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Booked to life
Indeed. We are virtually living life in the Ferrari lane. And the never-ending race to beat the opponents in different lanes, leaves us very little time to leave aside the close ones cheering for us, but also on our machine that we have been dragging and manhandling for long. And this scenario, if someone asks you to pull the break, jump out of the lane, park yourself in a corner, cull out a book, loosen your seat belt and just read through…Divine. We spoke to people, rather forced them to stop whatever they were occupied in, press conference, meetings, shootings and asked what is that they would want to read. Surprisingly, almost all of them would do anything for an indulgence called reading.
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Twist in the tale
Well, the book is doing well in the market, according to literary watchdogs. The best thing about Sikhs Unlimited is that it made quite a few people, hitherto unknown to us. Maybe not true in case of filmmaker Gurinder Chadha or record holder marathon runner Fauja Singh, but definitely applies to Bhangra-pop musician Harcharanjit Singh or chef Tony Singh or a teenage girl in the US Army. "This book can be called a living biography of the of 14 people who I met during my travel from the UK to the US. They come from different fields, different backgrounds. The only common thread being my travel experience which connects them to one another," says Khushwant who was there to interact with booklovers. The journo, who started his career with The Tribune and later moved on, is now giving way to the writer in him. He is already working on two projects, one on Maharaja Ranjit Singh as fictional character about which he keeps as closely guarded secret and other, once again a biography called Mending Souls. This time his subject is a motivational speaker, Ratanjit, Singh who draws his inspiration from Guru Nanak Dev's Ek Onkar. Like his subjects, that have a strong regional character, does he subscribe to the trend of regionailsation of English too? "Well, I do use Punjabi words here and there, but no expressions. Some words lends a certain character to the person and this is where I bring them on," he replies. Put it that way, it sure sounds appealing.
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Kill pill
Dr Mangla Dogra, a city-based gynecologist states the facts why the sales of ECPs have gone up, “People perceive an emergency contraceptive pill a substitute for unprotected sex and other contraception. Instead of taking precautions, they depend on it entirely to get rid of an untoward situation later on.” Wish the results came as easily as it is to pop a pill. “The worst affected are youngsters who consider ECPs as the sure shot measure to avoid pregnancy. There has been a significant increase in the number of abortion cases, as ECPs do not always yield cent percent results.” She believes the pill shrouds some vital information and is not being advertised in a correct form. As the name suggests, the ECPs should be consumed only in case of an emergency and not everytime. Dr Poonam Kumar, a gynecologist, gives us information about the side effects of consuming ECPs, “It is a hormonal pill and if misused, can cause a hormonal imbalance leading to irregular menses and other hormone-related problems.” She suggests that the pill should not be taken for more than two times in a year. “People aren’t being informed about the medication. There have been cases, where girls have consumed pills as much as eight times in a month, which is so detrimental for their health in the long run.” She adds that an ECP is just once in a while solution and should strictly not be resorted to everytime. Dr Beena Mahaur, a gynecologist feels it is a must to educate youngsters about the harmful effects of emergency contraceptive pills. “For youngsters, it is the most convenient short cut available to avoid pregnancy. They don’t realise how serious can be its repercussions.” ashima@tribunemail.com
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She lives to eat
My fitness mantra: I eat and drink whatever I wish to and just stay happy. I believe that most of the times, the health problems people face is because of stress and tensions in life. My fitness mantra is just to be happy and if that comes through food, then no regrets. Being a Punjabi, it’s natural for me to be a foodie and I believe in living life to the fullest. My diet: From butter-laden paranthas to dal makhni to eggs to butter chicken, to anything and everything. I am genetically blessed and so don’t have the tendency to put on weight. Also, I don’t follow any diet chart but prefer to eat only home-cooked food. I do take a lot of fresh fruit juices to keep my skin glowing. As an actor, I have to face harsh lights and so fluid is important. I don’t have a sweet tooth. Unlike my friends, I don’t like to eat chocolates or cakes, which probably is the reason I don’t gain weight. My fitness regime: I have never gone for a workout. I love dancing and all I do to keep myself fit is dance. It is like cardio session for me and I enjoying doing it. Other than that, I occasionally go for a walk. Sleeping hours: I love the way I am living life. Eating and sleeping are my favourite pass time. I love to sleep for long hours but unfortunately because of hectic shooting schedules get to sleep only for eight hours. Fantasy Food: I eat whatever I want to. I have no fantasy food as such. Best body celebs: Among female celebrities, it is Bipasha Basu. She has the perfectly toned body. Ranbir Kapoor calls the shots among males. He has the lean look that’s really in these days. Weight watch for celeb: Vidya Balan needs to do something with her looks. More than the problems with her body, she should work on her styling.
