Our Bodies
A much-needed discussion to analyse what our bodies are — the biology and the choices we make.
Taking a break from the conventional minutes of these discussions, I would like to share our gracious host’s endeavour first. Preeti Chaudhary shared a lot of fun facts about our body to create an atmosphere of enlightenment within the group. The facts are our body can be represented in numbers. Each body consists of 78 Organs. Each body is primarily made up of water (70%). Almost 99% of the mass of the human body is made up of six elements only namely oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus. Only about 0.85% is composed of another five elements namely potassium, sulphur, sodium, chlorine, and magnesium. All of these eleven elements are necessary for survival. Our human body is made up of trillions of cells/koshikas (30–724). Each day, 10 to the power of 11 die only to be replaced by new ones. This mass of cells we lose each year through normal cell death is close to our entire body weight which is to say that technically, our body is being remade every year. The human body consists of five types of cells: Stem Cells, Nerve Cells, Muscle Cells, Cartilage Cells and Bone Cells. The largest organ is skin. One of the main functions of the skin is protection. It protects the body from external factors such as bacteria, chemicals, and temperature. The heaviest organ is the liver. It weighs approximately 3–3.5 pounds (1.36–1.59 kilograms) and is about the size of a football. It is located beneath the rib cage and lungs, in the upper right area of the abdomen. Also, an adult brain weighs about 3 pounds. These fun facts made us conscious of what our meat suits really represent. She ended by recommending the ‘Oxygen mask theory’ which promotes self-care. You cannot care for anyone if you are not well yourself.
Sumit Agarwal brought his refreshing honesty and an admirable sense of humour to the table and laid the groundwork for a ‘numbers versus no numbers’ discussion. He says, “The more you know, the more you worry. In the age of information, choose what not to know. That gives us peace.” He concedes that the body is indeed about numbers. Lots of things go into our bodies yet somehow, people only bother with BMI (as it is easy to measure). Having spent fourteen years of his life in a hospital, he has seen and experienced all forms of numbers related to the human body. As a result, he developed an apathy for numbers because of the repetitive medical tests. He recommends acceptance, “We just have to accept that some things are beyond our control.” He has been approached by people with recommendations like ‘eat organic food’. In his opinion, the human body can take care of itself if one were to utilize a bit of common sense. He candidly shared a cautionary tale by stating, “Where treatment ends, faith begins.” There are charlatans in this world who use our pain to make some gains which may impact our lives adversely.
Sourabh Goyal offers an opposing view to that of Sumit by stating that he is a numbers guy. As someone who wasn’t conscious of his health till, he got a wakeup call during a regular health check-up, he used to eat a lot of junk food and try different cuisines (outside home). He then started maintaining his health. He became driven by numbers. He says, “Whatever symptoms our body shows, take note of them. The body is the food we eat.” He noted how within an hour of eating, one’s feelings can change. It’s just that we tend to ignore those feelings. He admitted to having things he has to work on to improve his health and he is working on these actively. He recommends becoming conscious of our bodies. He compares a human body cell to a computer chip in that external factors have a lot of impact in how well the system ultimately operates. He asks us to practice the habits we learned culturally. He promotes a focus on food and thoughts. He makes an interesting point by saying, “Fad diets are not permanent. Try trends that promise permeance.” He then proceeds to talk about digestion being as important as diet. He concludes with, “Respect nature and you will learn to respect your body.”
Capt. Charanjit Lehal tells us how his entire professional and personal life has been about the mind, body and soul. He succinctly points out how we as an individual are the only ones who can really care about our body. He says, “Relationship to the body is like a relationship to God.” He then coins a hilarious term that had the entire panel laughing in unison. The Gurgaon Syndrome™ (as he dubs it) is when instead of becoming healthy, people become obsessed with health. He highlights how all bodies are different. He tells us how he eats for taste, enjoys his life and maintains his health. His secret is eating local produce. He laments how our bodies have become a subject of display and discussion. To him, numbers are something only specialised people should deal with. As an officer, he was taught three things which he promotes namely steady breathing, high energy and a calm mind. To him diet trends are like seasonal flavours (like the frogs that only sing in the rainy season). He says, “The human body is about rhythm and balance. The body sustains itself on its own. We get influenced by myths around our body unnecessarily.” He concludes by telling us to have and promote acceptance. He wants everyone to avoid body shaming and accept neurodivergence.
Capt. Satyendra Vaidya bring his concise energy to the mix by comparing the body to a machine. He says, “Body is an amazing machine. With good care, the body can be a perpetual machine.” Then he points the oxymoron. With machines, the longer you run it, the more it runs. With the human body though, there’s an imminent aspect of mortality. He adds to the numbers discussion by stating how what works for some won’t work for others. The same fact applies to numbers. In his opinion (and evidence would agree), many of the metrics we get have a Western bias and the dataset in question isn’t sufficient enough to provide generalised answers (or lifestyle adjustments). According to him, wrong data can lead to catastrophises. He concludes by recommending balance. In his own personal experience with an ailment, he used what is now (sadly) dubbed as alternative medicine to cure himself. According to him, the cure worked because the natural medicine balanced his body.
Gautam Nath gave us candid shares about his family’s stint with life threatening illness and their journey to restoring the balance. He highlights how the external environment matters as much as the internal environment of our bodies. He says, “Enable the environment around a person to maintain your body. Environment can be an enabler.” He also laments about how there are just too many fads going on. He recommends this, “When in doubt, go for your roots.” He concludes by telling us to be careful. He ardently stresses on two things; firstly, find out what your body responds to, and secondly, find out what makes you comfortable. He also urges us to explore the boundaries of all sorts of medicines (when ill).
Binati Sheth brings in her carefree attitude to health. She doesn’t care about the numbers and tries to lead a happy, healthy life (and wholeheartedly recommends it). Her attitude to her body changed as a teenager when her body gave her a wakeup call. From that day forth, she tried living a life by following signals from her body and it luckily worked out. She recommends finding the faults in one’s biology (Ayurvedic Dosh) and make minor adjustments to diet and exercise accordingly. According to her, “Appreciation for the body begins from a young age.” She concludes by asking everyone to listen to their bodies, see the symptoms and act accordingly.
Please note:
Ted circles is a theme based monthly activity which focuses on impactful, meaningful conversations among people in all walks of life. For this circle, seven people gathered to discuss the topic to ensure they are not mere spectators but parts of the conversation. The event was held on 11th June at 3:00PM (IST). The agenda on the docket was ‘Our Bodies’. All the contributors were committed to discussing our bodies and the choices we make regarding them. The host of the event, Preeti Chaudhary invited Sumit Agarwal, Sourabh Goyal, Gautam Nath, Capt. Charanjit Lehal, and Capt. Satyendra Vaidya to the stage with Binati Sheth acting as the scribe for the event.
