Nikita had been grappling with acidity issues for ten years. She frequently suffered from stomach ache and had an overall feeling of discomfort. This became the norm for her and continued until she decided to try making some changes in her eating habits. A gradual shift towards a more natural way of eating helped Nikita not only overcome her longstanding acidity issues but also led to a medicine-free, healthy life!

Nikita Sucklecha
33 years, Language Analyst – Tata Consultancy Services
Bangalore

I never related dairy to animal-cruelty!

I am presently residing in Bangalore and belong to a Jain family of Rajasthan. Being a Jain the idea of non-violence was not new to me. However, I wasn’t too familiar about the cruelty met with cows in order to get milk for human consumption. Milk and milk products were pretty much a part of our dietary intake right from childhood.

The idea to go off-dairy

I recall that day, when I was on a road journey. This was in the year 2017. I was not well – I was running temperature and had lost appetite. Smitha Hemadri, who is a natural health enthusiast, was my co-passenger. Smitha happened to express her concern and enquired about my health. She offered me some fruits to eat. I got chatting with her about the symptoms I had (which later on got diagnosed as jaundice). In our brief conversation, the first thing that Smitha suggested me to do was to stop eating anything from outside and avoid dairy.

My first tryst to go off-dairy

I thought of trying to avoid dairy for a few days. In the meanwhile, as I consulted the physician, I was diagnosed with jaundice and was put on medication for the same. I was at my parent’s place and began my course of medicines. To my surprise, jaundice that normally takes at least about 15-20 days to settle down began to fade away within a week! I thought it was a positive change brought about by staying off-dairy and decided to continue this way.

One change led to another

• Fruits came in! As I began to lead a dairy-free lifestyle, I felt my days seem to be incomplete without a glass of milk. That’s when I felt the need to have ‘something’ to complete my daily routine. I started adding more fruits to my daily routine. I had always relished fruits; I also started having homemade fruit juices and smoothies in addition to fresh fruits.
• Another change that followed going off-dairy was my sugar intake. It reduced considerably! Sugar was added every time I had milk or some sweets made of milk, as milk stopped sugar intake dropped.
• Being in Bangalore, coconut was easily available and I always had a liking for it. I started using more of coconut. Smitha familiarized me with the procedure of making coconut milk. I found it to be very simple and started consuming coconut milk, kheer using coconut milk and jaggery as well as coconut milk yoghurt. I explored these substitutes for dairy gradually and instantly developed a liking towards them.
• I explored more natural foods. I started having vegetable juices and salads, in addition to the cooked form of sabjis that I was used to eating.

With the shift in eating habits my acidity got better

As I gradually made these small and simple changes I realized that my acidity and the associated discomfort started to disappear! I had possibly got so accustomed to living with it for the last 10 years that it was a pleasant change to feel at ease and comfortable.

My body knew what it needed

When I look back I now understand that our body knows what it needs and how much. At the start of my healing journey, I felt the need and had all kinds of natural foods in larger quantities. For example, I used to have 3-4 glasses of vegetable juices. But gradually as my body became nourished and healed from within, it automatically required much less to maintain optimal functioning. Now I do not feel the need to consume in very high quantities. A glass of veggie juice in a day is good for me.

My overall health improved

Simple food changes also had an immense impact on my general well-being. I have developed better immunity. I do not remember falling sick or a need to visit the doctor for a long time now. I do see people in my office suffering from common ailments like cold and cough every now and then. But I no more have to worry about catching an infection.

Conclusion

I am happy to have made efforts to bring in food changes. The experience has helped me understand the role of natural foods in maintaining optimal health. I am a much healthier version of myself now – acidity is gone, better immunity and higher energy levels! I feel liberated and am happy to lead a medicine-free life.

(About Nikita Sucklecha: Born and brought up in Rajasthan, Nikita is a French language specialist. After teaching French in educational institutions, she’s currently working as Language Analyst at leading IT major TCS. Nikita loves to play squash, volunteer for social causes and do vegan cooking in her free time).