Yoga – Yogasana and Pranayama for Health

Reviewed by Eisha Sarkar

Author: Dr P D Sharma
Translated by: R M Shah
Publisher: Navneet Publications
Pages: 155
Price: Rs 26

“The best way to express your good wishes… Give this book as a gift,” the inside cover says. And why not? Yoga by physical educator Dr P D Sharma tells you all about asanas, pranayama and meditation at the cost of just Rs 26. Now if only being in good health could be as easy.

The book starts with an introduction to yoga and how it “has the surest remedies for man’s physical as well as psychological ailments” in a world full of pollution, pills and pain. The author describes the eight stages of yoga as:

• Yama (social discipline): Contains five moral practices – ahimsa (non-violence), satya (truthfulness), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacharya (celibacy, actually implying moderation in sex in marriage) and aparigraha (non-acquisitiveness).
• Niyama (individual disciple): Rules of shaucha (cleanliness), santosha (contentment), tapas (austerity), svadhyaya (self-study) and Ishvara pranidhana (surrender to God).
• Asana (postures): Posturing the body in a particular way can bring ‘purity’ in tubular channels, firmness to the body and vitality to the body and the mind.
• Pranayama (breath control): Practising pranayama can help stimulate, regulate and harmonise the vital energy of the body.
• Pratyahara (discipline of the senses): Putting the senses under restraint and drawing them inwards can prevent them from “hankering after worldly objects.”
• Dharana (concentration): Helps the mind to concentrate on a particular object.
• Dhyana (meditation): Dharana unbound by time and space.
• Samadhi (self-realisation): The meditator, the act of meditation and the object meditated upon shed their individual characteristics and merge with one single vision of the entire cosmos.

Sharma then goes on to classify the various yogic postures or yogasanas – that range from the cleansing techniques such as Neti and Vaman Dhauti, to traditional meditation poses such as the padmasana or lotus position to very difficult forms of cortortion such as vrishchikasana (where the body assumes a pose that resembles a scorpion) to the utthita ekapadashirasana which requires a very flexible body and strong arms like those of a gymnasts. Of the hundred of yogic postures, the book describes 65, a tidy sum for anyone to accomplish.

The author has done well to describe the origins of each asana and has added the benefits that each can provide. You may find it strange that some asanas could help ‘cure’ wet dreams (the yogis practised celibacy), leucoderma, leprosy or elephantiasis, but what Sharma has put down in the form of a book is actually knowledge passed down through oral tradition for a couple of millenia. It may be contradictory to the findings of modern science, but this ancient healing system is still practised in India and abroad.

Yoga is an interesting book. It solves the purpose of someone who is keen to start yoga. Sharma has done well to mention which asanas should not be practised by overweight people (those who he ungenerously refers to as ‘fat’), pregnant and menstruating women, and those with arthritis or back injuries. Go on, read this one. But do not try any of the postures without proper guidance from a yoga practitioner and clearance from your doctor.

Life After Death – The Book of Answers

Author: Deepak Chopra
Publisher: Ebury Publishing (Random House Group)
Pages: 282
Price: Rs 495

Reviewed by Eisha Sarkar

Nothing sells better than death – in the literary world at least. Tons of paper have been devoted to murder mysteries, urban thrillers, war-time anecdotes, criminal psychology, after-death experiences and anything that speaks of the circumstances around which life ends. But is death all that gory? In his ‘book of answers’, Life After Death, mind-body medicine guru Deepak Chopra explores circle of life and death.

In order to make the understanding of death less complex (and more interesting), Chopra keeps drawing from the story of Savitri and Satyavan from “The Book of the Forest” of the Mahabharata. Yama, the Lord of Death, shows up in her front yard one day, waiting to take away her husband the moment he returns from work as a woodcutter. Savitri is terrified. What strategy could possibly turn Death away from his inexorable mission? Or can one really turn death away?

