It is not an uncommon thing to see that while your father might be stressed with hundreds of problems, your grandfather would be more than enjoying his life. His grandfather would have been happier, and the chain would continue till we reached our cave dwelling ancestors. Why is it that in spite of being in an era when medical facilities and the concept of hygiene have grown to greater proportions than what were available at the time of our forefathers, our health standards simply refuse to meet theirs? Research proves that as the generations continue to advance in the unending cycle of life and death, each upcoming generations is growing ever-increasingly prone to various health problems. Why is it so? Why is it that when many of the life-threatening diseases have been eradicated from the earth, mankind is suffering from disease that were not to be heard of in those days? Why have the incidences of heart failures and strokes increased in multitudes? It’s all in the way we live our lives today, the food we consume and the amount of work that we do. Here are ten such reasons which play a standing role in the increased exposure to heart and other problems.
1. Lesser meat content in the diet
During those crude days, our ancestors lived on more of a meat-based diet. It is a striking revelation though, since most diet based books prescribe a vegetarian diet now. The reason is vegetables contain more of anti-oxidants. So, our overall life expectancy increases by switching on to a veg diet. But red meat contains more of proteins, an essential component of cells which helps in an unmatched growth in brain cells. The result, our ancestors learnt quickly and understood things better than us. Stress level was low and the speed of intellectual evolution was tremendous. Today the condition is not so.
2. More physical labor
It was a stage of human evolution when the main means of making a living was through hunting or by collecting fruits in forests. Hence, physical labor was a naturally very frequent. Long distances had to be covered on foot, an exercise that is now practiced indoors with an artificial walking machine. Somehow, exercise has remained confined to the four walls of a gymnasium. With a lowered extent of physical exercise, many of us have stopped remaining fit.
3. Resources were fresher and purer
Today, under the influence of an ever growing level of pollution and an increased artificiality in the lifestyles of most people around the world, the level of exposure to the beaming rays of the Sun and the soft gush of unadulterated wind has drastically receded. Everything that nature offers to the human race, has a reason, which the modern man’s reason finds difficult to understand. Vitamin D, a nutrient which we indirectly receive from the Sun, is reducing and the greater immunity that we get from fresh air has almost been blocked.
4. Large amounts of fiber was present in the daily diet
Today, what has become a dared luxury, was an easy resource in those times. Trees were abound and fruits were next to staple. Today, how many of us have a religiously regular intake of fruits? Almost none! The result is that we remain deprived of the vivid benefits that these sweet gifts of nature have to provide.
5. Less artificial sugar
Sugar, in the crystallized form, has become a mandatory intake for most of the populace, except those who suffer from the ruthless strictness of being diabetic. Sugar, when consumed in the raw form found in fruits, become a healthy intake. However, when taken in the crystalline form, becomes harmful. Sugar, usually acts as preservatives in many food items, killing bacterial growth. Imagine the damage that it could cause to our body when taken in lump-some amounts.
6. Herb was the soul of medicinal therapy
Today, when we fall ill, a wise doctor prescribes a long list of tablets. Tablets are nothing but the concentrated form of chemicals. How good would it be for the body to accommodate the huge amounts of chemicals that we ingest throughout our lives? In those days, it was not so. Almost every malady had a herbal cure. Plants, their leaves, their roots and other parts were the main constituent of medical science for many generations. Ayurveda is something that has been toned according to the requirements of a suffering body. No chemical can ever take the place of its marvelous effects.
7. There was no artificial preservative in those days
Almost every packaged food that we consume today contains huge amounts of preservatives. Chemicals, in their very nature, are harmful to the human body. To add to the sorry state, almost every fruit and every vegetable that we have now is hybridized and is injected with artificial fertilizer and preservative. What good could chemicals do to us after all?
8. The stress levels of life were low
Unlike the present lifestyle of an extremely busy household today, families were much at rest in those days. There was very little of what we call stress today. Pressure to sustain a socially acceptable living, was absent, because every living being was socially acceptable.
9. Life was gadget free
Sedentary lifestyle was almost absent in those days in dark caves. There were no gadgets and no machines involved in daily lives. Life was hassle free, yet busy. There were no video games, no laptops, no mobiles, no iPods and hence, no radiation affects, no eye problems and no other related disease. Life was better without an artificial touch.
10. Life was simple
Last, but most importantly, life was at its simplest and best. There was no need to show off, and hence no ill feeling due to the failure to do so. Everything was at rest and peace. Nature reigned the life, unlike today, when science rules the world.