Is sugar really "the" villain?

Every other day there are some post, article, or discussion that revolves around food. And one of the most talked about food item is, <drumroll>, SUGAR. Someone or the other is discussing the ill-effects of consuming sugar and how everyone MUST stop eating sugar. So, my question is - is sugar derived from sugarcane really that big an enemy for our health?

In today's times with so much of gender-equality, with both members of the family working in offices, OR young unmarried people going out to study after school, cooking is becoming a rarity (please don't get me wrong here - with both partners working and the want to live in a nuclear family people don't have time to cook). People mostly rely on restaurants OR on packaged food items OR on quick fix junk food OR on people who'll come and cook for them. Many young students who study in colleges, but live away from their home rely on inexpensive, processed junk food. There's a restaurant (even without naming the restaurant, all will know which restaurant I'm referring to here), whose ads will constantly tell the listeners that an entire meal of burger, fries, and cold drink will cost Rs. 99 only. Each of the burgers sold by this outlet used to have about 2.6 gms of sugar per serving in 1989; however, there has been a shocking increase to 10 gms of sugar per serving!!! (https://news.sky.com/story/shocking-rise-in-sugar-and-salt-in-mcdonalds-burgers-in-last-30-years-11287119)

These "added sugars" in these junk foods, sugary drinks, or cereals are really high and these contribute to various problems such as weight gain, diabetes, etc. and with no additional health benefits. Studies indicate that liquid carbohydrates such as sugar-sweetened beverages are less filling than solid food, causing people to continue to feel hungry after drinking them despite their high calories. These sugary drinks (even energy drinks such as Gatorade will fall under this category - when compared to the 34 grams of sugar in Gatorade and 37 grams of sugar in a cola) are coming under scrutiny for their contributions to the development of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and other chronic conditions. The average 20-ounce bottle of sugar-sweetened soda, lemonade, or iced tea contains about 65 grams of added sugar, often from high-fructose corn syrup. That’s the equivalent of 16 teaspoons of table sugar! Imagine that!!!!

Fact time: Eating too much high fructose corn syrup can lead to insulin resistance, obesity, Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure.

Sugarcane-derived sugar, if eaten in small quantities everyday, is perfectly fine. A good rule of thumb is to avoid products that have a lot of added sugar, including skipping foods that list “sugar” as the first or second ingredient. The usual recommendation suggests a stricter added-sugar limit of no more than 100 calories per day (about 6 teaspoons or 24 grams) for most adult women and no more than 150 calories per day (about 9 teaspoons or 36 grams of sugar) for most men. For children ages 2-18 to less than 6 teaspoons or 24 grams per day.

As per National Institute of Nutrition, India -

"With increasing urbanization, energy-rich diets containing higher amount of fat and sugar, which also provide less dietary fibre and complex carbohydrates, are being frequently consumed, particularly by high income groups. In addition, the urban population is turning to be more sedentary with little physical activity. Consumption of alcohol, providing empty calories, and tobacco use is also common among them. Hence, prevalence of disorders like obesity, heart disease, hypertension (high blood pressure) diabetes and certain types of cancers is on the increase."

So no, sugarcane-derived sugar, if taken in small quantities, is just fine and NOT a villain. Most of the time, we are not consuming 6 teaspoons of sugarcane sugar in a day anyway it'll be mostly less than that. And if once in a while when there's a festival or a special occasion, do give in to your sweet cravings - though a smaller portion and chew it slowly. Few things to try are - have plain curd/yogurt AND drink water instead of carbonated, sugary drinks.

And be sweet to people - that adds to your beauty!

Amelia Island | Florida

Earlier this year, on my birthday... My son dearest, hubby dearest, and me had gone to Amelia Island, Florida for my birthday. The only thought was to celebrate my birthday in a different way and therefore, the trip to this beautiful island.

Amelia Island is the southernmost of Sea Islands on the east coast of the US. Fernandina Beach and Amelia City are both located on this island. These islands have been named after Princess Amelia, daughter of George II of Great Britain.

We drove from Atlanta, GA to Amelia Island. As per the map, it would take about 5 hrs 30 minutes; however, we were expecting we will reach in 6 or 6 hrs and 30 minutes. However, it took us about 7 hours to reach! With the 30-minute break we took and the traffic jam on the way. On reaching and after settling down, we went to Fernandina Beach. Very serene. My son was happy with the number of big sea shells he found! In fact, finding big sea shells on Fernandina Beach was one of the reasons of choosing Amelia over Destin (which has beautiful, clear water!).

