Skip to main content

How does modern lifestyle affect our health

Getting up from the chair I was sitting on for hours writing, I sighed and stretched myself holding my back. I needed relief. Nothing unusual for many of us, retracing our steps to think about it, is it good?

The modern lifestyle we pursue may be the beginning of an end. Fast-paced lives, cutthroat competition, deadlines, and the struggle for survival leave us little time to invest in health.

Here, we delve into some areas which impact our lives and health.

Sedentary lifestyles.

Modern living is making a notable shift to sedentary habits. The rise in desk jobs and the screen times with our gadgets now threaten the quality of life.

Obesity, a primary consequence of our inactivity, promotes diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

Diet and nutrition.

Our diet has shifted from whole grains, fruits, and vegetables to that of processed foods- highly salty and sugary diets. We eat fast food with no nutritional value and a lack of satiety.

Malnutrition and overnutrition both come with a price: a healthcare burden.

Mental health

A high-pressure work environment and social media influences contribute to increased levels of stress and anxiety. Ignoring bio-circadian rhythms in favour of screen usage and graveyard shifts causes sleep disorders.

An increasing disconnect between professional and personal challenges creates mental health problems of depression and anxiety.

Environmental issues

Increasing urbanisation causes pollution; a poor air quality index impacts public health with respiratory diseases. Increased use of chemicals and pesticides in farming exposes us to various toxins through food.

Human activities trigger climate change. Global warming is disturbing the equilibrium and leads to natural disasters.

 Technological impact

Technology is integral to daily life. We now live in an interconnected world more than ever. Innovations in technology have benefited us. On one hand, telemedicine has made health accessible in remote areas. On the other hand, it has contributed to computer vision syndrome, cervical spondylitis, backaches, and accelerated cancer development.

These diseases have changed the dynamics between the body and the environment. 

Social and cultural changes

The blurred boundaries between work and family, increasing disposable income, declining community engagement, and single-person households contribute to isolation. As everyone continues to struggle, the modern lifestyle alters the social fabric of life with ever-dwindling life support.

Addressing the elephant in the room

Modern lifestyle impacts our health and presents a range of challenges. Understanding these impacts is crucial for us to implement strategies to improve our health outcomes.

A healthy environment reduces the health burden. Clean air, safe water, sanitation, safe use of chemicals, and sound agricultural practices determine healthy living.

It all starts with us. We must stay active setting an example for everyone in the family to follow. Explore nature, walk, and exercise in fresh air.

Never bribe your children with fast foods, chips, and candies. Keep in mind that genes have memory and our fondness for sweets is an embedded code. We will pay a heavy price in the form of diabetes or some other disease. 

Be assertive and let everyone be independent and do their running around. A few extra steps will harm no one. It benefits the body, mind, and soul.

We need to understand that everyone faces challenges and that they need support. It helps you grow physically, mentally, and emotionally. 

Although reluctant, I close my laptop and organise my doc folder. It is time to disconnect. The flashing message of 'screen time OVER' on my mobile serves me as a reminder to priortize other other activities.

 


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Flipping Pages, Flipping Fates, My Tippan Moment

  My call was gladly received by my sister, who was in the midst of a monotonous job of setting a question paper for her students. She needed a distraction, and I willingly obliged. These days, we enjoy our telephone conversations more than usual. The reason is that we dwell upon the stories from the past that have been handed down to us from our previous generations. They are not stories of valor passed down the generations in musical forms to infuse courage. They seem like tall stories stretched by imagination, not only to us but also to innocent bystanders. These have become so believable to us by being repeated many times during our family reunions. The stomach-churning laughter they induce keeps those anecdotes so lively until today. Tippan Chacha (uncle) was a guest who came from far away to take a departmental examination for promotion in the city where my grandparents lived. Our grandparents were glad to have him visit them. As for one of their broods, my mother, younger th...

WHATSAPP FORWARDS

"You will not read any of my WhatsApp messages and so it is useless to send you anything.” My mother said to me. I acknowledged her by my silence mentally reciting," I read all that you sent to me". So, here I am busy reading all about Indian spices and medicinal herbs used as daily household ingredients, thereby indulging in more studies on naturopathy as compared to any other ‘pathy’ which has side effects. I speed dialled my mother when my patient refused to undergo the procedure of scaling to clean her teeth in favour of 'alum', or "phitkari," a desi nuskha. No wonder patients shirk away from scaling. I ruminate. "I just called you up to confirm if you WhatsApped something to my patient "I vented. Ever since, I have been scrolling through all her erstwhile messages to know more about natural healthier medicaments, their benefits and roles in dentistry and health. Oh! WhatsApp was not there when I was a student. No wonder, my gold ...

World Book Day

Usha Vance became the Second Lady of the United States, following JD Vance, her husband ’s election as Vice President. An accomplished attorney and the first Asian-American holding the position. Last week, she occupied the center stage in India. A lot was talked about the book Iliad, which  she carried during the campaign for her husband. What interested me was neither of them, but her title. It reminded me of something I had read years ago. Irving Wallace’s THE SECOND LADY. In our younger days, we frequented libraries and often the shops at Janpath in Delhi to buy reasonably priced paperbacks or second-hand books. My sister and I visited our chachi to borrow her library books. She would recommend them, much like Goodreads . Those were not the times of the internet, and recommendations always came from word of mouth. I remember her narration of the political thriller. “ The first lady of the United States is abducted during a state visit to Moscow and replaced by a Russian actr...