Eating their way to lifestyle disorders in Lucknow food hub

Lucknow, Dec 19 Ram Babu Rastogi, an octogenarian who owns a chain of jewellery stores, begins his day with a plateful of ghee-soaked kachoris and hot jalebis, washed down with a glass of thandai.

His friend and neighbour Tariq Siddiqui joins him for breakfast every day. However, he opts for 'nihari' (a stew cooked on slow fire) and kulcha from the neighbouring shop. He even adds a plate of kebabs to his breakfast.

Their other friends, Kishori Lal Gupta, Priyam Srivastava and Anand Khanna also join them for a delicious breakfast every day, choosing items of their choice from a cluster of shops in Chowk area of Lucknow.

Chowk, a well-known locality in the old city area, is a food hub for traditional vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. All dishes are lovingly prepared with an overdose of ghee and relished by thousands of residents in the locality.

In fact, breakfast is rarely prepared in families in this area that is known for its lanes and by-lanes and is home to a mixed population.

However, a study conducted recently by experts in geriatric health has thrown up disturbing results.

Because of the food habits of the local residents, nearly 50 per cent of the elderly population is suffering from lifestyle disorders.

Dr L.N. Tandon, a geriatric health expert who led the research team, said: "We conducted a door-to-door survey of 1627 families and carried out tests on 357 senior citizens. We found 52.3 per cent senior citizens suffering from diabetes, 56.8 per cent from hypertension and 58.2 per cent from abnormally high levels of lipids in the blood."

The health profile of Lucknow shows that diabetes in this area could be the highest within the community of elders in the country.

According to experts, the estimate of elderly citizens suffering from similar disorders in Tamil Nadu is 36 per cent while that in Maharashtra and Chandigarh is below 15 per cent.

"The reason for these lifestyle disorders is that people in the Chowk area consume unhealthy food and do not exercise. After breakfast, most of them sit in their commercial establishments or go back home to sleep. Many of them are accustomed to having sweet dishes like 'makkhan malai' and 'rabri' after dinner. Too little exercise and too much consumption of fried food have led to these disorders," Dr Tandon said.

The elderly citizens in Chowk area, however, are not perturbed by the findings of the medical study.

"I am 82 years old and have been eating this food all my life. My father lived up to the age of 87 and my grandfather died at the age of 91. Why should I change my food habits at this age? I will not live on till eternity if I switch to a healthier lifestyle," said Ram Babu Rastogi.

His friend Priyam Srivastava, who gorges on kebabs every day except on Tuesdays and Thursdays, echoed similar sentiments.

"I agree my blood sugar levels are high and so is my blood pressure. I take my medicines and remain mobile, I have no problems so why should I give up on this food?" he questioned.

Sudha, his wife, makes a similar argument: "We live in Chowk which is a blessing because people come here from other localities to eat the food here. There is no question of giving up on our routine diet. Don't people who eat healthy also suffer from diabetes?"

Even doctors do not seem to have an answer for such queries.

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