Chopra delves into Vedanta philosophy to answer questions on life and after-life. He explores the concepts of heaven and hell as described by Christian and Hindu beliefs. “The Christian brothers who taught me loved to talked about what life would be like in heaven, and for them God’s home was as real and solid as any building in Delhi. The swamis and yogis agreed with that but only because they believed that Spirit permeates every plane of existence… My Christian schoolteachers relished the idea that every desire would come true in heaven, and once again the swamis agree in their way… I wasn’t sure why people died in the Christian scheme. Some who died were loaded down with sin, it seemed, like criminals who have come to the end of their bad actions, while others died to meet God, eager that their time had come. In India someone dies after reaching the maximum evolution allotted to that lifetime; they have come to the end of what their karma can teach them.”

Chopra deftly moves through the ‘web of worlds’, with the help of numerous examples of near-death experiences (NDE). He finds a space, Akasha, where the spirits rest and where guardian angels are born. He draws from physics the natural laws of creation and uses them to explain the concept of eternity. Chopra finds that death is after all a part of re-creation, what Eastern philosophy often terms as reincarnation. Matter and energy remains constant. Cells die to make way for new cells. Lives end to make way for new lives. Death is more a function of space than time.

The book is heavy and needs to be read over and over again for better comprehension. Chopra does make an effort to make things easier by sharing his own experiences and those of others. In one of the more interesting sections on mind fields he talks about telepathic relationships between pets and their owners – where an African Grey Parrot in a room can actually ‘guess’ what pictures its owner is looking at. In yet another, he pulls out vignettes from Tibetan Buddhism – of lamas who’ve been reborn and who recall their ’soulful’ experiences.

Chopra’s idea of writing this book is to bring in a fresh perspective towards death and its acceptance. Death is mournful, but thankfully, it’s not the end!

Siddhartha

Author: Hermann Hesse
Translated by: Hilda Rosner
Publisher: Bantam Books (July 1971)
Pages: 152
Price: Rs 185

Reviewed by Eisha Sarkar

A picture of Buddha on the cover and the title, Siddhartha makes you believe that Nobel Laureate Herman Hesse’s ‘most famous novel’ is about Buddha. “Why read a book on Buddhism by a German author?” Turn to the back cover and you’ll know why. It’s not Lord Buddha the book’s about. It’s about finding the Buddha in you.

It’s the quest to find himself, that makes a young Brahmin man leave his family for good. Along with his best friend, Govinda, he joins the Samanas (wandering monks) and learns to think, wait and fast. But he soon begins to feel restless. “What I have so far learned from the Samanas, I could have learned more quickly and easilt in every inn in a prostitute’s quarter, amongst the carriers and dice players,” he tells Govinda. As his best friend leaves to join The Buddha, Siddhartha makes his way to the nearest town.

He discards his contemplative life for one of the flesh – wooing a courtesan with the riches he earns from business. But even after years lust and greed give him no pleasure and he leaves it all to end his life. But this time, at the very river he wants to drown himself in, he hears a unique sound, “Om”. It’s the sound that signals a new beginning for him – the beginning of suffering, rejection, peace and finally wisdom. He finds the one thing that holds the world and humanity together – love.

Siddhartha is not a book you can read through in one sitting. It’s depth is hard to fathom. On the face of it, it’s just a story of a young man’s spiritual journey through four stages in his life. Siddhartha, who pursues his goals ignoring the consequences, often comes across as a self-centred, flawed hero who doesn’t make a single sacrifice in his quest for wisdom. But if you read again, you’ll find that Hesse is driving home an important point – that mere sacrifice cannot make you wise. It can be the path to enlightenment but it’s not the destination.

Incisive, questioning and even challenging traditional Hindu and Buddhist beliefs and practices, Hesse’s Siddhartha makes for an interesting read even today, 87 years after he first wrote it. It’s timeless!

Fighting Body Pollution – Staying healthy in an unhealthy world

Reviewed by Eisha Sarkar
Posted on Times Wellness on Friday, December 11, 2009

Fighting Body Pollution

Author: Paul Kramer
Publisher: Manjul Publishing House
Pages: 154
Price: Rs 250

Each generation is finding it increasingly difficult to live in this world. While our early ancestors lived in a world where they drank clean water from natural sources and ate uncultivated fruits, vegetables and lean meats, we choke on the smog-filled air that fills our cities and find our lakes too polluted to swim in. Each pollutant – in air, water, or soil – directly impacts our body in some way or the other. Fighting these body pollutants is the start we need to make our lives healthier, is the point author Paul Kramer makes in his book, Fighting Body Pollution.

