JOIN USOccasional sweets will do no harm for diabetics: Scientist
In what could stimulate diabetics to have their share of sweets at least on occasions, senior scientist Dr K Srinivasan on Tuesday said that ‘occasional consumption of sweets will do no harm for sugar patients.’
Delivering a special lecture on ‘Health beneficial physiological effects of spices’ as part of World Food Day, at Indian Medical Association (IMA), Mysore branch in the city, Srinivasan who also heads the department of biochemistry and nutrition at Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) asserted that ‘he vouches for his finding and it’s also his practical experience.’
Substantiating his call, he said: “The side dishes help combat excess glucose produced in the body by eating sweets.” Elaborating on spices, Srinivasan stated that since times immemorial they are highly regarded for their medicinal values. Apart from that, it’s used in the preparation of food to make it more palatable that also produces aroma, flavour, pungency and coloured texture.
Listing out the most consumed spices- turmeric, red chilli, ginger, garlic, onion and fenugreek, Srinivasan said they improve nutritional quality of food. About their medicinal values, he said they help check obesity, cancer and also cholesterol. Especially, turmeric which is most used as first aid at the time of cuts and bruises, the expert said they also enable body to digest food. He also made it a point that, all the spices consumed act like digestion agents. The process of digestion is incomplete without digesting fats, he said. Turmeric is anti-inflammatory and laxative and also good for affections of the liver, jaundice and wound healing.
On garlic he said, it’s still consumed by sugar patients along with chapati. Mixture of garlic to an extent of 20 per cent with wheat flour is suffice to keep sugar complaint at bay.
President of IMA, Mysore chapter Dr C Sharath Kumar, Dr S Prasanna Shankar, Dr Suresh Rudrappa, Dr K B Gurumurthy and others were present.