Over the top

Ritu, an aerobics instructor and model, practices what she preaches. Besides working out regularly at a gym, she follows a strict diet regimen.
She detoxifies her system first thing in the morning with lemon added to lukewarm water. For breakfast she has a high-protein diet of egg whites, spinach and cheese. Lunch and dinner comprise largely salads and stir-fried vegetables such as mushrooms and broccoli.Over and above it all, she takes multi-vitamin pills.
Ritu is but a prototype of the new health brigade. From models to marketing professionals, from businessmen to bankers, everybody seems to be taking the health route to happiness. This heightened health awareness has set the cash registers ringing for fitness experts and diet consultants. Powder-packed ultra nutritious health food and supplements is what they recommend for upwardly mobile Indians. It could be anything from a high-energy chocolate bar to a sugar-free milk shake.
Till some years ago it was only models or weightlifters buying these products.
“People are now aware of health food products but the missing link is the fact that they are still not aware of the right usage in order to derive the best results,� says Ranjan Khatri, a fitness instructor. There is a mind-boggling variety of proteins, creatine, fat burners, growth hormones and vitamins of various brands, Indian as well as imported. But there’s a catch. They are beneficial if particularly recommended by a fitness expert. Some of them involve serious side effects like kidney and liver damage, high blood pressure, palpitation, brain haemorrhage and even impotence. In extreme cases these products can also lead to mental imbalance. Some of these products may even contain appetite suppressants and the use of these drugs is banned.
Take the case of Preeti Ahuja, a college-goer and a resident of Malviya Nagar. Peer pressure led her to nutritional supplements but in the absence of a qualified dietician to guide her, she developed serious medical problems.
Body image problems are not confined to girls. Boys are victims of this look-good phenomenon too. Twenty-year-old Arjun used to frequent a gym close to his house in GK-II. In addition to pumping iron, he tried quick fixes like muscle pills and other nutritional supplements. He bought these powders and capsules from the local chemists or sports shops. However, once he was off them, his muscles began to sag. He also suffered from after effects like depression and low self-esteem.
According to Dr. Shikha Sharma, a weight management consultant, who runs the Clinique De Rejuvenation in Vasant Vihar, Panchsheel and Uday Park, there are two types of health foods currently seen in the market. The packaged, imported variety and the other prepared through high heat vacuum drying and roasting process. “Under the second category are foods such as pulses, chana, wheat, rice and moth, which have no preservatives, no side effects and are very economical. But these products have a low shelf life.�
The other variety of health foods, comprising chocolates, shakes, desserts, are appetizing, have flawless packaging and are fat and sugar free. But they are expensive and have chemicals and preservatives, besides artificial sweeteners. These foods can be good for people who are fighting a losing battle against obesity. They can only be substitutes but not complete foods by themselves.
Obviously, it is the hankering for perfectly sculpted bodies and paranoia about flab that is drawing people to health products. They should temper it with the right dose of caution.