A Healthy Lifestyle: Myth Or Truth
Perumal Murugan What does it mean to lead a healthy lifestyle; we have various opinions, if we ask anyone. A doctor would suggest eating healthy, a gym trainer might say a healthy diet combined with exercise, a monk would say letting of worldly pleasures. Often times we tend to think eating healthy, exercising are the most important factors of a healthy lifestyle, but is it…?
Eating healthier and living longer
When we go to a doctor, we are suggested to eat healthy and to maintain hygiene to protect ourselves against diseases and live healthier, but the thing is that there are individuals who eat nothing but healthy, exercise daily, sleep on time, and jog every day and then one fine day even such people get diagnosed with diseases like cancer. So, how do we explain this?
What does it mean to be living a healthy lifestyle?
The World health Organization says healthy living is a way of living that helps you enjoy more aspects of your life. Hence, A healthy lifestyle is a way of life where you are:
- Physically healthier
- Mentally healthier
- Happy or satisfied with the flow of your life, with your struggles
- When in adverse situations you have faith to face challenges
- You are content being who you are as a person
It’s fairly correct to say that eating healthy and being healthy is not living healthier. To live long and to lead a happy and healthy lifestyle one needs to understand the part and parcel of life. One needs to forgive, to let go, to practice a life one envisions. A healthy lifestyle is a broad concept in itself, a concept one needs to understand to understand one.
The truth behind a healthy lifestyle
Once upon a time I heard this real story about a sexagenarian lady who was diagnosed with cancer and the doctor said she doesn’t have much time left. The peculiar thing is that the lady accepted it with a smile; she continued her daily activities be it looking after her husband, or attending the Sunday mass as if she doesn’t have cancer or anything. Few years later she was still alive, healthier and happier. She said that she accepted whatever god has given her and she would have welcomed death in the same way she has cherished her life. Cancer was miraculously gone.