Fernandina Beach in the evening about 7 pm

Apart from visiting the beach, we wanted to see Amelia Island Light, which is the oldest existing lighthouse in Florida. This lighthouse was built in 1838, and the brick tower was originally 50-feet tall. Later, a lantern was installed, making the height of the tower increased to 64 feet.
This is the first time I saw a lighthouse! We were expecting a tour of the lighthouse, as were some more people who came up till the lighthouse. Unfortunately, the lighthouse was closed - on a Saturday! No tours were scheduled. The only day the tours are scheduled are Wednesdays. How many tourists come on a Wednesday? It's neither near a Sunday nor a Saturday!

Amelia Island Lighthouse, with yes, Sourav standing in the front

In the downtown area, you'll find restaurants to suit your taste, a historic trolley ride, and an amazing fudge shop - Fantastic Fudge. It's a corner shop and you cannot miss it with the aroma of the fudge and many people bustling in and out of the shop.

Yes, that's me eating the tasty ice cream outside Fantastic Fudge

Till you are there, don't miss the beautiful sunrise!

And now the funniest bit. The resort where we stayed in, had the coffee maker in the bathroom. Drink coffee and do - the do. Or the other way round?
Enough said! ;)

Lasership

Hello all!

www.amazon.com or www.amazon.co.in

What does the above website mean to you? For me, it meant finding a plethora of products under one roof of amazon. I've been a member of Amazon Prime since December 2014 and it has the benefits of getting my packages under the 2-day shipping. I tried it in India and I tried it here in the US too. Most of my packages in the US come through UPS, which is a trusted name.

The latest package that was placed on June 23, 2015 was under Amazon Prime. I had to get it on June 25, 2015 by 8 PM. I found out the package was to be delivered through a company named 'Lasership' here. On tracking the package through the Website, it shows the package had to reach by June 25, 2015. I waited for another two days and then called the customer service on June 28. the package had to reach me, hopefully, by today that is June 30. The Lasership website has the following under the 'About Us' section -

"LaserShip makes deliveries happen faster for businesses and consumers. We’ve developed a unique east coast delivery network positioned to enhance the speed and flexibility of last mile delivery."

What unique delivery network are they talking about?

On exploring more, I found that there are many more people who have faced problems with Lasership delivery. There are videos put up on the Internet wherein the Lasership delivery guys throw the packages near the door from inside the car and leave - without even ringing the doorbell. Now I have doubts if I will even get my package for which I paid money!

Why has Amazon even tied up with Lasership?

Matsya (Fish) Avtar

After finishing his duties as a king, Satyavrata lived a quiet life with his wife on the banks of a river. Once, while bathing in the river, he came upon a little fish who could speak. "Save me from the big fish, O Mighty King, and I will save the world."

Feeling sorry for the fish who talked big, Satyavrata took it out of the river and gave it shelter in his earthen pot. The next day, the fish had grown in size and did not fit in the earthen pot. So, the fish had to be moved to a large urn. As the days passed, the fish kept growing in size. Satyavrata had to move it from the large urn to a pond, from the pond to a river, and from the river to the sea.

As the fish went across the sea, beyond the horizon, it told Satyavrata, "Soon the heavens will burst and torrential rains will flood the earth. The sea will rise and submerge the land. When this happens, collect the seed of every plant and a pair of every animal and wait for me on a boat with your wife."

Realizing it was no ordinary fish, but God Vishnu himself, Satyavrata did as he was told. Floods arrived and the great fish appeared before Satyavrata, bigger than before, with a horn on its head. Satyavrata tied the boat to the horn with Adi Sesha (who is the king of all serpent deities and one of the primal beings of creation. In the Puranas, Shesha is said to hold all the planets of the Universe on his hoods and to constantly sing the glories of the god Vishnu from all his mouths. He is sometimes referred to as Ananta Shesha which translates as endless-Shesha or as Adishesha which means the first Shesha. It is said that when Adishesa uncoils, time moves forward and creation takes place. When he coils back, the universe ceases to exist.) as the rope.
The fish then towed the boat through the great deluge to the only piece of dry land, the peak of Mount Mandara. There, Satyavrata and his wife waited for the waters to recede. With the seed of every plant and a pair of all animals, he would establish a new world. (Bhagwata Puran)

~courtesy Myth = Mithya by Devdutt Pattnaik

This story in Hinduism is similar to stories found in Christianity, Islam, and Ba'hai faiths. This is just a small example that all religions have the similar basics. Yes, there are tweaks made to suit own perspective. It's humans who have demarcated.

