All posts by HealthyLife

HealthyLife is a part of www.WeRIndia.com, an all India – centric website (https://healthylife.werindia.com) and is solely owned and operated by WeRIndia.com. It is a Indian nutritional portal providing educational articles.This nutritional port was launched on February 5th, 2015.
Reduce fatigue with this herbal chai

Reduce fatigue with this herbal chai

To boost immune system and reduce fatigue try this homemade traditional herbal chai or tea.

This tea contains nutmeg, cardamom, cinnamon, Hemidesmus root (Indian sarsaparilla or sugandhi), dry ginger, dried dandelion root, cloves, black pepper,

  • Hemidesmus Indian Sarsaparilla roots are very fragrant. One can use fresh root or dried root. It is also called nannari root. It is a detoxifier, aphrodisiac, helps in digestion, reduces body inflammation and improves sleeping.
  • Nutmeg relieves body pain, soothes indigestion and improved cognitive function. It is slightly sweet spice. It is good for insomnia, regulates blood pressure and is an important ingredient of Ayurvedic medicine and home remedies.
  • We all know how clove is helpful – it relieves pain and good for digestion.
  • Dandelion root – commonly known as kahnpool, Dandelion helps in cleansing liver, reduces body fat and contains fiber that helps in clear bowel movement.
  • Cardamom seeds helps in calming the mind and increases nervous system strength. It has aphrodisiac property and helps in overcoming impotency. It reduces asthma and bronchitis by improving blood circulation.
  • Black pepper – improves immune system, reduces microbial invasion. It is good for reducing cold, cough and flu symptoms.
  • Ginger – Rich with antioxidant, ginger whether dry or raw is helpful is good for overall health – it reduces body inflammation and improves digestion.
  • Cinnamon – Reduces bladder infection, reduces cholesterol level, good for arthritis condition and is an immune booster.
  • Anise seeds – Improves metabolism and clears digestive system

 How to make immune booster herbal chai?

Boil 3 cups of water. Add 1.5 tsp cinnamon powder, 1.5 tsp grated ginger or ginger powder, 1 tsp nutmeg powder or crushed nutmeg, ¼ tsp cardamom, 1 tsp dandelion root, 1 or 2 cloves, ¼ crushed black pepper, 1 tsp anise seeds and few nannari (Hemidesmus) crushed roots (or 1.5 tsp powder) and 2 lemon size jaggery. Boil the content for few minutes and turn off the heat.

Add milk or almond milk and strain.  Drink this once or twice a day to get benefit.

Benefit of drinking this herbal tea is, it reduces body inflammation, it is immune system booster and fatigue goes away.

  • Avoid soda, caffeinated drinks if you take this herbal tea. Caffeinated drinks and soda can interfere with active ingredients of the above-mentioned herbs in the tea.

Remedy: Online grandma. Healthylife.werindia.com

Image references: www.werindia.com, Flora of India

Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: July 14, 2022
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GLUTEN -FREE BESAN FLOUR PANCAKE (DOSA) RECIPE

Gluten- Free Besan Flour PanCake (Dosa) Recipe

Besan flour is nothing but chickpea flour. It is naturally higher in protein than wheat-based flours. It also stands above wheat flour in protein and folate content. One-half cup contains 10 grams of protein, compared to 8 grams in whole-grain wheat flour and just 6 grams in white flour. One-half cup of besan flour has 178 calories and 3 grams of total fat. also offer a good array of vitamins and minerals. Studies say that besan flour helps in reducing body inflammation and is also a good support for glowing skin – it is good facial mask. Besan flour does not contain gluten, so it makes a good substitute for wheat flour in gluten-free diets.

Try this simple and easy to make dosa (pancake) recipe at home for evening snack.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup chickpea flour (besan)
  • Chopped ginger: 1 inch
  • Water 1/2 to 1 cup
  • Asafetida – a pinch
  • Turmeric powder – one tsp
  • Baking soda: 2 pinches
  • Green chilli (chopped) 2
  • Onion medium size – 1
  • Tomato medium size -1
  • Coriander leaves, finely chopped
  • Curry leaves chopped
  • Coconut milk – 1/4 cup (optional)
  • Salt to taste
  • Oil for drizzling

Preparation:

