Page 22 - March 2024
P. 22

Menstrual Disorders





                            Among Teenagers







        Menarche and the monthly menstrual                     I congratulated the children and handed
        cycle (artava) are indicators of female                out bracelets to those with pizza and

        fertility and health. As mentioned in a                salad on their plate!
        previous article, artava is the subsidiary

        tissue of rasa dhatu (plasma-lymphatic                 I thought about my daughter, who often
        tissue). Therefore, the strength of the                brought home-cooked Indian food (rice
        menstrual channels is a reflection                     with veggies and spices or a bread called

        of rasa dhatu and overall immunity.                    chapatti with a side of vegetable curry).
        Menstrual complaints often begin                       One of the ‘hot lunch’ kids had teased

        showing up soon after menarche simply  her one day, so she started throwing
        because of poor diet and lifestyle                     out her homemade lunch and buying
        patterns that are inherent in the                      hot lunch just to fit in with the other

        stressful, fast-paced Western world. I                 kids. Beyond the heartache I felt for my
        experienced this firsthand in the school  daughter, I was angry at the injustice of

        cafeteria in our hometown.                             a school culture which encourages kids
                                                               to partake in poor eating habits just to
        Not too long ago, I volunteered during                 “fit in”.

        the lunch period at my daughter’s
        elementary school. It was ‘Rainbow                     The gut-brain axis is at the heart of

        Lunch’ day, which meant students who                   the thousands-of-years-old Ayurvedic
        had a colorful plate of food earned a                  practices, as Dr. Vaidya fervently teaches
        rainbow wristband. I was appalled when  his students. The Standard American

        I saw the sad salad bar made of pre-made  Diet, for which the acronym “SAD” is
        bags of dry lettuce and purple cabbage                 all too fitting, is high in fats, carbs, and

        with a few strands of carrots here and                 government-subsidized corn, wheat,
        there, sliced cucumbers, and ranch                     and soy and low in veggies, fruits,
        dressing to douse it in. All refrigerated,             vitamins, and nutrients. It’s the reason

        cold, and very un-Ayurvedic! The hot                   why obesity is a pandemic, leading to
        lunch that day was an even sadder                      chronic diseases like diabetes, heart

        looking pizza with burned cheese on top  attacks, strokes, and arthritis. It’s also
        of thick, stale bread. I felt like a fraud as          why adolescent mental disorders,

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