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Nutrifit's executive diet

Ch. Prashanth Reddy

HYDERABAD, Dec 1

STRESS seems to be becoming the fastest growing health issue today. In fact, people say, it has become a part of modern day executive's life.

According to Nutrifit, a health promoting centre established by three Hyderabad-based nutritionists, leading a stressful life means releasing lot of `free radicals' from the body. Consequently, today's executives are at a high risk to get degenerative di seases such as hypertension, diabetes and cancer.

Dr Janaki of Nutrifit, however, says excess release of `free radicals' can be `quenched' to a large extent through planned diet. The onset and also the severity of the above diseases can be altered or even prevented by changing one's dietary habits and l ifestyle.

Keeping this in view, Nutrifit has come out with a planned diet exclusively meant for executives. The diet involves intake of food comprising anti-oxidants vitamins A, C, E, Beta Carotene and Selenium. These quench the excess release of `free radicals', decrease the extent of the damage caused and postpone or prevent the stress-related diseases.

Dr Janaki told Business Line that Nutrifit diet for executives would vary a little depending upon the persons height, weight, abdominal circumference, his food habits, medical history and life style. Each person's risk profile would be assessed and diet would be recommended accordingly.

She said that Nutrifit would also recommend what food could an executive order in a restaurant or a bakery. If one wanted to eat a pizza, anti-oxidant rich vegetable-based fillings were recommended. In case of a non-vegetarian, lean meats were suggested. Boiled eggs should be preferred to omelettes.

According to Dr Janaki, following is the model diet for an executive:

* Breakfast: Idli, sambar, orange juice or vegetable punch.

* Mid-morning: Papaya, grated carrot.

* Lunch : Missiroti (made of palak and besan flour or soya or wheat flour), cauliflower curry (cauliflower is rich in selenium), raitha (beneficial bacteria) and tomatoes (rich anti-oxidant).

*Snacks: Dry fruits and nuts (rich of minerals and essential fatty acids) and one cup tea.

*Dinner: Vegetable rice with raitha, cow pea curry (rich source of fatty acids).

Dr. Janaki said that there was a good response from the people for Nutrifit's executive lunch displayed at the Health Food Expo - 2000, held in Hyderabad recently.