  1. To make the batter, remove the lumps from  chickpea flour.
  2. To flour add asafetida, turmeric powder, baking soda, onion, tomato, green chilies, coriander leaves, curry leaves and salt. Mix well.
  3. If you are using coconut milk then, add coconut milk and water then mix well again. Do not make very thin batter.
  4. When the dosa tava is hot enough, pour a half cup of batter on tava and using a ladle spread evenly into a round pancake shape.
  5. Drizzle oil along the edges of the pancake and cook for 2-3 minutes, on medium heat till the bottom is golden brown. Tilt and cook other side of the pancake and cook for another 2 minutes.
  6. Serve hot along with coconut or green chutney.
Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: July 13, 2022
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Natarajasana Dance pose

Lord Of The Dance Pose Natarajasana

Natarajsana is known as Lord of the Dance Pose and is originated by Lord Shiva who is Yoga Guru himself. The pose depicts Lord Shiva’s fondness for dance, expression, and music.  It is also a classical dance form of Indian dance called bharathanatyam. This yoga pose is advanced yoga pose and requires balancing act on one leg. Benefits of practicing this pose are : Strenghtens legs, arms, shoulder and spine. It boosts metabolism, helps to focus, and improves memory. It is a pose that helps to strengthen the abdomen area, core strength and boosts confidence. The pose involves entire body – Healthy Life

LEVEL : Advanced

Anatomy :Ankles, Hamstrings, Hips, Knees, Spine, Thighs

Pose Type :Backbend, Balance, Heart Opener, Standing

Sanskrit: Natarajasana (not-ah-raj-AHS-anah) nata = dancer / raja = king

BENEFITS:

  • Lengthens the hamstring of the standing leg
  • Stretches the hip flexors of the non-standing leg
  • Opens the chest
  • Improves balance and stability
  • Strengthens the entire spine; ankle, knee, and hip joints; and supportive structures of the joints in the standing leg

CONTRAINDICATIONS

  • Hip pathologies
  • Balance deficits
  • Low back pathologies
  • Ankle, knee, hip, or shoulder injury

HOW TO

  1. Start in Tadasana (Mountain pose), with feet hip-distance apart, and slowly begin to shift your weight over to your right foot. Engage your right thigh to support the knee of the standing leg.
  2. Set your gaze in front of you. Inhale and lift your right arm with palm facing forward.
  3. Exhale and flex the left knee. Reach your left hand behind you, with thumb facing upward, and grasp the inner left foot.
  4. Inhale and lengthen the spine, lifting out of your torso and tucking the chin.
  5. Exhale and draw the abdominals while keeping the chest lifted. Begin to bend forward at the right hip, letting your gaze travel downward. Feel free to take a micro bend at the right knee.
  6. Hold this pose for up to 5-10 slow breaths.
  7. To exit Lord of the Dance pose: Inhale, press through your grounded foot, and rise to an upright position. Exhale, and release your arms and knee. Repeat on the opposite side.

MODIFY OR REPLACE

Alternatives:

  • Stay standing and reach back for the non-standing leg for a quad stretch.
  • Hinge slightly forward to challenge balance; then return to standing.

Modifications:

  • Keep a slight bend in the knee to avoid hyperextension.
  • Place hands at the thighs or hips for support.

SEQUENCING TIPS

Before:

After:

  • Warrior 3 (Virabhadrasana III)
  • Standing Forward Bend (Uttanasana)

TEACHING CUES

  • Keep the upper and lower spine extended, and draw the chest forward.
  • Keep the hips stacked equally, side-by-side. Keep the knees parallel by engaging the inner thighs slightly.
  • Hinge first at the hips and press the free foot into the hand, keeping the abdominals drawn up and in toward the spine.
  • On each inhale, feel your chest expand and spine lengthen. On each exhale, feel your hips sink deeper.

VARIATIONS

  • Reach over the shoulders to grab the raised foot. Press the toes upward as you begin to bend forward further.

WATCH OUT FOR

  • Hyperextension of the low spine
  • Shoulder pain or strain

Image and article published here with prior permission from https://beyogi.com/

Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: July 8, 2022
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FSSAI food technology for safe food

Technology for food safety : FSSAI mulling using next-gen technology tools to ensure food safety, quality

During the pandemic, instead of visiting restaurants, people ordering food online with help of zomato, Swiggy, Uber App,  Doordash etc. These Apps and technologies making life more comfortable and safe to get hot and fresh food delivered at home easily.  Similarly, people are ordering online groceries and these items are delivered to door steps from grocery stores. Many such innovative services are available in India and other countries. One must assure that all the food that are delivered or received by customers are good both in quality quantity wise as well as safe to consume. FSSAI of India, is exploring the options to introduce blockchain and machine learning to ensure food that are going to be available to customers are safe and healthy. This also involves not just testing food ingredients, quality, also the materials that are used for packing purposes -Healthy Life. 

