Is bottled water any good?

Pressing the snooze button for the third time in a row, finally I got off the bed at 4 a.m. My heavy eyes begged for more sleep. I desperately wanted to call off the trip to Kandy. However, knowing the consequences of missing this, I pushed myself to the washroom. ‘Never play with your career’ Dad’s voice echoed in my head. Rushing through the packing, ironing and dressing, I was ready in the nick of time.

“Dad! Dad! We are late!” “Jana! I waited for almost half an hour now. You are the one who is late,” he replied.

“Oh never mind! Let us go now. Bye Amma! Bye Malli!” I rushed to the car. “Did you take the things you need?” Amma inquired and as usual, Dad worried himself about my financial status. I nodded and waved at Amma as the car approached the road.

“Oh! What made you late?” My workmates queried. “Dad got late to get ready,” I stuttered. “Can we please start the journey now?” the annoyance of a colleague stopped further inquiry. “Wait wait!” I interrupted. “I need to drink some water and go to the washroom,” I begged. “Hurry up then,” yelled the workmate in-charge of us.

I shoved my hand into the bag to take the bottle out, but my fingers hit bare leather. I stopped in surprise and started to rummage through all the pockets of my bag.

With a sickening thud, I realised my precious bottle of water was missing. For a moment, cursing me for being careless, I thought of the long day ahead without the bottle. “Oh! I have left my bottle of water,” I said. “Don’t worry, we’ll give you water,” a friend assured.

“But we cannot stop anywhere to buy a bottle,” I fretted for the bottle, ‘Drinking water to my heart’s content is impossible from another’s bottle!’ As the day passed all my thoughts revolved around the bottle.

It made me thirstier than any of the other days.

Lost in my thoughts, back in the bus, I heard someone calling the driver, “Prasanna, issaraha kohenhari navaththanna vathura bothalayak ganna (stop somewhere to buy a bottle of water),” the voice ordered. I sighed with a relief and grinned at my colleagues. “Thank you,” I murmured. “How can we be cruel to the damsel in distress?” voiced one of the workmates.

“Though we habitually drink bottled water, it is not a healthy choice, you know?” with another grin, I initiated a conversation. “Why?” they were inquisitive. “Those bottles are carcinogenic,” I reasoned. “Carcinogenic? What does that mean?” Someone inquired. “It can cause cancer. The water bottles available in the shops are PET bottles. These PET bottles contain a potentially carcinogenic element known as DEHA, which is a cancer-causing chemical agent,” I cautioned.

“Two years ago I interviewed a physician interested in this subject, Dr. Waruna Gunethilake. He said plastic could leak chemicals that can cause cancer and many more health risks.” Whispers filled the air, breaking the silence in the bus. Plastic bottles have become one of the essentials in our day-to-day life. It is easy to carry, readily available and affordable too. The astonishment on my workmates’ faces demonstrated their dependence on these bottles.

“Tests have shown that these chemicals can give rise to breast cancer and decrease sperm count. Most importantly when these plastic are put to hard use and exposed to high temperature, like microwaves, hot liquids, and direct sunlight, even refrigeration, chemicals leak.” They gazed at me with their startled eyes. “Repeated washing and rinsing can cause plastic molecules to break easily. They are micro-breaks, not visible to the naked eye. Thin bottles can leak more chemicals.” I explained the gravity of it. “So, what you say is not to use plastic water bottles from now?” “You can use, but make sure you dispose of them after the first use,” I advised.

The rest of the journey was a silent one. I assumed that thoughts about the use of plastic bottles kept them busy. Something worth mention is when you are buying a water bottle for everyday use, check the number underneath the bottle within a triangle with arrows - commonly known as the recycling symbol. If it says five, go for it.

According to Dr. Gunethilake, these types of plastic contain a coating inside the container, which prevents leaking chemicals. However, keep in mind that all plastics can leak chemicals under certain conditions. As a rule of thumb, do not subject even the most durable plastics to high temperatures and never drink water from bottles, kept in the vehicle on hot, sunny days. After all, health should come before convenience

Change the way you look!

Life is hectic. Everyone is in a race to earn his or her living. People are too busy and tend to neglect their own health too. Because of this, the number of people who are obese is rising every day. When they finally realise it, often it is too late to go for a quick remedy.

However, losing those extra bulges is not impossible at all. It is just a matter of changing bad habits into good habits. Some positive changes in your lifestyle will keep you in good shape. Eating habits and exercising patterns are the most important factors that affect the weight of the body.

Despite the popular belief, eating habits have a greater impact than exercises. However, it does not mean that exercising is not important. Let us give you some tips and tricks to lose those extra pounds and maintain the ideal weight for the rest of your life.

These days one of the main addictions of many people is eating junk food. These are easy to buy, easy to eat and give a good taste. However, did you know that those foods have adverse effects on your weight? If you do not believe this, experiment it on your own. Without changing any of the regular activities, stop the consumption of fast food for a month. You will see a quick drop in your weight. When you finally decide to give up junk food, it does not mean that eating from restaurants has to be stopped too.

Instead, every time when ordering a meal, see if those contain lots of fatty food like oil and sweets. Some websites provide the facility of checking the calorie content of various food items.

They even provide mobile applications, which make it easier to check even while ordering food at the restaurant. Though it is not very practical in Sri Lanka, it still can be used for at least western recipes. The portion size of the meal also plays a major role.

Even consuming healthy food in large potions can still be a reason for a weight gain. To avoid this, keep track of everything you eat including the amount. After a good workout session, a big portion of oily food will ruin the effect of the workout. Keeping a food diary and counting the calories are two popular methods which are used to track the food intake of a person.

Automatically, when we are conscious about the amount of calories we eat, our portion sizes become smaller. However, accidentally eating a large portion is not a reason to panic. Make the next meal smaller. That way your food intake will balance. Usually a woman should eat a minimum of 1200 calories a day; a man should eat at least 1500 calories.

This value varies according to the weight, height and the level of work a person does during the day. When we are not doing anything, or assume we sleep the whole day, the amount of calories we should consume is equivalent to the minimum required amount. Drinking a lot of water and consuming less salt is also important as they prevent water retention of our body.

This is not only helpful in losing weight, but also helps in preventing other diseases. Following a good workout program helps a lot for an overweight person. Because the more you put pressure on your body, it is going to adapt and tend to lose more.

Do a research for a good workout that contains strength training, cardio, and abdominal workout. When choosing a workout see if the duration can be fitted easily to your daily schedule. A workout of one hour or more than one hour will make you to discontinue it sooner.

It is also important when choosing hand weights not to go for lighter weights, which are not challenging, go for the maximum weight, which is comfortable.

Unlike a workout a program, simpler exercises, such as walking are easy to fit into a busy schedule. If you are going to office in the bus, stop taking the bus from the closest halt. Walk a few halts ahead. If you are going in your vehicle, park the vehicle somewhere far away from office.That will save money and at the same time, will give a good workout. Walking is simple, relives stress, and does not need equipment. Trying these simple tricks will change your body unintentionally.

Yoga is also another good way of melting those ugly fats. It has more benefits than losing weight. However, it is better to practice those asanas with an expert. Losing weight does not stop upon reaching the ideal weight.

You have to keep an eye on your weight all the time. If you have changed your habits to change the look, then maintaining the weight is easy. Enjoy every minute of this mission of losing weight. When you are enjoying what you are doing, most likely it will be continued. Live a normal and balanced lifestyle. That is the secret of a good body shape.