Let there be peace and no wars based on religion.

Book Review | Mirror City by Chitrita Banerji

Mirror City is a book that takes us to Bangladesh of 1970s has become independent and yet not completely independent from the internal problems that the country faced.

Mirror City revolves around the central character, Uma, her husband Iqbal, and their friends. Uma is an Indian Hindu Bengali, born and brought up in Calcutta married to Iqbal, who is a Bangladeshi Muslim Bengali. They met while studying in the US and finally getting married in the US itself. What goes through in their lives on returning to Bangladesh on various levels - political, emotional, physical, etc. - is what has formed this book. I'm not sure of the political upheavals Bangladesh faced during the 70s; however, I'm sure of the tension in the country on the assassination of a president (though never named in this book) must have been high.

Mirror City is a journey of Uma, as a child, student, wife, career woman, lover, and a friend. The disappointment of being called a foreigner, despite being married to a local, and a failing marriage leads to an affair (with a wealthy industrialist, Alim), which ends abruptly. Per me, a failing marriage cannot give license to have an affair,

The author, however, should have carved out the character of Iqbal more. I never got to know why he suddenly became a recluse. Yes, maybe was burdened by the fact that Uma was an Indian who left her country & family (never to talk to them) and settled with him in a newly formed Bangladesh. However, he is not shown to work on his failing marriage either.
I don't even know what happened to Nasreen and Maqbool either. There could have been a better closure to these characters.

At the end, I wonder who I should feel happy and/or sorry for - Uma, Iqbal, or Alim.

Many a times, authors draw references from their lives in the books they author. Chitrita Banerji was brought up in Kolkata, studied English in the US, and perhaps lived in Bangladesh (as per the acknowledgement in the book). She has been the author of some cook books in the past. The central character of Mirror City - Uma - was also brought up in Kolkata, studied English in the US, lived in Bangladesh (where she made some close friends), and was a good cook.

My rating: 3.75/5.

An easy read

'Or Forever Hold Your Peace'. When I read this title of the book, I wanted to know what it meant before I read the book. And I found it was very customary in Christian weddings that it is asked by all that speak now if anyone has a concern with the wedding or keep quiet forever.

This book is an easy read. It is a story about what happens in marriages - specially arranged ones. Since the wedding is about a Kerala Christian wedding, Donna has given details that I definitely did not know about a Christian wedding. The chapters are well-connected. In this story about a girl about to get married, it shows how difficult it can be when an arranged marriage is getting arranged. The unnecessary explanations given, specially by a girl, is painful.

Rating: 3/5.

Book review | Delhi Anything Goes by Anita Kumar

This book is about my Delhi, so I had to pick it up to read!

'Delhi Anything Goes' by Anita Kumar is about three friends - Zoya, Natasha, and Reema. These three friends grew up in Delhi in 1970s and 1980s and two move out of India to the US and the UK, leaving only one back in Delhi. The three friends reunite - in Delhi - as part of 25th wedding celebrations of the friend living in Delhi.

The friends who come to Delhi after a decade of staying away, find a vast change in the city. Not only in the landscape, but in people too. The difference in wealthy and poor is stark, and what's worse, the 'show-off'of wealth is almost sickening. The richer the people become, the display of international brands in terms of cars, purses, clothes is much higher.

What happened to displaying India? It seems a western lifestyle is getting displayed more than anything else.

However, with people getting richer in bank balances, they are equally poor in morals and ethics.

I have never liked any of the parties because I have never had any kind of addiction (neither alcohol, smoke, nor drugs) in my life - so, I never relate to these parties at all. For me, even the office parties meant hitting the dance floor and I could dance forever. I've not been to any 'high-society parties' so I couldn't tell whether what the author writes what happens in these parties is true or not. If it is true, then I am very happy to stay away from those parties.

Reading this, however, gives one-sided view about Delhi. Maybe Anita could have explored few other aspects too, such as the rich heritage that Delhi has over the centuries.

Rating: 2.5/5