. This is on an individual level. But at the regional and national levels, most people are completely unaware of it. 

Also, eating healthy has become a costly phenomenon. And with growing commercialisation, we have better options. Why spend hours in the kitchen when you can run to the shop and buy preservative-contained industry-manufactured food items? 

Such a mindset is present everywhere. We rarely find healthy eating habits among the Nepali population. Our national dish Daal-Bhat is a perfect mixture of different nutrients and micronutrients. But the way we plate our food is problematic. School meal choices are also very dismal. Cafeterias have been found selling fast food and junk food items to children. So, it is no surprise that obesity and hormonal imbalances have become a household name. It is important that the government help regulates people’s dynamics toward food. The most important function of food i.e., its characteristic of providing the required energy to the body, can and should not be forgotten.