A health talk on Women in Covid times- with Dr. Sasikala Kola

Amidst the storm of the Pandemic, every mother, every woman has shown resilience and willpower, and so brilliantly blended work and home, personal and professional, family and future. On the occasion of Mother’s Day, FLO Hyderabad chapter gave a perfect gift to all its members and guests by hosting a virtual talk by noted Gynaecologist Dr. Sasikala Kola and had a discussion that guided us on how to navigate the current situation and take care of ourselves, as a women first and then, take care of our families, as a mother.

Chairperson, Uma Chigurupati, opened the session with the theme of the year – “Health and Wellness” and spoke about the pledge that was taken by all the members to make fitness a part of their daily regimen. She also mentioned about starting a trend of responsible collective fitness drive # Stay fit with FLO. FICCI, FLO Hyderabad launched a ‘Covid Care Cell’ on 2nd May, which will be primarily working towards fighting against the second wave of Covid-19, to help FICCI and FLO members and their families with emotional and psychological counselling, Consultation by experienced Doctors, Food services as when needed, helping its members and their near and dear by facilitating resources to fight this pandemic.

Addressing the predominantly female audience, Dr. Sasikala Kola emphasised the vital role of women in the physical and emotional wellbeing of the entire family. She talked about the basic human structure and the different bacteria affecting our body and how the modern human lifestyle has impacted our immunity to such pandemic scenarios.

She touched on various aspects of Health, the Role of Vaccines and Antibiotics, ways to improve kids gut health, menopause and nutrition and how to modify our diet for healthy Menopause.

Doctor Sasikala spoke about the Good, Bad and the Ugly of COVID19 and how the vaccines’ benefits outweigh the risks. For pregnant women, 97% of cases would be mild as they release hormones that stop inflammation. Obese people are more likely to have severe COVID 19. She explained about the importance of producing happy hormones and highlighted the inverse relationship between “feel-good” hormones and stress. “Jaadu ki Jhappis” releases Oxytocin an important hormone that comes from emotional and physical bonding.

Rewind, Reflect and Rethink – The past holds the key to the future. Since we cannot go back to our mothers’ wombs, we should go back to Mother Nature for our health. She emphasised on the traditional ways of living whether it came to fighting harmful bacteria, or promoting local diet and fermented food, or delivering a baby. Her mantra to live happily with nature struck a chord with the audience. Our lifestyle is fast becoming a sinking ship and before we drown, we need to connect with nature like gardening, growing what you eat and the much needed digital detox.

The Doctor stressed on maintaining a balanced lifestyle which can be achieved by a combination of proper diet, Eating a variety of micronutrients, physical exercise, adequate rest and avoiding stress. She explained how human genome affects our well-being, and populations at high risk of micronutrient deficiencies like pregnant women, the obese, children and the elderly should take special care of eating “Rainbow Foods”.

The session ended with a plethora of questions on female health and wellbeing that Dr. Sasikala was gracious enough to answer patiently. It was an engrossing session with nuggets of Practical wisdom. Hoping that the Doctor’s advice helps each one of us and we come out.