All World
Gayatri Pariwar

Are we healthy?
It is a known fact that if we are healthy then we cherish various offerings of life better. We can also use all tools at our disposal more effectively to achieve happiness. On the other hand, if somebody in the house falls sick, the whole atmosphere of the house becomes dull and gloomy, house members start worrying, relatives and friends start asking questions about the health of the sick family member.  Health is considered a great gift of God. We feel blessed if we are able to perform our daily tasks without any problems or depending on anyone.

If there are sick people in our nation who are not able to carry on with their daily lives because of their illnesses, then not caring for them amounts to apathy. But, somehow the pains of others do not affect us.
We are not leading perfect lives either; we all have some or the other form of physical or mental issues to deal with. Why does the suffering of other people in our country does not bother us? Why don’t we sound an alarm at the national level to deal with it?

Let’s look at some statistics that form our discussion.
1)    India has become the diabetes capital of the world. By the end of 2010, we will have 5 crore (50 million) diabetes patients. This disease is mainly hereditary but has drastically increased in the past few years due to change in our lifestyles and diet patterns. China is closest to us and may exceed us by year 2015 with 9 crore (90 million) people suffering from diabetes. There are 33.2 crore (332 million) diabetics in the world, majority of them living in cities. It is estimated that this figure might increase by 170 % by year 2015.
2)    Cancer is another profoundly increasing condition. Every year 3 lakh (300,000) people die from this disease. After year 2025 this will increase to 14 lakhs (1.4 million) annually; this is the opinion of National Cancer Registry. Currently 20 lakh (2 million) people are getting treated for various types of cancer and 40% of them have very slim chances of survival.
3)    India is also gradually becoming the hub of Heart ailments. There will be 10 crore (100 million) people suffering from heart related problems by year 2020. Currently this number is around 5 crores (50 million). 15 % of these people need angioplasty right now. 80% of the new cases are from the low and middle income group nations.

Illnesses from lifestyle:
Sedentary lifestyle, increasing conveniences, changes in daily routines have lead to an increase in incidences of stroke, cancer, diabetes and heart ailments. These are very painful, life threatening conditions because cost of treatment is very high; and not everybody can afford it. India has spent about Rs 950 hundred millions to fight these diseases in the past five years and will have to spend another Rs 270 thousand millions  in the next five years to deal with these diseases.  This amount is in addition to the money spent on the treatment of communicable diseases like fever, dysentery, diarrhea etc. An important fact is that India is a young nation, which means that nearly half of the patients are below the age of 35. If no attention is paid on the diet and lifestyle of the youth, the nation will continue on the path of illness.

Increasing death rates of new born babies
Out of every 1 lakh (100,000) babies born, 149 die at the time of the birth and a high percentage of babies die within the first 28 days of birth. There are number of reasons for this; primarily, absence of good medical facilities in rural areas, premature birth, asphyxia, pneumonia and a host of communicable diseases. Female death rates are higher, probably due to negligence. The infant mortality rate has surely come down in recent years due to rising awareness but still the overall rate is higher compared to other nations.

Junk food and increasing obesity
The bad lifestyle and the habit of junk food have badly affected the health of the nation. This is a prime cause of obesity in teenagers and chronic diseases in youth. People eating junk food like pizza, pasta, burgers, samosas, non-vegetarian food can get addicted to it, similar to an addiction of smoking and drinking. Scripps Research Institute of Florida did a research on the effects of potato chips and found that subjects regularly lost control, overate and slowly moved away from a healthy diet. The chances of them getting obese were very high. Rats which were fed the diet of junk food were found to have incidences of obesity. Their brains showed similar addiction symptoms as of users of drugs like heroine or cocaine.
Obesity and other diseases are increasing rapidly in children in cities and towns of India. The I.Q. of children is also getting affected and western food habits are largely responsible for that.

Traits of a man
Overeating causes stomach disorders not just in India but in every country. Param Pujya Gurudev observed that,”man is the only animal who can eat whenever he wants”. Animals don’t eat till they feel hungry whereas humans can eat without really feeling hungry and eat a lot more than what is required to satisfy their hunger. If we find tasty food then we stuff ourselves and overeat even if it gives us stomach ache and disorders. Antacids and pain killers have become our best friends.
Imbalance in diet, lack of physical activity, lack of proper sleep has accelerated our march towards stomach disorders, heart problems, high blood pressure, diabetes and other ailments.

Youths in cities are falling sick
AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences) has conducted a research and concluded that young people (age group 15 -35 yrs) are contracting high blood pressure, heart ailments, diabetes and obesity at a rapid pace. This is due to leading unhealthy lifestyle in big cities, lack of physical activity, eating high calorie junk food, alcohol consumption among other factors.

