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Dear Vasavi Marada, 

Thank you for the question.

Being Mindful while eating is necessary to have a control over food cravings & hunger. 

Mindfulness is an intentional focus on one’s thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations in the present moment. Eating mindfully is when you are using all of your physical and emotional senses to experience and enjoy the food choices you make. Mindful eating encourages one to make choices that will be satisfying and nourishing to the body.

Ideal weight and height for a 19-year-old female is 53.8kg and 161.1cm respectively

A healthy lifestyle management including a good balanced diet, adequate hydration, regular physical activity and hygiene & stress management is key to maintain a good digestive health. It is also important to ensure adequate fiber intake which is essential for a healthy gut and overall digestive health.

Gut microbiota includes a diverse community of bacteria in human gut, they carry out various functions that influences our overall health. The functions include, nutrient metabolism, natural defense against infections and regulation of immune system.

For managing a healthy gut it is important to consume a diversified balanced duet at regular intervals, maintain hydration and include dietary fibre in your daily diet. It is also important to engage in regular physical activity and include prebiotic and probiotics in your daily diet Prebiotics are food components that confer benefits to the host by selectively stimulating the growth of beneficial gut microbiota whereas Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that incur positive effects on human health. They are present in the human gut and are also taken through food products such as yogurt, fermented foods, dietary supplements etc.

Prebiotics naturally exist in different foods including, asparagus, garlic, chicory, onion, honey, banana, barley, tomato, rye, soybean, human’s and cow’s milk, peas, beans, etc.

The common sources of probiotics are yogurt, cultured buttermilk and cheese. The other foods that are produced by bacterial fermentation are, tempeh, sauerkraut, sour dough, bread etc.  Look for food products labelled ‘Probiotic’, ‘Probiotic food’, ‘Contains Probiotics’, ‘with Probiotics’ etc.

Daily RDA for fiber as per NIN, ICMR is: 25g per day for females & 30g per day for male

Here are a few guidelines for a Healthy balanced Diet & general digestive health.

• Do not skip your meals, have small frequent meals at regular intervals.

• Eat a well-balanced diet including all groups.

• Try to incorporate the My plate Concept by dividing your plate into 4 quadrants, fill half of your plate with fruits and vegetables, the other two quadrants with cereals and protein. A small quantity of dairy intake is recommended.

• Begin your day with a well-balanced breakfast as it is an important meal of the day.

• Include good amount of fiber in your daily balanced, some of the god sources of fiber include whole grain, multigrain, millets, fruits and vegetables, nuts etc.

• Include a minimum of 5 of vegetables and 1 serving of fruit in a day as they are good sources of fiber and essential nutrients such as vitamin A, Vitamin B, iron, zinc etc.

• Include prebiotics such as banana, soyabean, garlic etc., good sources of probiotics like yogurt, buttermilk etc., to maintain a healthy gut.

• Try to consume more of Whole grains, Millets and Multigrain foods as they are a good source of fiber.

• Avoid large, heavy meals, and practice portion guidance.

• Deep fried foods to be restricted. Method of cooking like baking, grilling, boiling, steaming is preferable over deep frying with excess fat/ oil.

• Try to limit the foods like caffeine, spices, raw onions etc.

• Food should be eaten slowly and chewed well as fast eating provokes gastric feeding reflex.

• Avoid lying down immediately after your meal consumption

• Drink at least 8 glasses of water per day.

• Have a gap of minimum 2-3 hours between bedtime and your last meal.

• Engage in physical activity for a minimum of 60 minutes for at least 5 days a week.

• Try to follow a good sleep regimen in terms of both quantity and quality.

For a customised and personalised meal plan for specific conditions, please contact your Health care professional.

Hope we have answered your query.

Wishing you a great day ahead