Food safety regulator FSSAI on Tuesday said it is exploring the possibility of using next generation technological tools like blockchain and machine learning to ensure food safety and quality.

Such tools assume importance as the current pandemic situation has negatively affected many aspects of routine regulatory inspections, monitoring, and surveillance at both the domestic level and border points, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) CEO Arun Singhal said.

These regulatory inspections are essential for ensuring food safety and quality for people, he added. 

Addressing a virtual event organised by industry chamber CII, Singhal urged the industry and researchers to come up with simple tools or interventions which regulators can use.

For instance, a technique to detect the ratio of materials in a blend, a tool to prevent food fraud, real-time safety monitoring through affordable and rapid testing, among others, he said. “FSSAI is exploring the possibilities of using technological tools like blockchain, machine learning, etc in obtaining traceability information,” Singhal said.

Next generation tools like genome sequencing and innovations in chemical and molecular analysis can be very useful in the area of food authenticity and integrity, he pointed out. Also, Internet of Things (IoT) has taken a big leap forward and can be used for mounting production and processing operations, he added.

With regard to recycled-PET and recycled plastics for food products, Singhal said FSSAI has promulgated regulations to allow alternate packaging materials. “However, the authority is also aware of the limitations. These materials are not available in volumes that are desired by the industry,” he said, and urged the industry, academia and research bodies to explore ways of making these materials available in sufficient volumes at reasonable prices.

For FSSAI, Singhal said the major thrust areas are simplification of the regulatory regime, IT platforms, and registering as many food businesses as possible. Currently in India, close to 5 million food businesses are registered and this outreach must continue, he said.

“Many are small businesses, where some intervention is required in terms of capacity building. So that is a major thrust area. And in this direction we”re already ensured the food safety training and certification program,” he said.

FSSAI has already trained about 500,000 food safety supervisors in various food businesses. In addition, during the pandemic, about 2.6 lakh persons were trained on safe food and hygiene practices required for COVID-19, he added.

That apart, the FSSAI is gradually moving towards periodic risk-based inspections, third-party audits, focus checks and interventions to ensure safety and quality of products.

The second major thrust area of FSSAI, Singhal said, is to strengthen the food safety ecosystem at the state level.

FSSAI has started providing technical and financial assistance to states and union territories by creation of infrastructure and testing equipment for mobilising resources to carry out manual special camps inspections, awareness drives etc, he said.

FSSAI has signed memorandums of understanding with states. Last year, MoUs were signed with 23 states, and a substantial amount of funds were released to states. That process is continuing this year as well, he added.

The third major trust area is to strengthen the food testing capabilities in the country. As of now, there are about 252 food testing laboratories notified by FSSAI and all of them are accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL), he said.

In the past three years, FSSAI has released about Rs 300 crore to various state food testing laboratories for strengthening, purchasing equipment, and setting up microbiological testing facilities.

“Microbiological infections are very important. So we are planning to strengthen the microbiological testing facilities in labs,” he added.

For more information: https://www.fssai.gov.in/upload/media/FSSAI_News_Mulling_Outlook_28_07_2021.pdf

Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: July 4, 2022
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Bread Samosa recipe

Bread Samosa recipe

If you are fed up of eating bread, don’t throw bread instead prepare delicious bread samosa. All you need is few vegetables and masala powders that available in Indian grocery stores. It is easy to prepare and will be a yummy snack that kids love to have.

Why not give it a try?

What you need?

  1. Peas & carrot – ½ cup
  2. Boiled potato -6-8
  3. Ginger paste – ½ tsp
  4. All purpose flour – 1 cup
  5. Coriander powder – ½ tsp
  6. Green chilly paste – ½ tsp
  7. Cumin – ½ tsp
  8. Chilli powder -1/2 tsp
  9. Amchur (mango powder) -1/2 tsp
  10. Garam masala – ½ tsp
  11. Ajwain – ½ tsp
  12. Cilantro chopped -1 Tbs
  13. Mint leaves chopped – 1 Tbs
  14. Bread pieces – 12
  15. Oil – for frying

 How to prepare?

