Our body is like a working machine, all the parts need to be working well for it to maintain a long-lasting life. Like so, maintaining a healthy digestive system is very important for your overall well-being, and dietary fiber plays a pivotal role in this process. If you've been eating a lot of processed foods or following a diet low in fiber, like the carnivore diet, your digestion might be sluggish. Fiber is like a natural broom for your gut. It helps keep things moving smoothly. While you may thing that eating a highly carnivorous diet is ok, most of those foods are highly processed and because it doesn’t have fiber, there isn’t a component that can help break down that food. Fiber acts as a natural regulator, promoting regular bowel movements and preventing constipation. It adds bulk to stool, making it easier to pass through the digestive tract. This prevents constipation and keeps you regular. Plus, certain types of fiber can also slow down how quickly your body absorbs sugar and can even help lower your cholesterol levels. Most adults need about 25 to 30 grams of fiber every day, and it's best to get it from whole foods like fruits and vegetables, rather than relying on fiber supplements. You must make sure that your fiber intake is adequate because it is essential for optimal digestive health and overall well-being. While berries are known for their high fiber content, stone fruits like apricots offer a valuable alternative.

Apricots are a tasty and convenient way to boost your fiber intake. Just one cup of apricot halves gives you about 3 grams of fiber, and it's only about 74 calories. That's a great way to get some extra nutrients without adding a lot of calories to your diet. To get the most fiber, make sure you eat the skin of the apricot. It's where a lot of the fiber is concentrated. Besides fiber, apricots are also packed with other good-for-you nutrients, including potassium, vitamin C, vitamin E, and vitamin A (in the form of beta-carotene). So, adding apricots to your meals or snacks is a simple way to support your digestion and overall health.

How Apricots Support Digestion and Cholesterol Management

Apricots contain two types of fiber: soluble and insoluble. These work together to keep your digestive system happy. Insoluble fiber is like a scrub brush, adding bulk to your stool and stimulating your gut to move things along. Soluble fiber is like a sponge, it mixes with water to soften your stool, making it easier to pass. Apricots are also about 86% water, which is another important factor in preventing constipation. They also contain a natural sugar alcohol called sorbitol, which can have a mild laxative effect. The soluble fiber in apricots also helps manage cholesterol by binding to it in your gut and preventing it from being absorbed into your bloodstream. This helps lower your "bad" LDL cholesterol.

Apricots aren't just good for digestion and cholesterol; they offer a range of other health benefits too. They contain special plant compounds called phenolic compounds, which act as antioxidants. Antioxidants protect your cells from damage caused by harmful molecules called free radicals. This protection is important for your heart health and can also help protect against long-term health problems like stomach inflammation (gastritis), liver disease, and hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis). These plant compounds also help reduce inflammation throughout your body, which is linked to many chronic diseases. So, eating apricots is a great way to give your body a boost of protective nutrients.

Carbohydrates have unfortunately become one of the most misunderstood parts of the diet, particularly when it comes to weight loss.

Cutting out rice, roti or other carbohydrate-rich foods completely is not necessarily the answer. Carbohydrates are an important source of energy, and the issue is more about the quality, quantity and overall balance of the diet than the nutrient itself.

Why Cutting Carbs Completely May Not Be The Answer

For Indians, this becomes particularly relevant because staples such as rice, roti, poha, idli and other grain-based foods are an integral part of our traditional diets.

Removing them completely can sometimes make a diet unnecessarily restrictive and difficult to sustain. It may also mean missing out on foods that provide fibre, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients, particularly when whole grains and minimally processed sources are chosen.

Also read: The New Nutrition Gap: Why Knowing What To Eat Doesn't Mean We Actually Eat It

Not All Carbohydrates Are Created Equal

What matters is understanding the difference between refined and high-quality carbohydrate sources. A diet dominated by refined flour, sugary foods, sweetened beverages and highly processed snacks is very different from one that includes whole grains, millets, legumes, vegetables and appropriately portioned rice or roti.

The Bigger Picture Behind Weight Loss

Another common mistake is replacing carbohydrates with excessive amounts of protein or fat without considering the overall nutritional balance.

Weight loss ultimately depends on overall energy intake, dietary quality, physical activity, sleep and several other factors—not simply whether carbohydrates are present on the plate.

Also read: Protein Is In Everything, But Is Every Source Actually Healthy? Experts Explain

How To Build A More Balanced Indian Plate

A practical approach is to focus on portions and pair carbohydrates with protein, vegetables and healthy fats. For example, roti with dal and vegetables or rice with dal, vegetables and curd can form a balanced meal. Choosing less-refined carbohydrate sources and paying attention to portion sizes can make the diet both nutritious and sustainable.

Carbohydrates do not need to be feared or completely eliminated. The goal should be to eat the right kind, in appropriate portions, as part of a balanced diet rather than following the latest anti-carb trend.

Healthy eating is something every individual is aware of, not only because of various online conversations around it but also because it is one of the subjects that is being discussed widely amongst individuals today.

From taking up diet charts with the help of AI to taking details from social media reels shared by several wellness influencers – information about food and health is readily available for all age groups at any time and it is customised according to their preferences, thanks to our algorithms.