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Ninety-five per cent of people suffer from acne.
Anuja Jaiswal talks to Dr G.P. Thami, head of Dermatology and Venerology Department, Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32
What is acne, how is it caused? Acne arises from hair follicles. The hair follicle and the sebaceous gland are produced by a down growth of the epidermis. Epidermal cells are shed from the inner lining of the hair follicle. These cells normally separate out from each other and are removed out of the hair follicle along with the growing hair. The sebaceous gland produces an oily substance called sebum that lines the hair and the skin. In persons with acne, the sebaceous secretion is higher and the sebum is qualitatively different. The cells that are shed from inside the follicle do not separate out from each other as they normally should and they mix up with the sebum and form a plug that prevents the cells and sebum escaping from the follicle. At this point, the pimple feels like a bump on the skin. When the follicle is stretched upwards towards the surface of the skin, the contents may become partially liquefied, creating a white head. Sometimes, the top of the filled follicle sheds. With oxidisation of the remaining contents, it turns black and giving rise to a black head. What age group typically get affected? Acne afflicts mostly the younger lot between the ages of 12 and 24. However, people in 40s and 50s too have this problem. Women tend to suffer from adult acne more than men because of the increasing hormone levels. Androgens (male sex hormones) increase in both boys and girls during puberty causing the sebaceous glands in the skin to enlarge and make more sebum resulting in pimples or acne. Acne can be hereditary. Hormonal changes during pregnancy, starting or stopping birth control pills, certain drugs, all can cause acne. Greasy cosmetics too can be the culprits at times. Hard scrubbing of the skin, squeezing or picking blemishes can flare up the acne. How are food habits and lifestyle linked to acne? Pimples are not infectious; do not indicate poor hygiene, impure blood, constipation or ill-health. There is no diet for people with acne. Chocolates and colas may be avoided. Drinking water in excess will only keep you looking for a toilet all day, and do precious little for your acne. Should this be treated comprehensively or can external applications tackle the problem? Mild acne responds to external applications, moderate, chronic or severe acne needs comprehensive treatment. Is acne and subsequent scars irreversible? The redness left on the skin after pimples heal may be very obvious in fair-skinned individuals. It disappears on its own in one to three months. Pigmentation too disappears in three to nine months, but can be expedited with certain creams, chemical peels. The pits left behind by healed acne may be shallow or deep and seldom disappear spontaneously or completely. Shallow pits can be treated with surgical and non-surgical process. However, deep pits can be treated with a variety of surgical techniques. Are there guidelines by which acne can be checked? Excessive and repeated washing with soap will dry out the skin and cause irritation or waterlog the openings of the follicles. Three washes a day, of them 2 with soap or recommended cleanser, should be optimum. Moisturisers worsen acne, so do foundations and sunscreens.