Your body’s like a car

“Bodies, similar to cars, are made up of many intricate parts. Just as our cars need fuel, oil, coolant, engine fluid, etc., our bodies also need many different ingredients to function optimally. Your body is an amazing machine, yet unfortunately many of us take better care of our cars,” marks Kramer.

It’s what you eat and how you eat it that can make a huge difference to your body. Limit your intake of refined flour, food chemicals, processed oil, sugar and fast foods and you will live to a ripe old age. Supplement a balanced diet with a good dose of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants and you’re sure to keep away from those chronic degenerative diseases that make you live short and die long.

Back to the source

The book reads like any other nutritionist’s guide, but here’s the difference. Kramer spices up the content with his “Did you know” facts and heath tips. He traces the history of certain kinds of foods and how they unhealthily or healthily crept into our lifestyle.

“In 1876, in Paris, the first light white French rolls were made available at at exposition that the governor of Minnesota attended. He wanted others to have access to this great new discovery. On his return from America, he developed the steel roller mills, which separate the bran and germ from the wheat, producing huge volumes of fine white flour. The advantage was it could be stored (not even the rats and worms were interested in it!) without becoming rancid. As the huge roller mills became widely adopted, the small local stone mills went out of business and white flour and white bread became food for the masses.” These little nuggets of information make the book an interesting read.

Surviving stress

Work stress can be as harmful as smoking and not exercising. Kramer asks you to stop a moment and acknowledge the stress in your life . He suggests deep breathing, laughing (even at your troubles) and reading positive books daily can effectively lessen stress. Of course, the benefits are enhanced when these are complemented with a proper workout.

The verdict

Fighting Body Pollution is an easy read. Kramer has done well to provide a lot of data on foods in tabular form instead of in lengthy paragraphs. While the information in the book is not new, the health tips and fast facts are often surprising and even shocking in some cases. It may not make you jump out of your skin or urge you to make drastic lifestyle changes, but it gives you enough reference points to help you if you’re trying to lead a healthier life than before. Apply the ideas and you’ll stay healthy in an unhealthy world.

What Your Doctor Doesn’t Know About Nutritional Medicine May Be Killing You

Author: Dr Ray D Strand with Donna K Wallace
Published: Magna Publishing
Price: Rs 175
Pages: 229

It was his inability to find a cure for his wife’s chronic pain and fatigue (symptoms of a larger disease called fibromyalgia) that made physician Dr Ray D Strand throw his hands up and allow his wife to take vitamin supplements. “Honey, you can try anything you want. We doctors certainly are not doing you any good.” Those precious words helped save her.

Within three months, he watched her become ’stronger than she had been in years’. Amazed by the results, Dr Strand started his own research on nutritional supplements. He uncorked the bottles to discover a form of complementary medicine that few doctors know of and fewer care to practice. Thus was born What Your Doctor Doesn’t Know About Nutritional Medicine May Be Killing You.

Living too short, dying too long
Thanks to the discovery of antibiotics in the twentieth century, fewer of us die of illnesses such as influenza, pneumonia, diphtheria and tuberculosis. In the twenty-first century, people are dying mostly of chronic degenerative diseases such as coronary artery disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, arthritis, Alzheimer’s dementia, Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. Though the average life expectancy has increased, our quality of life due to such diseases has taken a major hit. “No one seems to die of old age anymore,” the author notes.

“Use medication as last resort – not first choice”
While medical practitioners pride themselves on promoting preventive health care, what they actually end up doing is detecting the disease earlier. Certainly, it helps in the line of treatment but Dr Strand emphasises that preventive medicine is about teaching patients how they can protect their health.

Killer oxygen
We all know that oxygen is key to our survival. Yet, it’s the very same element that can do potential damage to your body. Ever heard of the term oxidative stress? Dr Strand tells you it’s the free radicals (you’ve heard of them in those anti-ageing ads on TV) formed by the process of oxidation are responsible for all degenerative diseases and inflammatory reactions in the body. These charged villains can cause severe damage to the cell membrane, blood vessel walls, proteins, fats and even the DNA. In any lingo, medical or otherwise, this means disaster.