Most people are aware that a healthy diet includes vegetables, fruits, home cooked meals, adequate water intake, and most importantly, limited consumption of outside food like fried and processed foods.

Unhealthy Eating Habits Continue To Rise Despite Awareness

Also read: From Pickles to Papad: Which Everyday Indian Foods Could Be Worth Rethinking for Cancer Prevention?

Despite growing awareness amongst the population, unhealthy eating habits continue to rise, which is eventually contributing to various lifestyle diseases like obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and other health issues.

For most people, lack of information and knowledge about nutrition is not a challenge anymore, but the inability to act on that knowledge and consistently following through the habits and incorporating them into day-to-day life is. This growing gap between knowing what to eat and not being able to follow through is called the new nutrition gap.

Many individuals understand what a healthy diet is? yet struggle due to busy schedules, long working hours, and stress. Also, the convenience of ordering food often leads to dietary choices, that do not support long-term health. It is common for individuals to skip meal preparation, rely heavily on packaged food and snacks or food from restaurants, and beverages during stressful times despite being aware of their harmful impact on health.

“Social settings” add another challenge to sticking to one’s diet as planned. Office celebrations, family gatherings, and social outings are often centred around calorie dense foods and sugary treats. In addition, many people follow an all or nothing approach to eating, believing that a single indulgence has undone all their progress. This mindset can also make healthy eating feel difficult and unsustainable in the long run.

Also read: Protein Is In Everything, But Is Every Source Actually Healthy? Experts Explain

Closing this gap does not require restrictive diets or unrealistic rules. It is about building small, practical and healthy habits that can follow consistently over time. To maintain the same, some of the following small habits can be helpful:

1. Make healthy the easy option

2. Stop punishing yourself

A healthy lifestyle is not determined by a single meal. Occasionally eating a vada pav or enjoying a dessert, festive treats are not going to harm long-term health when it is balanced with nutritious meals throughout the day. Instead of feeling guilty after eating an unhealthy food and worrying over its impact your progress, one should simply focus on continuing the prioritising balanced eating habits with their next meal.

3. Make it personal

Don't eat healthy because an influencer said so. Eat healthy because you want to feel lighter, sleep better, and not feel acidity every evening. It is important to take guidance from a professional like a Certified Registered Dietiian when you are not able to follow through with your diet or are facing any other challenge instead of depending solely on unreliable nutrition advice and social media trends.

Healthy eating becomes easier when one makes conscious choices of maintaining a balanced diet, regular meal planning, mindful eating, and realistic lifestyle changes.

By Vidisha Parekh, Chief Dietician at Lilavati Hospital and Research Centre, Mumbai

Indian cuisine is known for its delicious taste and varied nature. Often, pickles, papad, namkeen and preserved products form an essential part of our everyday diet.

However, in terms of cancer prevention, this is not about how much we should give up on these products. The question is about the frequency of consumption and its proportion to the diet as a whole.

Why Salt And Preserved Foods Need A Closer Look?

One of the first factors that requires revision is salt consumption. Pickles and papad may be quite salty and even if we consume them from time to time or in small quantities.

High levels of salt in the diet have been linked to the higher risk of developing stomach cancer. Salt may irritate the stomach walls and promote the development of conditions which make the stomach more susceptible to other carcinogens. According to the World Health Organization, we should not consume more than 5 grams of salt a day.

It is not about the risk of consuming a small portion of homemade pickles with lunch. What really matters is the frequent and intensive consumption of salty and preserved foods, in combination with an unhealthy diet. Processed meat is another category to look out for. Sausages, salamis, bacons, and all types of meat products that are cured or preserved increase the risk of colon and rectal cancers.

Among Indians, consumption of processed meat products, such as some packaged meat preparations, may also be something to take into account. The inclusion of these foods in the diet is better minimized than made a constant feature of the diet.

Also read: Protein Is In Everything, But Is Every Source Actually Healthy? Experts Explain

When Everyday Snacks Become A Bigger Concern?

There are foods which may not be traditionally categorized as “unhealthy” but become unhealthy when consumed excessively—fried snacks, farsan, namkeen, sweets, sodas, highly processed packaged foods.

Frequent consumption can lead to an intake of excessive calories and result in gaining weight. Having too much body fat increases the risk of cancer itself.

Also read: Diabetes Diet: Build A Balanced Plate, Not Just Cut Carbs, Doctors Explain

What To Put On The Plate Instead?

Then, what to replace these foods with? Not expensive “superfoods”. More vegetables, fruits, pulses, beans and whole grains in the diet will protect you from cancer much better than eating these unhealthy foods. As per WHO, people older than 10 years old need at least 400 grams of fruits and vegetables on a daily basis.

It comes down to a simple point: cancer prevention is not based on fear of particular foods; it is based on making improvements in our dietary intake. We don’t need to sacrifice our food culture; we just need to add balance to it: less salty foods, less processed foods, more fiber-containing plant foods and proper servings.

Foods constitute one of many aspects of cancer prevention, in addition to abstaining from tobacco, alcohol moderation, maintaining a healthy body weight, physical activity and regular screenings.

It is not about making our traditional thali unpalatable. It is about making decisions that benefit us now and protect our future.

By Dr Nitin Bayas, Oncologist, MOC Cancer Care, Mumbai