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BODY WISE
Walk a mile
Exercise keeps your body toned and detoxified and is the healthiest way of de-stressing. You don’t have to go to a gym or be an Olympic marathon runner. Simply walking a mile a day, or taking reasonable exercise three times a week, will substantially reduce the risk of heart disease, as well as strengthening bones and keeping them strong. In short, exercise keeps you healthy and makes you look and feel better. Tame the bulge
Obesity looms large in today’s society. So, it is not surprising to find that weight loss is one of the most popular New Year’s resolutions. Setting reasonable goals and staying focused are the two most important factors in sticking with a weight loss programme. Eat a proper diet and exercise regularly. Keep away from various fad diets as they are harmful in the long run. Eat
right
Consuming the right proportions of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals, vitamins, etc is a must to stay healthy. Eat a balanced diet. Have four servings of fruits and vegetables daily to reduce the risk of developing heart disease, cancer, stroke and high blood pressure. Opt for fish, seafood, tofu, nuts and legumes as your protein source. Go for mono-saturated fats which are found in olive oil, avocados, nuts (mainly almonds, hazelnuts) as it helps to lower bad-type LDL cholesterol; contains antioxidants that discourage artery clogging and chronic diseases, including cancer. And don’t forget to drink adequate amount of water (8-10 glasses) to flush out the toxins. Vital vitamins
Take a multivitamin tablet every day, but be sure it contains at least 200mcg of folic acid. It can substantially reduce the chance of heart disease, and has been shown to reduce colon cancer by 85 per cent. It may also reduce the likelihood of developing dementia. Folic acid is essential for any woman contemplating pregnancy as it reduces the chance of some birth defects. However, large doses of vitamins are also not recommended. Don’t smoke
Smoking is bad for you and harms literally every organ of your body. If you are addicted don’t despair, as there is a world of help and support available — nicotine patches, gums, inhalers, hypnosis, acupuncture. Do whatever it takes. But if all fails, do try to cut back, because the more you smoke, the more likely you are to develop cancer or heart or respiratory disease. While many people use the New Year as an incentive to finally stop drinking, most are not equipped to make such a drastic lifestyle change all at once. Taper off gradually, or learn to moderate your drinking. A healthy person should not consume more than 60ml of alcohol in a day. Sleep well
Sleep primes the immune system. It’s a myth that everyone needs eight hours of sleep every day. Some will need more, some less and it will vary from day to day. However, most people need between seven and nine hours of sleep. The right amount is when you wake up feeling well-rested and ready to go, and do not feel sleepy during the day. Just chill
Unwind, take up a hobby and start socialising. It plays an important role in the onset of mental illness, including schizophrenia, anxiety disorders and depression. It makes people more vulnerable to physical ill-health and inflammatory conditions, such as allergic, auto-immune, cardiovascular, infectious and rheumatologic illnesses. Researchers have found that vigorous exercise three times a week can help with stress and depression. Mind your mind
Take care of your mental health to be physically healthy. Your mind and body are strongly linked. As your mental health declines, your physical health wears down. Try doing things which give you pleasure, cultivate a positive attitude and learn to meditate to relax yourself. kalrasachin@hotmail.com
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The principal of the Ron Clark Academy, who set up the school from royalties from his best-selling book The Essential 55, is dependent on donations to keep the academy open. However, he was dazed to receive such a great amount from Winfrey, who appreciated Clark for the "profound difference you're making with your passion for teaching." "We teach school all day and fundraise at night. To have an unsolicited gift come like that is incredible," The Daily Express quoted Clark, as saying. In a letter sent with the cheque, Winfrey praised Clark for the "profound difference you're making with your passion for teaching." — ANI
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The two, instead, landed at the Prince Charles's Aberdeenshire hideaway at Birkhall on New Year's Day where they would be with him and Camilla for six days. "This is the first time Wills has taken Kate away with his father. It has certainly caused some excitement," the Sun quoted a source as saying. The lovers had previously been speculated to have relationship trouble following William's decision to prioritise his career in the Royal Air Force, which had led them to put their alleged wedding plans on hold for eight years. The 26-year-old, who is to spend 18 months training to be a pilot from January, followed by another six-year commitment in the RAF, is said to have decided not to marry before completing his training to become a Search and Rescue Officer. — ANI
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Nor does he want any more children. "I'm 61, enough already," he says. His latest project, however, is a children's book. "When I wrote my last children's book my oldest son was 11. He's 29 now. I have another 11-year-old now who wants a book. I read him the first 15 pages and he liked it," he says. Rushdie's fourth novel, The Satanic Verses , was at the center of violent protests from Muslims and he faced death threats and a fatwa issued by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, then Supreme Leader of Iran. In response to the call for him to be killed, Rushdie spent nearly a decade largely underground, appearing in public only sporadically. —ANI