Stock up on antioxidants
The best way to neuralise the threat is to get the antagonist, in this case, antioxidants. The names are familiar – vitamin E, vitamin C, vitamin A, beta-carotene, coenzyme Q10, alpha-lipoic acid and bioflavanoids. It’s easy to figure what comes next. The author asks you to go for a healthy balanced diet with a 50-20-25 carbohydrate-protein-fat ratio with lots of green leafy vegetables and fruits and a daily intake of nutritional supplements – especially vitamins E and C along with multimineral capsules.

Isn’t a balanced diet good enough? No, says Dr Strand claiming that with the high levels of pollution in our environment, poor animal husbandry and depleted farmlands, we have to deal with many more toxins than our ancestors did. What nutrients we get from our food simply aren’t enough to tackle all the free radicals generated in our bodies.

Presenting one case history after another, Dr Strand  illustrates how patients have managed to keep everything from the adverse effects of cancer to macular degeneration and cataracts to autoimmune diseases to arthritis and coronary heart diseases under control with the help of nutritional supplements. In many of the cases, the patients did so well that they even asked their physicians if the prescribed medicines should be discontinued. Here, Dr Strand warns, nutritional supplements are complimentary not alternative choices to traditional medicine and that the drugs should be discontinued only after getting a nod from the doctor.

The verdict
While his Death by Prescription was shocking, this book is more educational. Dr Strand delves into the workings of the human body and how we should try to empower it in the face of illness and disease. The book’s interesting, though biased in favour of nutritional supplements. However, being a physician himself, Dr Strand has managed to put forth the doctors’ point of view. Physicians treat disease but are unable to protect their health. Doctors base their judgment on conclusions drawn from clinical trials for various drugs. Supplements such as vitamin E and vitamin C, which are constituents of our normal diet, don’t show the glorious results they do when taken in synergy with other supplements and minerals.

The book’s a good read and Dr Strand serves us well by putting together a table of supplements and their exact dosage that we require for out bodies’ functions (anything above or below that and you’re in trouble). He may be stressing on the use of supplements, but thankfully Dr Strand abstains from quoting brands and asks us to opt for “high quality supplements”. In any case, what do we have to lose?

In good form: Times Wellness

www.timeswellness.com, the health publication from Bennett, Coleman and Company Ltd has undergone a makeover… go check it out!

Alternatives to soap

Soap isn’t the only substance that can wash those germs off your hands. Here are some other alternatives

Eisha Sarkar

Posted on Times Wellness on Thursday, October 15, 2009

Remember when you were a child and mom yelled out, “Go wash your hands before you put anything in your mouth.” You would run to the sink, turn on the tap, lather the soap slowly waiting for mom to calm down before you could head back to the dining table. No matter what mom and the doctor told you, soap isn’t the only thing that can keep your hands clean.

Here are a few others people from around the world have used time and again to ensure your hands are free of dirt and germs

Hand antiseptic or hand sanitizer

These non-water-based hand hygiene agents starting becoming popular in the late 1990s. Most are based on isopropyl alcohol or ethanol-formulated together with a thickening agent such as Carbomer into a gel, or glycerin into a liquid, or foam for ease of use and to decrease the drying effect of the alcohol.

Hand sanitizers containing a minimum of 60 to 95 per cent alcohol are efficient germ-killers. Alcohol rub sanitizers kill bacteria (including multi-drug resistant bacteria and Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and viruses (including HIV, herpes, RSV, rhinovirus, vaccinia, influenza, and hepatitis) and fungus. Alcohol rub sanitizers can prevent the transfer of health-care associated pathogens (Gram-negative bacteria) better than soap and water.

Soap-nuts

For centuries, people in India and Nepal have been doing their laundry and cleaning with soap-nuts. The ‘nut’ is actually the dried fruit of the reetha tree (Sapindus mukorossi and Sapindus trifaliatus). Also referred to as washing nuts or reetha (in Hindi), soap-nuts contain ‘saponins’, which have the ability to clean and wash.  On coming into contact with water, soap-nuts release mild suds, which is similar to soap lather.

Soap-nuts are safe for babies and people who suffer from eczema and sensitive skin.