  1. Boil potatoes and remove skin.
  2. Heat a pan on medium flame, add 1 Tbs oil. To heated oil add cumin, ginger and green chilli paste followed by peas and carrot. Fry all these ingredients and remove from the stove.
  3. Now, smash boiled potato and add it to peas -carrot masala along with – coriander powder, Amchur powder, garam masala powder.
  4. Add cilantro and mint chopped leaves, chilli powder, salt and mix well.
  5. Remove bread crest and cut the white portion to half. Sprinkle little ajwain on top of white pieces and using a chapatti roller flatten the white portion.
  6. Add little water to all-purpose flour and prepare paste. Apply this paste to rolled bread piece and prepare a cone by folding the bread piece. While folding the cone, apply little paste to the edge to keep folding intact*.
  7. Fill the potato-peas masala in the cone and close the cone.
  8. Heat oil in deep pan and fry bread cone containing masala to golden brown color.
  9. Serve hot samosa with green chutney or tomato ketchup.

*If you find it hard to make a cone, just place the vegetable masala in the center and fold it like a spring roll  and fry!!

** Chutneys are available in most Indian grocery stores. If you want to prepare healthy chutney recipe then, you can find one such recipe here.

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Reference: www.werindia.com 

Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: June 21, 2022
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Jal Jeevan Mission India

In India Jal Jeevan Mission Achieves 50% Completion Milestone, 9.6 Crore (50%) Rural Households Now Have Access To Tap Water

Keeping in line with Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision to provide every rural home with safe drinking water, the country has achieved the milestone of 50% rural households having access to tap water connections. Goa, Telangana, A&N Islands, D&N Haveli and Daman & Diu, Puducherry and Haryana have already achieved 100% household connections. Punjab, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Bihar have coverage of more than 90% and are progressing fast towards attaining the status of ‘Har Ghar Jal’.

In a move to attain “Gram Swarajya”, the dream of Mahatma Gandhi, Jal Jeevan Mission aims to empower the Panchayati Raj Institutions and communities by engaging them in water supply schemes from the very beginning. Over 9.59 Crore rural households spread across States/ UTs are getting water within their premises. Women and girls these households are now free from the century old drudgery of walking long distances in scorching heat, rain and snow in search of water. ‘Har Ghar Jal’ is a flagship programme of the Union Government, implemented by Jal Jeevan Mission under the Ministry of Jal Shakti, in partnership with States/ UTs to ensure tap water connection in every rural household by 2024.

At the time of launch Jal Jeevan Mission in 2019, only 3.23 Crore households i.e. 17% of the rural population had access to drinking water through taps. The burden of arrangement of water for daily household needs mostly fell on women and young girls. There is sufficient evidence to suggest that school attendance among girls was significantly lower in summers when due to increased requirements for water, multiple trips were needed. After the launch of Jal Jeevan Mission and improvement in access to tap water connection within their premises, considerable improvement in this regard has been noticed. As on 27.05.2022, 108 districts, 1,222 blocks, 71,667 Gram Panchayats and 1,51,171 villages have become “Har Ghar Jal”, wherein all rural households have been provided with drinking water through taps.

This year as the nation celebrates ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’, special Gram Sabhas are being convened across the length and breadth of the country to discuss and deliberate on issues related to drinking water in a move to attain ‘WASH Prabudh Gaon’. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has addressed and interacted with Sarpanch and members of Pani Samitis on multiple occasions in the past, motivating them to take onus of the programme as they are the ultimate custodians of the water supply infrastructure created under ‘Har Ghar Jal’. Under JJM, support is provided to Panchayats by the State Government through Implementing Support Agencies (ISAs) in community engagement, building capacity of the Pani Samitis, and taking up O&M activities.

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1828956

Image credit: https://www.ibef.org/

Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: June 2, 2022
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Warrior 3 pose

Learn To Balance By Practicing Warrior 3 Pose

As we age, we may have difficulty in balancing and focusing. There are several yoga poses that help us to keep balanced. Warrior 3 is one such pose, an intermediate pose that creates stability and helps to keep focused. It strengthens back muscles, calves and feet. It improves balance and prevents injuries. In addition, it improves awareness to the surroundings and brings body to stability by adjusting to surroundings. By regular practice on can get into the pose easily – Healthy life

LEVEL :Intermediate

Anatomy : Abdomen|Biceps|Chest|Hamstrings|Quadriceps|Shoulders|Spine|Triceps

Pose Type :Balance|Standing

Sanskrit :Virabhadrasana II VEER-ah-bha=DRAS-anna Virabhadra = a warrior from Shiva’s being