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Kate revealed that she feels like hitting them, when they hound her even when she goes to drop her son to school. "They've become an entity to themselves. But eventually they'll implode. They're creating a house of cards that will inevitably fall," The Daily Express quoted Kate, as telling. "These are not nice people. When you're taking your child to school, and they're trying to get on school property to get a picture, it literally makes you want to just smack them," Kate added. — ANI
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Paris Hilton has sparked rumours that she's dating George Clooney after the two were spotted enjoying an "intimate" evening at a bar in Hollywood. The couple was seen having a gala time at the Whiskey Bar at the Sunset Marquis hotel in Hollywood, according to Life and Style Weekly magazine. A source said, "Paris and George sat and talked together for ages. They didn't seem to be aware of anyone else in the room." The following evening, the 27-year-old beauty was seen sitting beside 47-year-old George at a dinner at a Hollywood restaurant, with other guests including director Ridley Scott and Brittany Flickinger, winner of Paris Hilton's My New BFF show. Meanwhile, Paris reportedly caused shock in Australia because of her "psycho shopping". The House of Wax star, who was in the country for a New Year's eve party in Sydney, stunned shoppers by spending almost 100 dollars a minute at boutique Wayne Cooper, with critics branding the 40-minute spree "obscene". — ANI
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Every third day calls from traveling, every second day is reserved for meetings, 'free time' is a treasure, we bet he doesn't have. Nonetheless, when it comes to readings, Randeep cannot think of retiring to bed without digging into a book. His favourites? "Varied category of books, inspirational, fiction, current affairs, politics, non-fiction science& technology," says the politician. "A great part of knowledge comes from readings, which plays an important role in daily life as well." To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee, A Beautiful Mind by John Forbes Nash are some of his favourites. At the same time, he has just finished reading Parliamentary Democracy by Aroon Shourie and already ready to go through two more books on electricity reforms and corporate governance on PSU's. Even when time is a constraint, Randeep has to devote a 'religious' half an hour to the books- his food for soul and thought.
What do you do when go looking for a 94-year-old literary legend and find yourself facing a 35-year-old new kid on the block? Swallow your disappointment, maintain a stiff upper lip and carry on with the interview. This is exactly what we journos (and quite a few visitors too) did at Lajpat Rai Bhavan-15, the venue for the ongoing book exhibition by Rupa & Co. If it is any consolation, the organisers informed us, Khushwant Singh, the original is in bed, not allowed to travel and we are not the only ones who made the mistake. The same scene happened in 2007 at the Government Museum and Art Gallery-10 when young Khushwant had released his book Sikhs Unlimited. Well, so much for our groundwork!
Ignorance isn’t bliss always. Not when it concerns one’s health. Certainly not when it fails to distinguish between precaution and cure. It might keep us stress-free for quite some time until the reality pricks to change it all. So, before such little knowledge does us irreparable harm, let’s face it. Our ‘responsible’ advertisers have been telling us that emergency contraceptive pills (ECP) have no side effects, they guarantee no pregnancy if taken in the stipulated time period and are very effective. But that’s not true as per our learned doctors.
With a few dance numbers to her credit and plum roles in television soaps, Ashima Bhalla earned fame in the industry. But it was the serial Meri Awaaz Ko Mil Gayi Roshini that gave the much needed boost to her career. Tall, slim and fit, here she shares with us her fitness secrets.
Acne does not restrict itself to the age of the person. Like any other medical condition, it can happen at any age, says dermatologist, Dr G.P. Thami. But more than age, it’s the skin type and genetic make up of the oil glands that cause acne. Therefore, if oil glands are genetically more sensitive to various triggers like hormones, stress and pollution, then acne can occur even at the age of 50. With chronic acne, a person needs to make a few lifestyle changes like changing his/her skin care regime and diet pattern. This will make the skin more receptive to treatment and help prevent relapses.
The start of the year gives us an opportunity to reflect on the past and look ahead to changes we can make to improve our health. Here are some relatively pain-free ways to a healthier life. If we take even some of them to heart, they really can improve our odds for a happy and healthy year ahead.
Media mogul Oprah Winfrey donated 243,000 pounds to a school for low-income kids in Atlanta. Winfrey, who is known for her charitable work, donated the money in a bid to make certain that the The Ron Clark Academy has sufficient funding to continue providing education to 80 low-income group students.
Prince Williams has taken Kate Middleton to Scotland on a surprise vacation to spend some quality time with his girlfriend, father and stepmother. The pair, who has been romantically involved for six years, had been rumoured to be headed to the Alps.
After four unsuccessful marriages, author Salman Rushdie says he has no intention of tying the knot again, but doesn't rule out the possibility of falling in love. "I'm not saying I am never going to fall in love again but there is no need to marry," he said.
Hollywood actress Kate Hudson has branded paparazzi as 'not nice people', insisting that she's sick of them. The How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days actress stated that she is exhausted of being followed by the hounding paparazzi.