What is happening to us?
Whatever happened to our society? I look out the window; I see men, women and children literally rolling down the street due to obesity. I go to the souk; I see the majority of shoppers in supermarkets pushing carts brimming with a huge variety of delectable comestibles. I attend receptions; I am bombarded with the fattiest delicacies. Dinner tables overflow with a diversity of rich dishes; kitchens are stockpiled with foodstuffs; living room tables filled with goodies and snacks; office desks heaped with fast food and drinks; schools are flooded with junk food stands; and worst of all, toddlers and children are rewarded with sweets and chocolates. Gone are the days where they were calmed down with a date, a handful of raisins, or a piece of fresh fruit.
Haven’t we got anything else to do than stuff ourselves without thinking or even reviewing the quantity and quality of food we gobble? We have definitely lost our perception of the amount of money, effort and time invested in getting us fat. We are like a nation in a state of food frenzy expecting imminent famine or still suffering from food shortages experienced during World War II. We appear to be stuffing our bodies with lumps of fat and hoarding provisions for such drastic times.
When I delve into my childhood memory, I remember our parents slim or at most slightly over-weight. And those who were plump or obese, particularly children, were ridiculed for their odd appearance. I, for one, who became a little pudgy at one period of my childhood, was teased for my chubbiness and I wanted to hide my extra flesh. However, recently in Saudi Arabia, obesity is paraded with confidence and no effort is exerted to get rid of it.
We all have to view obesity seriously. It is not about appearance to compete with models, but it is about something more important: health and wellness. My recollections take me back to the sixties and the seventies. I hardly remember any of the older generation succumbing to chronic diseases. My firm belief is that it was due to their healthy active lifestyles, which were balanced and devoid of excesses.
Moderation was exercised in many aspects of lifestyle. The diet was not of the highest quality but was reasonably nourishing and mostly toxic-free. The portions of meals were not super-sized but fair and non-excessive in fat or carbohydrates. Lastly and most essentially, food and snacks were not easily accessible. People only ate three specific meals with a couple demitasses of light tea or light roasted Arabic coffee flavored with cardamom. If snacks were available, they would have been double-baked crisps seasoned with whole spicy seeds such as anise, fennel or cumin seeds. Whole fresh fruits were the daily desserts; rich desserts for special occasions or holiday seasons only — Eid of Ramadan or Haj. Breakfast was fairly filling. Lunch was the main meal consisting of meat, chicken or fish; fresh vegetables or legumes; rice or whole bread; finally a piece of fruit. Dinner was similar to breakfast but lighter. Could it be our parents’ balanced attitudes toward life were due to the moderation our Islamic culture has embedded in them? The Qur’an commands Muslims, “... and eat and drink but waste not by extravagance certainly He (God) likes not the extravagant.” (Chapter: 7, verse: 31).
The difference is that our older generation exercised more self-restraint and tried to keep equilibrium in their lifestyles. I do not remember them as stricken with chronic diseases such as the middle-aged suffer today. Did you ever wonder why? Despite their equally stressful lives then, people stayed active, self-reliant and less dependent on modern transportation even those with desk work vibrated with energy on the job. I remember my father, a prominent businessman in charge of the Jeddah seaport, every morning visiting the port and checking on the stevedores loading and unloading the docked freighters. He would then check on the warehouses where the goods were stockpiled for their owners to collect. I say “I remember” because I accompanied him then on his daily ritual. I can assure you he was not the only active person at that time. My mother, too, matched his energy and was always in the midst of action. There were those who actively tended to their work in the marketplace, those who worked in the shipyards, and others who set off in their fishing boats in the wee hours of the morning, while others walked to their jobs. Just before sunset, the shoreline would be spotted with people strolling and enjoying the shades of the sinking sun. Their day bustled with the vibrancy and action of those people.
Where is that spirit today? We are not only lethargic, depleted, flabby and unfit but also diseased due to very demanding desk-bound jobs and stress that we are unable to handle. We commute daily to work with cars, trains or buses. Does any of us make the extra effort and walk back and forth to work to stay healthy, active and trim? I wish I could say that I use my legs instead of the car for running errands. Unfortunately most of us become breathless and tired when we need to run or even walk that mile dividing home from office. Think of what a simple hour of moderate activity during your daily schedule can do your health, body and spirit. According to the Arabic saying, “A sound mind resides in a healthy body.”
Stress management has become an important aspect of healthy lifestyle, as stress has become pandemic in modern times. Did you know that, just like obesity and inactivity, stress leads to chronic diseases? I agree that life can become dull without challenge, but when constantly challenged energy is depleted and the body drained. We have become a nation always on the go from the early morning to the late hours of midnight; even pleasurable events can be just as exhausting to the mind and body as work and family demands.
Our older generation practiced discipline to counteract stress. When my father came home he would shut his work worries from his mind and his attention would be fully focused on his family. He would play Bridge or a board game to relax. He also played to win. He was a member of a club with his friends. Weekends were spent along the beach or out on the sea with my mother organizing the logistics. He was also and is an active member of the community. Most men of his generation managed to remain stress-free in their own different ways.
How can that happen to us if we do not review our current lifestyles of diet, regular activity, and stress management to improve our health, revive our vitality, and enjoy a full, disease-free life?
(Mariam Alireza is a holistic science specialist. Send comments to [email protected].)