Hand wipes

They are easier to use when you are travelling or have to remain outdoors for work or for any other purpose. You may easily carry your own antibacterial hand wipes in your purse or in your car for instant cleaning. There are different types of hand wipes available in the stores such as dry wipes, alcohol-free wipes, water-free hand wipes, sanitizing hand wipes, pre-moistened hand wipes and antibacterial hand wipes. Most wipes boast of killing 99 per cent of the germs. Perfumed hand wipes can also keep your hands smelling great throughout the day.

Iodine wash

It is used mainly in operation theatres of hospitals during surgeries. To ’scrub’ one’s hands for a surgical operation, a tap that can be turned on and off without touching with the hands, some chlorhexidine or iodine wash, sterile towels for drying the hands after washing, and a sterile brush for scrubbing and another sterile instrument for cleaning under the fingernails are required. All jewellery should be removed. This procedure requires washing the hands and forearms up to the elbow for usually two to six minutes.

Mud or ash

In rural Bangladesh, soap is not commonly used for handwashing. It is expensive and is used more for cosmetic purposes. Hands are usually washed with water only. After anal cleansing following defecation most rural people rub their left hand on the ground and rinse it with water. Ash is not widely used, although it is often promoted in health education programmes. A 1993 study of 20 women from a low-income community in Dhaka found that soap, mud or ash are equally effective in reducing contamination. Indeed, dirt can help you wash off dirt!

The evolution of soap

Keeping hands clean is not a modern affair. On Global Handwashing Day, we trace the origin and evolution of the quest for clean hands

Eisha Sarkar

Posted on Times Wellness Online on Thursday, October 15, 2009

There’s nothing as selfless as a bar of soap. It loses itself to make you pure. From its humble beginnings in ancient Babylon to becoming a multi-billion dollar industry in itself, the soap has come a long way. The evolution of soap parallels the growth of civilisations of this planet.

Ash for shiny hair!

It is believed that prehistoric man used only water as a cleanser. In ancient Babylon (2800 BC), wood ashes were burned with animal and vegetable fats and this substance was used to cleanse and treat skin disease. It was also used to ‘make hair shiny’.

‘Washing’ with sand

The Greeks were known to wash themselves with clay pumice and sand which stimulated the blood circulation in the body as well as removed dirt.

Oily baths

In the Greco-Roman era, perfumed oils were used for bathing and were combined with the use of the strigil, a metal implement used to scrape the skin free of oil and dirt.

From Mount Sapo

Soap got its name when the Romans discovered it at Mount Sapo, a popular location for animal sacrifices. Rain mixed the animal tallow with burned wood on the clay and a chemical reaction occurred. Women living near River Tiber found that clothes they washed using this substance were much cleaner.

While soap was in use during the Roman period, its adoption may have been slow, despite the popularity of public and private baths throughout the empire. Possibly early soaps were not particularly attractive in appearance or smell, and were deemed more suitable for cleaning and laundering.

Manuscripts on soaps

Since 6AD, soap was produced in Nablus (West Bank), Kufa (Iraq) and Basra (Iraq). The A recently discovered manuscript from the 13th century spells out a recipe for making soap: Take some sesame oil, a sprinkle of potash, alkali and some lime, mix them all together and boil. When cooked, pour the mixture into molds and leave them to set.

The cold process

The early Americans made soap using the Cold Process, which yielded soap comprised of animal fat and lye extracted from wood ashes (potassium hydroxide). The substances were mixed and animal fat would be added along with steady stirring. Because of the time it took the soap to cure, soap makers would repeat this process twice a year.

William Colgate started a candle and soap making company in New York City in 1806. By 1906, the company was making over 3,000 different soaps, perfumes and other products.

The palm-and-olive oil soap

In 1898, Caleb Johnson’s company in Milwaukee introduced a soap made of palm and olive oils, called Palmolive. It was so successful that that company changed their name to Palmolive in 1917.

‘Soap that floats’

In 1897, a soap maker had gone off for lunch one day without turning off the soap mixer. More than the usual amount of air was shipped into the batch of pure white soap. Fearing he would get into trouble, he kept the mistake a secret and packaged and shipped the air-filled soap to customers around the country. Soon customers were asking for more ‘soap that floats’.

Soap in a bottle

William Shepphard first patented liquid soap on August 22, 1865. In 1980, the Minnetonka Corporation introduced the first modern liquid soap and they cornered the market by buying up the entire supply of the plastic pumps needed for the liquid soap dispensers.