Dr. Naresh Trehan (renowned cardiovascular surgeon) says that stress related to work, tiredness and lifestyle are largely responsible for increased incidences of heart diseases in youth.

Competition has increased tremendously in modern age which has led to an increase in stress, anxiety and feeling of insecurity among young people. These factors have a negative effect on the human body and take the form of various diseases mentioned above.

Depression is an epidemic
Mental health conditions pose a new and unheard of challenge before us. Cases of schizophrenia, anxiety, depression, suicidal tendencies have increased exponentially in the last 20 years. Globalization has also affected India in a big way. Rapidly changing world order brings new challenges to us. According to W.H.O. (World Health Organization), by 2015, a significant number of people in the world will be affected by some form of mental disorder. These mental disorders in turn lead to physical disorders.
Treatment of mental disorders is more complicated than a treatment of a purely physical ailment. Anger, disturbed emotional state, jealousy etc. is harder to cure using traditional therapies.

Ten chronic diseases
WHO has identified ten chronic diseases that might severely affect India and other developing nations by year 2010. These are 1) Cancer, 2) Infectious diseases, 3) Tuberculosis (which has returned furiously), 4) COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), 5) Pneumonia, 6) AIDS – HIV, 7) Malaria, 8) Diarrhea, 9) Diabetes, 10) Heart Ailments. The human and monetary loss resulting from these diseases will be very huge.

How to be Healthy?
Our aim is not to frighten, but to make our readers more aware, more proactive about the situation, so that we can keep the blood flowing through the veins of the heart of our nation.
In ancient India, Yoga was part of a daily routine to achieve inner peace and happiness. It had a lot of importance in the spiritual lifestyle of an individual. ‘Svasthya’ (health) word translates to - a person established in ‘sva’ (self).  Only that individual can be said to be completely “Svastha” (healthy) who does not have any illness, who has overcome lust and greed, who has imbibed ‘adhyatma’ (spirituality) in his lifestyle, who recognizes his duties, and who treats his body as a Temple of God – exercises self-control and disciplines himself to protect his health.

‘Prasannatma’ (Happy Soul)
Our sages, who were also expert physicians and practiced medicine, wrote:
samdoshah samagnishch samdhatumalkriyah |
prasannatmendriyamanah svasthya ityabhidhiyate ||
That is: A person who has no bodily disorders; who has controlled his flow of semen, defecation process and life force; and whose senses, mind and soul exude happiness is truly healthy.

It is also said that a person needs to be healthy to carry out his duties in life towards religion, financial matters, procreation, and achieving moksha (salvation). This ‘sutra’ (formula) is explained in Ayurveda in a very scientific manner.
Proper diet and proper deeds

Lord Shri Krishna explains in Gita about the importance of proper diet, pure deeds, dignified dreams and proper efforts. He says,

Yogo bhavati dukhha |   [6/17]
It translates to – “Yoga always reduces suffering”. This directly applies to us in our modern-day situations. Lord Krishna advises us to lead our lives as a Yogi and its principles should be reflected in our diet, deeds, actions, efforts, sleep, and awaked state. Ashtanga Yoga of seer Patanjali and Yoga Kriya of Gheranda Samhita provide us insight into introducing discipline in our lives. Indian Seers propagated the principle of total wellness through Ayurveda. We belong to the same nation; then why are we sick today?

A debate is needed, a revolution is required
There is a need for a national level debate on the kind of medical facilities required, taking steps for promotion of a healthy lifestyle, spreading awareness for nutritional food habits, teaching organization skills to cope with stressful lifestyle, etc. The task is monumental and a great effort is required to achieve that. If we become healthy as a nation, we will automatically grow leaps and bounds in our stature in the world. We need a revolution in Yoga, Ayurveda and Spirituality to remove our weaknesses and ingrain happiness in our lives.

[Please read an article on achieving total health through Yoga and Ayurveda

How to overcome worries? Wise men’s advice
Poojya Gurudev Acharya Shriram Sharma has said – ‘Worry is akin to a funeral pyre. The only difference is that the first one is invisible and the other is visible.’ Worries can circle around and around in your head, becoming louder and louder as they sap your strength and make you feel weaker. It’s no fun.   So what can you do about it?  Here are some timeless thoughts to help you overcome or at least lessen the worries in your life.    

“ Do not anticipate trouble or worry about what may never happen. Keep it in the sunlight.”
“ If you ask what is the single most important key to longevity, I would have to say it is avoiding worry, stress and tension. And if you didn’t ask me, I’d still have to say it”.
“ When I look back on all these worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of worries in his life, most of which had never happened”.
“Worry is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all other thoughts are drained”.

The miracle of life is; the more you share the more you have.