Huda Shaikh, is a passionate Nutritionist, Clinical Dietitian, certified diabetes educator, health/fitness blogger, speaker, Holistic health & Menstrual health advocate, menu planner, online health show host, and the Founder of NutriBond (www.nutribond.co.in), The Period movement, and Sampurnaa Integrated that focuses on holistic health.
1. Tell us more about yourself and your profession.
My name is Huda Shaikh and I am a Nutritionist by profession. Over the years I have also indulged in different roles including that of a Clinical Dietitian, a certified diabetes educator, health/fitness blogger an speaker, holistic health and menstrual health advocate, menu planner.
I am also the founder of Nutribond, The Period Movement, and Sampurna Integrated.
2. What are some of the biggest myths related to nutrition?
In my line of business, myths remain a pretty common thing that circulates around. I have heard so much and so many of these myths. Some of the more common myths are:
· Nutrition is only for those who want to lose weight or only when a person has health problems.
The fact however is that every individual needs to have a nutritious well-balanced diet which helps them get vital nutrients essential for their body.
· Following fad diets and crash diets will help lose weight and the weight loss will be sustainable:
Unfortunately, this is far from the truth. Once you lose weight with these kinds of diets, you may go through weakness and there’s every bit of possibility that you might gain the bulk you lost in the next two months again because of eating the same kind of food more or less.
· Going on a diet means the diet is going to be restrictive. Diet won’t have calories. The nutritionist will not allow having your favorite food.
False again. When you are on a diet, you will get the same kind of nutrition that your body requires for proper functioning. Cheat meals are a part of our schedule. A cheat meal is important I believe once in every 10-15 days
· Going to a dietitian is very expensive:
Dietitians do take a lot of effort into planning your diet. They will sit with you for more than an hour’s time where they take into consideration every aspect including your ailments, routine, etc. and then they will plan your diet. They take into account things like calories, lifestyle, medical disorders, and even your ethnic background. Nutritionists and dietitians charge you but there’s a lot of work that goes into planning your diet and nutrition needs.
· One size fits all
One person’s diet can be followed by the next person as well as the general consensus. This is not true at all. Every person's body is different and all of us have different nutritional needs. Some people may have certain health issues and everybody has different physical activity levels/. Depending on that, your diet needs to be charted out.
· Pills and powders help in weight loss:
Not true. No pill or powder can lead to sudden weight loss and most of these products are going to clear out your pockets and without the expected results you wish to see.
· Only one particular food will help you with weight loss or weight gain:
Well, it doesn’t. Certain foods will help you with your immunity or in smaller ways. Losing weight is a process and you have to commit to that process. Another myth is that you should be eating everything. A balanced diet is more important than hogging on anything when it comes to increasing your weight. So, ensure that you go to a dietitian and take their help in charting you a course of action. That’s what will be beneficial for you in the long run.
3. Where did you study nutrition science and why did you choose it as a career?
As a kid, I was always intrigued by the medical profession and wanted to follow the same lines. Unfortunately, I couldn’t pursue a Doctor's degree that so I opted for a degree in Microbiology. This is a subject that is a part of the medical curriculum of doctors.
This gave me a strong base and as a pure science student, I learned a lot during this time, and with my natural piqued curiosity for the subject, it made for the backbone of my current profession. I followed this further with a Masters in Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics.
This then became a natural progression for me to develop and use my skills as a Nutritionist and Clinical Dietitian. The habits of my childhood also played a crucial role.
We were always taught to eat and drink healthy, eat in moderation and portions, take an active part in sports and extracurricular activities. I have always wanted to fit and be healthy.
Ultimately, this became my calling and I love educating people about nutrition, about keeping themselves hale, hearty, and healthy. Basically, preaching what I practice.
4. We are curious to know more about “The Period Movement”.
The Period movement was born on 7th November 2017. Periods and Menstruation came across as a very hush hush topic amongst us Indians and right until I went through menarche, I was clueless and did not have complete information about the process of menstruation.
During my own practice as a Nutritionist and Clinical Dietitian, I came across many girls who were shy to discuss the topic of menstruation. This is when I knew that something had to be done in this regard.
In a city like Mumbai, when menstruation is still a taboo talk, I decided to play my own part and normalize it the best way I can. So, I got together with my co-Founder, Shraddha Verenkar who happens to be a counselor, Waldorf trainer, and sex educator, to start the initiative called "The Period Movement”.
We began this by educating the underprivileged girls and women about menstruation openly and not consider it a taboo to shy away from. We even distributed sanitary napkins. In all, they wish to end the taboo surrounding menstruation and debunk myths that have been around for a long.
Today after almost two years, The Period Movement covers Menstruation, Health Issues related to Menstruation, sensitizing boys/men about menstruation, and much more. We conduct menstruation workshops at schools, colleges, slums, and societies.
We tie-up with brands and NGO's so that we can work with maximum girls and women so that they are aware of menstruation and are not clueless about it. We cover different topics hygiene and nutrition being two of them.
5. How can one go about building their immunity?
Immunity happens to be one of the most spoken about the topic today, more so in the last 5-7 months after the pandemic and lockdown. Immunity is not something that can be built in a day. Immunity is a gradual process and one that takes time and effort.
Just having one herbal concoction or eating one fruit, food or vegetable is not going to build your immunity overnight. Immunity building takes time and even in a child, this process takes at least 2 years to build.
Once a child turns two, that’s when they build their own immunity. If you are to build your immunity, there are a couple of things that you need to keep in mind. Firstly:
You have to stay away from alcohol, smoking, tobacco, things that lead to addiction. Somewhere down the line, these are causes that affect your immunity. The second thing is to have a well-balanced diet that gives you all the vitamins, minerals that are required to boost your immunity.