Benefits

  • Strengthens the entire body
  • Improves balance
  • Improves posture
  • Aids in increasing energy and boosting concentration
  • Contraindications
  • High Blood Pressure
  • Back problems or injury
  • Migraines

How To

  1. Stand with your feet at the top of your mat, about hips-width distance apart
  2. Inhale, extend your arms to the ceiling
  3. Begin to balance on your right leg
  4. Ground down through your right foot
  5. Exhale, begin to hinge forward with your upper body
  6. Lift and kick your left leg out behind you
  7. Find core engagement to aid in your balance
  8. Keep your left foot flexed
  9. Square your hips and upper body down to your mat
  10. Wrap your biceps in towards your face
  11. Direct your gaze towards the floor
  12. To release, return slowly to standing and then repeat on the other side

Modify or Replace

  • Rest your hands at heart center to lessen the energizing aspects of Warrior III

Sequencing Tips

Before:

  • Warrior I (Virabhadrasana I)
  • Warrior II (Virabhadrasana II)
  • Mountain Pose (Tadasana)

After:

  • Toppling Tree (Patan Vrksasana)
  • Standing Splits (Urdhva Prasarita Eka Padasana)
  • High Lunge (Ashta Chandrasana)

Teaching Cues

  • Flex your back foot and draw your pinky toe towards the ground to level your hips
  • Become a capital ‘T’ with your body and keep your shoulders, chest, and hips in a straight line
  • Find a minimal bend in your standing leg
  • Ground down through the four corners of your standing foot

Variations

  • Eagle Arms
  • Hand(s) to a block
  • Against a wall

Watch Out For

  • Hinging chest and shoulders far forward
  • Arching in the low back
  • Dropping extended leg towards the mat

This article and image published here with prior permission from beyogi.com

Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: April 29, 2022
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Breath tester for covid FDA

FDA Authorizes First COVID-19 Diagnostic Test Using Breath Samples

This test provides results in less than three minutes!

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for the first COVID-19 diagnostic test that detects chemical compounds in breath samples associated with a SARS-CoV-2 infection. The test can be performed in environments where the patient specimen is both collected and analyzed, such as doctor’s offices, hospitals and mobile testing sites, using an instrument about the size of a piece of carry-on luggage. The test is performed by a qualified, trained operator under the supervision of a health care provider licensed or authorized by state law to prescribe tests and can provide results in less than three minutes.

“Today’s authorization is yet another example of the rapid innovation occurring with diagnostic tests for COVID-19,” said Jeff Shuren, M.D., J.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health. “The FDA continues to support the development of novel COVID-19 tests with the goal of advancing technologies that can help address the current pandemic and better position the U.S. for the next public health emergency.”

The performance of the InspectIR COVID-19 Breathalyzer was validated in a large study of 2,409 individuals, including those with and without symptoms. In the study, the test was shown to have 91.2% sensitivity (the percent of positive samples the test correctly identified) and 99.3% specificity (the percent of negative samples the test correctly identified). The study also showed that, in a population with only 4.2% of individuals who are positive for the virus, the test had a negative predictive value of 99.6%, meaning that people who receive a negative test result are likely truly negative in areas of low disease prevalence. The test performed with similar sensitivity in a follow-up clinical study focused on the omicron variant.

The InspectIR COVID-19 Breathalyzer uses a technique called gas chromatography gas mass-spectrometry (GC-MS) to separate and identify chemical mixtures and rapidly detect five Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection in exhaled breath. When the InspectIR COVID-19 Breathalyzer detects the presence of VOC markers of SARS-CoV-2, a presumptive (unconfirmed) positive test result is returned and should be confirmed with a molecular test. Negative results should be considered in the context of a patient’s recent exposures, history and the presence of clinical signs and symptoms consistent with COVID-19, as they do not rule out SARS-CoV-2 infection and should not be used as the sole basis for treatment or patient management decisions, including infection control decisions.

InspectIR expects to be able to produce approximately 100 instruments per week, which can each be used to evaluate approximately 160 samples per day. At this level of production, testing capacity using the InspectIR COVID-19 Breathalyzer is expected to increase by approximately 64,000 samples per month.

Source: https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-authorizes-first-covid-19-diagnostic-test-using-breath-samples

Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: April 19, 2022
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