Diet Tips For Diwali

Deepawali or Diwali is certainly the biggest and the brightest of all Hindu festivals. It is the “festival of lights”. It is celebrated with lightening small earthen lamps (diyas), preparing delicious snacks (faral) & enjoying it with friends & family. It also signifies the new year for the Hindus.

It symbolically honors the victory of knowledge over ignorance, of hope over despair, and of good over evil. So let’s get fooducated & enjoy this Diwali to the fullest.

Diet Tips:

• Enjoy with friends & family: Connect with the people with love & care. The happiness & satisfaction which you get while spending quality time with your loved ones is far more & important than eating an exotic dish.
• Portion Size: Celebrating any festival doesn’t mean that you have to eat mindlessly. Mindfully eating the food will not kill the joy of eating. Infact, it will give you more satisfaction later on as you could control your craving, a kind of victory to you. Share your food with loved ones as the joy gets doubled with sharing.
• Savor each bite: Enjoy each bite of your food. It gives some time to your brain to send signals of fullness.
• Homemade is good: The advantage of homemade food is you know the ingredients & amounts. You can replace the high fat items or lessen its amount. So homemade snacks are comparatively lesser in calories apart from being more hygienic.
• Have a balanced diet: Avoid eating other fried items. ( faral items are calorically dense) Eat chapattis or rotis instead of parathhas & puris. Don’t forget to include fruits & vegetables. Balanced diet will ensure adequate nutrients which will be utilized for the digestion & thus can prevent indigestion, stomach fullness & bloating.
• Drink plenty of water: If you are not hydrated well, you may misunderstand thirst as hunger resulting into overeating.
• Read the labels carefully: If you opt to buy readymade food, check on the ingredients. Sweets labeled as sugar free may be containing artificial sweeteners in large quantities or may be high in fats. Paying attention to only calories & not to the nutritional value is not wise. Studies have indicated that sweeteners in large quantities can be potentially hazardous. Pregnant & lactating mothers should avoid them due to its undesirable harmful effects on the infants.
• Be innovative: If you want to give a break to the traditional food items, you can prepare some healthy recipes or can prepare the traditional food in nontraditional way like baking or air frying instead of frying.
• It is always better to discuss your festive diet with the dietitian if you have any major health complication like diabetes, kidney disease & heart diseases.

May this Diwali illuminate each heart with hope & its light empowers each one of us to commit good deeds that brings us closer to each other & to the nature.

Have a prosperous & safe Diwali with lots of love, fun, goodness & well-being.