The germ-killer

In 1895, Lever Brothers created an antiseptic soap called Lifebuoy. And it was also the Lever Brothers (not a deodorant manufacturer), who first coined the term “BO” for bad odour for the soap’s marketing campaign.

The modern soap

Today, soap is made using the cold process method where lye is added to palm oil, coconut oil, or olive oil, which causes the chemical reaction called saponification. The mixture is poured into a mold. The bars are then removed after setting and are restacked, covered and left to cure. The curing can take anywhere from three to eight weeks.

The future: Going soap-free?

In order to prevent their skin from becoming dry, many people look for soap-free options. Once used only in hospitals, alcohol-based hand sanitizers are becoming increasingly popular. The alcohol ensures that your skin stays germ-free while the glycerine present prevents it from drying up

Men’s Health Staying Young Looking Great

Edited by: Michael Lafavore
Publisher: Magna Publishing
Price: Rs 175
Pages: 342

Workouts that give visible results, a guide for looking best at any age, “bad” foods that are really good, 16 ways to deal with work-related stress and how to have earth shaking orgasms – Men’s Health Staying Young Looking Great promises to deliver what every man needs. It’s not the run-of-the-mill health book. Yes, it does tell you what kind of exercises are good for you and what you should or shouldn’t put in your mouth, but above all, it shows you how to earn respect.

Respect yourself
A poll conducted by the Men’s Health magazine found that, “more than anything else, these men wanted to be respected by their wives and children, co-workers and bosses, friends and family.” The book has been written keeping this point in mind. “To not miss a day of life, though, means being in good health. And to be in good health takes action. It means eating well, exercising, managing stress. It means taking good care of yourself. Boiled down, to earn respect, you first have to respect yourself,” the book’s introduction states.

Know your beer
What sets this health book apart is that it not only tells you why alcohol is bad for your health, but draws up a list of brews with the calories they contain. You can choose from the list of ales, stout, lagers, pilsners and beers would have you believe that you could drink your beer and maintain a size 34 waist. The word beer need not be associated with a protruding belly anymore, the book says.

The good food guide
While the book does recommend you eat lots of tomatoes, green leafy vegetables and chew on carrot sticks, it also offers you enough reason to have banana split with chocolate syrup and whipped cream, Kraft macaroni and cheese, fudge, shrimp, potato skins with melted cheese, chocolate milk, garlic bread, pizza, vanilla milkshake and pudding. The authors say that fat content in these foods is much lower than what it is widely believed. As long as you don’t have them everyday or supplement them with more nutritious salads, such foods can not do you much harm.

Exercise correctly
You may think you’e been working out a lot, but your waistline looks just the same. It’s because you’ve worked on a different set of muscles than you intended to. For example, if the weight you gain tends to end up on your butt and thighs, then any stepping action is going to accentuate the problem. Building and toning the muscles of your lower body will simply push the fat deposits outward, making the existing bulges, bulgier. You’d be better off jogging or stationary cycling.

The verdict
The book’s a collection of articles and reports from Men’s Health magazine. While the authors are not named, thankfully the sources and doctors quoted are. The crisp editing makes the book an interesting read, though the information is not new. Of particular note are the “Just the facts” boxes at the bottom of some of the pages which read, “A croissant has more than nine times as much fat as a plain English muffin” or provide statistical data such as, “Number of injuries annually in the United States involving beds, mattresses and pillows according to the Census Bureau: 360,000″.

Besides health information, the book gives you tips to beat stress at work, how to look your best at any age, a woman’s sexual hotspots and have your best vacation ever.

The book celebrates manhood in its own way. It’s a useful tool to help you come into your own and show the world what you are made of. If that sounds too far-fetched, you may as use it to know how to eat healthy and stay healthy.

Skinny Bitch: Bun in the Oven – A gutsy guide to becoming one hot and healthy mother!

Author: Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin

Publisher: Running Press

Price: Rs 540

Pages: 329

It’s a title that will make you jump out of your seat and take notice.

