That one last drink before you go to sleep

Several Indian spices which we use in our everyday Indian cooking have the ability of preventing so many ailments and aiding digestion. In the last few years, we have seen much ink flow on having turmeric (haldi) in your daily diet, for its anti-carcinogenic qualities and having constituents that can reverse Type 2 Diabetes.  The Indian cuisine has turmeric powder in practically every recipe. About three months back, while interviewing Asha and Ramesh Mirakhur, senior corporate leaders, I met Mr Mirakhur's 102 year old father, Mr Prithvi Nath Mirakhur. He is fighting fit, goes for a regular walk in the evenings and is a stickler for good diet. His probable secret of good healthy says his son, is perhaps the extra amount of turmeric (haldi) that he consumes. A portion of dal and vegetables is kept aside for him with extra seasoning of haldi. And, he has shunned green and red chillies from his food, since a long time. Of course, no one can be assured of longevity just because you are a stickler for diet and exercise - that is all God's grace - but surely with conscious eating and exercise, you can be assured of a good quality life, as long as you live. And I reiterate, there is no one singular ingredient that can work as a miraculous cure or prevention - it has to be the adoption of a healthy food and lifestyle combo. So, let us have a wholesome approach.

Here are some recipes for drinking your plain water at night, spiced up and warm and good for countering Diabetes. It is known as `Kadhas' in Ayurveda

Cinnamon Water

Water:  2 glasses
Cinnamon: 1/2 tspn powder or 1/2 inch stick
2 drops of lemon juice
Add the cinnamon to the 2 glasses of water and boil till it reduces to half quantity. Which means you get one glass of Cinnamon water. Strain it. Add lemon juice. Drink it warm, before sleeping. You can also make it in the morning and keep it for night.

According to Authority Nutrition, one of my favourite websites, ``Cinnamon is well known for its blood sugar lowering effects. Apart from the beneficial effects on insulin resistance, cinnamon can lower blood sugar by several other mechanisms. First, cinnamon has been shown to decrease the amount of glucose that enters the bloodstream after a meal.

It does this by interfering with numerous digestive enzymes, which slows the breakdown of carbohydrates in the digestive tract. Second, a compound in cinnamon can act on cells by mimicking insulin. This greatly improves glucose uptake by cells, although it acts much slower than insulin itself. Numerous human trials have confirmed the anti-diabetic effects of cinnamon, showing that it can lower fasting blood sugar levels by up to 10-29% .The effective dose is typically 1-6 grams of cinnamon per day (around 0.5-2 teaspoons).'' . For more read: (https://authoritynutrition.com/10-proven-benefits-of-cinnamon/)

Tulsi (holy Basil) water

Water: 2 glasses, 

Tulsi leaves: 8-10; Jeera (Cummin) 1/4th tspn, 1 grain of Pepper; 4-5 coriander seeds (dhania)

Add Tulsi leaves, Cummin and Pepper to the 2 glasses of water and boil to half. Which means you get one glass of Tulsi water. Strain. Drink it warm before sleeping.You can also make it in the morning before sleeping.

As per a study by US National Library of Medicine, National Institute of Health, ``It is commonly known as Tulsi. Since ancient times, this plant is known for its medicinal properties. The aqueous extract of leaves of Ocimum sanctum showed the significant reduction in blood sugar level in both normal and alloxan induced diabetic rats [41]. Significant reduction in fasting blood glucose, uronic acid, total amino acid, total cholesterol, triglyceride and total lipid indicated the hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects of tulsi in diabetic rats [42]. Oral administration of plant extract (200 mg/kg) for 30 days led to decrease in the plasma glucose level by approximately 9.06 and 26.4% on 15 and 30 days of the experiment respectively. Renal glycogen content increased 10 fold while skeletal muscle and hepatic glycogen levels decreased by 68 and 75% respectively in diabetic rats as compared to control [43]. This plant also showed antiasthemitic, antistress, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antitumor, gastric antiulcer activity, antioxidant, antimutagenic and immunostimulant activities.'' You can read more here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2275761/

Turmeric Water
Water: One glass
Turmeric Powder: 1/2 tspn
Flax Seed oil or Til oil: 1 tspn


Generally, Haldi Milk (that is adding haldi powder to milk) and having it at night is very popular in India. Since, milk is not good for Diabetic patients, here is how we improvise by using water instead. Add turmeric powder and oil to the one glass of water and boil it. Have it hot or warm, No need to strain.
Besides being anti-carcinogenic, it is good for diabetes too. The website link  https://draxe.com/turmeric-benefits/  states: ``For lowering blood sugar and reversing insulin resistance there’s arguably no better natural treatment than adding turmeric into your diet. In 2009, Biochemistry and Biophysical Research Communications published a study out of Auburn University that explored how supplementing with turmeric can help reverse diabetes. The study discovered that curcumin in turmeric is literally 400 times more potent than Metformin (a common diabetes drug) in activating AMPK which improves insulin sensitivity which can help reverse Type 2 Diabetes.In addition to correcting the causes of diabetes, curcumin has also been proven to help reverse many of the issues related to insulin resistance and hyperglycemia. Take, for instance, diabetic neuropathy and retinopathy. One of the most common complications of diabetes is damaged blood vessels which cause blindness. A study found that supplementing with curcumin can delay this horrible complication of diabetes because of its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.''

You can make such spiced up water by adding bitter gourd pieces or even Jamun.
So, spice up your water too and enjoy!