Human Body is a Machine With 50 Years Guarantee – it Requires Maintenance

If you are not taking proper care of your body, this article is for you. I wanted to write this unusual article just to explain that our body is like a machine and we should not mistreat it. There is a marked difference in the way we treat our body as compared to our material possessions/ gadgets. Therefore, I am using the analogy between a car and human body to present my views.

Let us examine how we usually take care of our car.

• We will generally take good care of our car.
• Proper servicing on time.
• We will not put anything into our car which is not good for it. We use authorised coolant, engine oil or gear oil.
• During long drive, we will take sufficient halts so that car does not gets overheated.

Do we take proper care of our body?

• When we are young, we generally ignore our health for sake of career or money.
• Do we go for medical check periodically?
• Do we choose our food for taste or nutrition? We never think for a moment about what we eat, whether it is good for our body or not.
• Do we give adequate rest to our body?

God has given us a human body with an assured life of 50 years (if everything goes well). Anything more than that will be a bonus God will give you depending upon how you take care of your body. Remember, human body is a gift which we get once only. There is no replacement.

Imagine if your car engine has to run without stopping throughout its useful life after you purchase it! Your body is such a machine where brain, heart, lungs, kidneys and other internal organs have to work throughout your life span. When we know these organs have to support us for a lifetime, why to overload these organs? Imagine your heart as a pump of a car which has to run continuously and there is no replacement for it.

How do we tax our body and our organs?

• Over eating.
• Anxiety, Sress or Negative thinking.
• Intake of junk food.
• Lack of sleep.
• Overambitious aspirations not commensurate with capability/ work.
• Smoking or drinking too much.
• Obesity and other lifestyle disease over loads our skeletal system and other organs.

Rest and Relaxation. What will you do if you are given a car whose engine once started has to run continuously for 50 years? Will you run it at full throttle always? Most of us will take the car to the mechanic and tell him that when I am not using this car, I want it to run at idling speed as it will reduce wear and tear and also save on gas. Similarly, you cannot push your body around in high gear all the time. Your heart is working whole life, you cannot afford to stop it. But you can provide proper rest to the body so that it runs at idling speed whenever possible. Take out maximum possible time for rest and relaxation .

Try yoga for health. With regular practice of yoga breathing techniques such as Alom Vilom and Rhythmic Deep Breathing, you can reduce your breathing rate, cool your nerves and strengthen your heart. Yoga is ideal exercise particularly for seniors as yoga helps to improve quality of life by improving physical and mental health.

Make your own strategy for good health. For you car maintenance you use best mechanic and you also try to read the manual yourself. Therefore, whenever required in life, visit the best doctor and do not delay it. For your body three is no authorised manual. Kindly take some time to read about your body, know what is proper diet/ proper exercise for you. Assess your present health, study the various options available for good health, contemplate and then devise your own strategy for good health. Do not simply get lured by multi million dollar wellness and weight loss propaganda, make informed choices about your health.

Growing old, requires more care and maintenance. Take a break from your busy life and assess your health. Take control of your body when you are relatively healthy and before you catch any life style disease. Best age to start yoga is between 30 to 40 years to ensure healthy old age. However, you can start yoga at any age.

Your body needs care and attention much more than your car. Your body has a spirit which your car does not have. The power of human spirit is phenomenal, realise it before it is too late.