Once you get over the, “Yes, I did read it right,” moment, you’ll begin to question it, “What does it mean?”, “what kind of a book is it?”, “What were they thinking?” Get over it. Authors R

oy Freedman and Kim Barnouin agree that the title of the book, “Skinny Bitch: Bun in the Oven” is an eyeball-grabbing marketing ploy. Little wonder, this is where the book scores the most.

Healthy mommy = healthy baby

After their successful first book, Skinny Bitch, the ‘bitches’ as the authors prefer to call themselves now present a book that seeks to guide pregnant women to become healthy moms. “Healthy mommy = healthy baby”. In those pages, they will tell you why ‘Sugar is Satan’, you should give up cigarettes and alcohol, complex carbohydrates are good for your body and milk and dairy products do more harm than good, ’secrets and lies about protein’ and you should go organic and turn vegan.

The ‘bitchclaimer”

If you disagree with their theories they suggest you read the ‘bitchclaimer”, “We didn’t write this book to make friends. We wrote this book to help women eat right, ensuring successful pregnancies and healthy babies. So if you want to hear ‘everything in moderation’, ‘an occasional glass of wine is fine,’ or any other candy–coated bullshit, pick another book. Skinny Bitch: Bun in the Oven will tell you the truth about food and how what you eat affects your pregnancy and baby.”

Stay off milk and dairy

The authors seek to demolish the belief that milk and milk products do you good. They write, “When a woman gives birth, she produces milk and breastfeeds her baby. When the baby reaches a certain age, the mother weans him or her off breast milk and feeds the baby solid food. After the mother’s milk dries up, the child never drinks her breast milk again. Cows (and every other mammal on the planet) are exactly the same… Why on earth would Mother Nature require human beings to drink the milk of another species after we’ve stopped drinking our own mothers’ breast milk? Why should we ‘need’ to get calcium from the milk of another species after being weaned from our own kind? The answer: We don’t.”

Still can’t stomach this one? Well, the authors lead you on to the hazards of milk and dairy products. Yes, hazards. The milk you get at home contains bovine growth hormone, pus, bacteria, casein (the writers say the main milk protein has been linked to several cancers) and calcium that can’t be absorbed in your body, the authors write. And if you think milk is good for your bones, it’s apparently a myth.

Anti-meat propaganda

Skinny Bitch: Bun in the Oven is a thinly disguised diatribe against the meat and dairy industries. This is where the authors go into overdrive. They passionately denounce animal protein, quote from research journals of how eating more meat during pregancy can lead to higher cortisol levels in your off-spring resulting in increase in stress and risk of diabetes. They talk of contaminated meat and pollution-affected fish and how they threaten your baby’s life. If you aren’t quite convinced, the authors are more than glad to present to you gory details of how animals and chickens are tortured before they are slaughtered. Yes, what they say is true to a great extent, but isn’t presenting graphic imagery to nervous pregnant women going a bit too far? The authors don’t think so.

The verdict

Thee book makes for an interesting read. The language is colloquial and the book’s fast-paced. There’s not a dull moment when you are reading the book. But that’s about it. Read it like a ‘chick-lit’ and you may actually find some humour in being addressed as “shithead”, “crackpot” and “bitches”. Unfortunately, the book’s not meant to be a leisure read. That’s where the problem lies.

Pregnant women, the target readers, are vulnerable — especially first-time mothers. They’re filled with excitement, hope, optimism, and even anxiety. Their bodies are changing in ways that make them feel they no longer know who they are. They’ve probably heard a hundred different versions of what to expect, and they still don’t really have a clue what childbirth and motherhood are all about. Those who turn to this book for information and facts are in for trouble.

Though there are several truths in this book regarding diet and nutrition, the effort by the authors to quote science journals and research to prove their point is just too obvious. The bibliography is over 50 pages long!) Freedman and Barnouin resort to scare tactics to push to-be moms to eat vegan organic products (even the brands have been listed!) If you’re non-vegetarian and pregnant, you’re doomed, they suggest, irrespective of the fact that there are millions of healthy babies born to non-vegetarian moms around the world everyday.

The authors the authors advise women that they shouldn’t really aim to keep weight off during their pregnancies, but the illustrations in the book depict anorexic pregnant women. Probably it has something to do with the fact that both the authors are from the modelling world. They want you to become “skinny bitches” too. Follow them at your own risk.

Published in Times Wellness on Friday, September 11, 2009