Fruits and vegetables have antioxidants and these can help in boosting your immunity and stopping the free radical damage of the body. It can reduce it to a great extent. The next is your lentils, beans, pulse, whole grains, dairy products, nuts and seeds, lean meat, poultry.
All these foods are very important in your diet as they give you varying amounts of nutrients. You should be consuming all different kinds of food. If you are a vegetarian, you can do away with meat and poultry but otherwise, you should be consuming all the foods.
Next is water. As basic as it can get. Don’t underestimate it. Water helps cleanse the toxins in your body and keeps your digestion running. If you want a healthy immune system, you need to take care of your gut. More than half of your immunity is in your gut. The reason we come down with so many diseases is that our gut is not healthy.
It's important we work on our gut health. Remove all kinds of foods that lead to inflammation and excessive oil, sugar. For example foods like refined flour, packaged foods, fried foods. All these need to be avoided. Occasional consumption is okay. You are allowed to indulge.
Just having a balanced diet is not enough. Working out is very important if you want to boost your immunity.
If you are deficient in some nutrients like calcium or iron. Get to a doctor and get it checked and start on your supplements. A deficiency of nutrients can bring down your immunity. You can get probiotics.
Try and avoid any stress in your life. Excessive stress can bring down your immunity. You can try yoga and meditation.
If you want to boost your gut health that has more than half of your immunity, then probiotics and kimchi are very important. You get a lot of products in the market today that can help. You can also go to an expert and ask them which probiotics important for you.
Last, sleep. Sleep is very important. We don’t sleep enough. This can affect your immunity. IF you are not getting enough sleep, it would affect your immunity drastically.
These are a few things that you can do apart from maintaining a balanced diet. This way you can be immune to a lot of diseases.
Since we are talking covid times, we should make sure that we don’t stock up and have too much of concoctions, adding too much of garam masalas or having ten different types of teas. Excess of anything is never good.
6. What are some of the mistakes people make while trying to lose weight?
There are many mistakes to point out here.
· You are a stressed case or you are stress pretty often.
· You are not eating mindfully if it's healthy it doesn't mean one should overeat it.
· You are not consuming enough protein in the diet.
· Your water intake is low and you drink aerated drinks or juices often.
· You don't get enough rest or sleep throughout the day.
· You are eating very often ( small and frequent meals doesn't mean you need to eat every hour) which means you eat even when you ain't hungry.
· You are suffering from a medical condition (thyroid, diabetes, PCOS).
· You are starving yourself and skipping meals too often.
· You are often tempted to take up fad diets/crash diet.
· You are not exercising or exercising very little.
·You are opting for health products that are marketed as healthy but unfortunately ain't healthy (low-fat, diet food, low-carb).
· Your diet lacks fiber.
· You don't read labels and buy a product just because it makes certain claims.
7. What comprises a sustainable diet that is good for maintaining a healthy weight and BMI?
A proper diet or a balanced diet to be precise is a diet that gives you a good blend or combination of macronutrients (carbohydrates, proteins, and fats), micronutrients (vitamins and minerals), fluids, and enough calories It is a diet that not only imparts energy but provides every nutrient needed for proper growth and functioning of the body along with boosting immunity and ensuring healthy development.
As per the NIN, there are 4 food kinds of cereal, millets, pulses, milk and milk products, dairy, dairy products, meat, egg and fish and oils, fats, nuts, and oilseeds. So, one must include these to make sure he/she is getting enough energy and nutrition.
In all, a healthy diet consists of fresh fruits, vegetables (3 servings of veggies and 2 servings of fruit), whole grains (5-6 servings), lean meat (1 servings a day), pulses ( 2 servings) nuts and seeds (in portions, 1 serving a day), dairy and dairy products (3 servings a day) and at least 3-4 liters of water a day.
To put it down simply 50-60% energy needs to come from carbohydrates, 20-25% from proteins, and 15% from good fats (omega 3 and omega 6). Keep the consumption of empty calories (aerated drinks, juices, chips, burgers, etc) to a minimum.
8. Which is your favorite book & why?
It has to be, “Believe In Yourself” by Joseph Murphy
The book talks about developing your talent and using the same to make your life better. It basically talks about the power of imagination and the power of your dreams.
In the first three chapters In fact the chapters are taken from another book called “The Power of Your Subconscious mind” written by the same author. The first chapter talks about dreams, the second chapter talks about the power of your subconscious mind and how you can use to it your advantage. The last chapter talks about success.
There is no person who cannot be successful in life. It all depends on the power of your imagination. power of your dreams and how you can translate it to success. It is how a person can go through the entire process and taste success.
This book is good for anybody who wants to start their own business and see success and be a better person. The book is written in a lucid language. It's very simple to understand. I recommend that everybody can read it once. It can be a guiding book for you.
She has been in this field for over 5yrs now and has been tirelessly working on child nutrition, women's health, and corporate nutrition for a while now.
She holds a degree in MSc.Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics and runs the period movement to educate underprivileged girls and women, on the topic of Menstruation.
Huda Shaikh
Nutritionist - https://www.facebook.com/Nutribond.co.in/
Founder of Nutribond, The Period Movement, and Sampurna Integrated.
https://www.instagram.com/nutribondbyhudashaikh/
Interviewed By - Aditi AshokNutritionist - https://www.facebook.com/Nutribond.co.in/
Founder of Nutribond, The Period Movement, and Sampurna Integrated.
https://www.instagram.com/nutribondbyhudashaikh/
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