Barriers faced by Indians for good heart health
On the occasion of World Heart Day observed on 29th September, SaffolaLife conducted a study about the major barriers faced by Indians in leading a healthy life and keeping the heart fit. In spite of awareness being created to keep the heart healthy, the number of patients suffering from Cardiovascular Diseases (CVD) continue to rise in the country.
What is the Cause?
SaffolaLife took the initiative to dig deeper and find out reasons why heart health is not on the priority list. The study was named ‘Barriers to Heart Health’ and was conducted upon 1306 volunteers across 6 cities, namely Delhi, Mumbai, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata.
The survey was commissioned by AC Nielsen.
The major findings of the study were:
80% of the people felt that their long and hectic working hours prevent them from working towards healthy heart goals
68% believe that the long hours of commute or travel do not leave them with enough time to work in keeping the heart fit
76% people are engrossed in work related stress that keeps them unhealthy
69% spent a good amount of time on the Internet/ phones/ tablets, thus leaving them with no time to exercise or workout
74% Indians are victims of inadequate sleep which risk their plans for healthy living
81% women feel household chores take a lot of their time so there is no time left to put in efforts for staying healthy
72% Indians are surrounded with stress related to home which keeps their heart upset
83% Indians cannot resist the temptation of tasty food that puts all their healthy heart motives in a bin
74% Indians believe healthy food is not tasty enough and hence they skip nutrition rich meals for spicy food and binge eating
66% Indians blame on insufficient space for exercising/ yoga/ workout/ walk at their work places/ neighborhood/ home
74% women have to cook healthy food separately apart from regular meal which consumes further time
What Steps can be Taken?
In spite of these barriers, SaffolaLife encourages people to find their own ways to stay fit and healthy amidst their daily routines.
If there are no spare 30 minutes for walk, you can split them in 3 intervals. Three 10 minute walks at some intervals can be practiced to reduce levels of cholesterol
Standing burns 53% more calories than Sitting. Hence you can avoid sitting for long hours and do work while standing itself.
Since time taken in travelling is also an issue faced by many Indians, this time can be used for deep breathing and positive thinking that can help in alleviating stress, another cause of unhealthy life
Apart from these, women can cook healthy and nutritious veggies in a delicious way so that temptation of eating out can be resisted. These days, oats are coming in flavoursome and tasty variants that can be replaced by pizzas and fries.
SaffolaLife promotes healthy eating and living which began its journey in India a decade ago. SaffolaLife has a mission to reduce cardiovascular diseases in India and make heart healthier. It has backed many initiatives and researchers to create awareness and educate the masses about the importance of healthy heart and living.