Diwali Alert: Know How Festival Sweets Can Affect Your Health!

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One of the most popular festivals of India, Diwali, is just round the corner and Indians all across the globe would definitely be gearing up with much excitement for this occasion, right?

Well, every year, especially in the subcontinent of India, a number of festivals are celebrated, some of which happen country-wide, while the others remain specific to a certain state or region.

In fact, India is popular as the 'land of festivals', owing to the number of festivals celebrated by its people.

As India has people belonging to different religions, castes and cultures, different festivals are celebrated by each of them (while there are many common ones too), thus making the total number of festivals celebrated here quite a lot!

Now, as we know, apart from the rituals, the 'pujas', meeting relatives and friends, buying new clothes, etc., one of the most exciting parts of Indian festivals is the delicious food!

Different festivals have different specialties when it comes to food and all festivals include sweet dishes!

Yes, even Diwali is a festival in which a number of amazingly yummy dishes and sweets are prepared and savoured by the people.

Since festivals like Diwali are just celebrated only once a year, most of us do get tempted to enjoy every part of the festival, including the good food!

Now, most of us already know that consuming sweets and fried foods prepared during Diwali is unhealthy for us; however, we may not know how exactly they can affect our health.

So, have a look at how sweets can affect your health, in this article.

Weight Gain

This is one of the most common side effects of consuming excess sweets during the festivals - weight gain. Even if you consume a lot of sweets just for a couple of days, you could gain a few kilos, as sweets contain a high amount of sugar, oil, butter, ghee, etc.

Difficult To Get Back In Shape

The weight gained from consuming sweets during festivals like Diwali can definitely be very hard to shed and may even take a person, months to get back in shape, with a lot of hard work.

Affects Teeth

Consuming excess sweets during Diwali can also affect your teeth negatively. The artificial sweetners and sugar content present in most sweets can allow bacterial growth in your teeth, causing cavities and other teeth/gum problems.

Increases The Risk Of Diabetes

Even if it is just for a few days, eating a lot of sugary foods and sweets could increase the risk of diabetes, especially if you are above the age of 40 and if you have a family history of diabetes. Sweets can affect the production of insulin in your body to cause diabetes later on.

Increases Cholesterol Levels

Consuming a lot of sweets and other foods deemed unhealthy during the festivals can also increase the cholesterol levels of the body. High cholesterol is extremely dangerous for health and is one of the main causes for major cardiac diseases in people.

Increases The Risk Of Crohn’s Disease

Many research studies have stated that eating a lot of sweets and foods prepared using artificial sweeteners during the festivals can increase the risk of Crohn's disease in people. Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel condition which causes constant stomach pain and other digestive issues.

Leads To Constipation And Gastritis

Sweets prepared during festivals like Diwali contain a high amount of sugar and maida. Maida is one of the common ingredients which is known to cause constipation and gas in many people. So, consuming sweets during festivals can also lead to constipation and gastritis.

Causes Joint Pain

A research study conducted on bone heath, in 2008, stated that consuming foods high in unhealthy and artificial sugars, like festival sweets can affect the bones and make them more porous. This could cause joint pain and other such conditions later on.

Causes Health Issues

Many of the sweets during Diwali are bought from stores, these sweets may contain hazardous ingredients like synthetic milk, caustic soda, etc., which can cause a number of health issues in people.

Causes Stomach And Kidney Problems

Store bought Diwali sweets sometimes contain silver foil and artificial food colours, which contain toxins that can lead to stomach and kidney problems and also cancer!