Health experts emphasise mental health, suggest meeting friends, taking time to discuss issues

New Delhi [India], March 2 : Mental health is of great value to any person as it not only helps in focussing and overcoming obstacles in life but also to get along with the people around. Dr. Nita Radhkrishnan, additional professor and HOD, department of paediatric haematology and oncology, Postgraduate Institute Of Child Health (PGICH) Nodia, suggested different ways to deal with problems related to mental health in both children and adults.
Speaking at 'ANI Dialogues: Navigating India's Health Sector' here on Saturday, Dr. Nita said that a friend circle to sit and discuss different issues of life is necessary to deal with mental health in both children and adults. She said that there should be a system in each family to sit down and discuss different issues. Adults should always try to keep a friend group alive and initiate physical meetings.
"Develop a friend circle. There should be a system in the family to sit down and discuss different things. A child should go out and meet his/her friends and indulge in some kind of physical activity. It is good to share daily issues with your friends and family," she said.
Talking about peer pressure in children, Dr. Rita said that nowadays schools are becoming more aware and teaching the students not to worry if they don't perform well in school.
Referring to the methods to deal with mental pressure in adults, the health expert said that physical greetings with friends should be revived.
"Keep a friend group alive. Keep meeting at least once a week with your friends. Speak to them about your issues. In this fast-paced world, try to meet your friends. Physical greetings have gone down significantly, so that should be revived and then we should sit down together as it is very important to deal with day-to-day work pressure," Dr. Nita said.
Dr. Dhiren, senior paediatrician at Sir Gangaram Hospital, highlighted the effect of mental well-being on the day-to-day lives of children.
"Children nowadays face cough issues not because of problems in the chest but due to mental stress. These children are the toppers of their class. Mothers of 90 per cent of such children are teachers. These children have the social pressure of remaining at the top, because of which they suffer from such issues," he said.
"Earlier, we used to get happy that we'd get leave from the school whenever it rained. Those leaves were the stress busters. But today, if you'll ask me not to go to the hospital for two days, then I may get sick by sitting in a closed room, it induces stress. We remember all sorts of problems, both personal, social and financial, whenever we are free. When you go to your workplace and meet with 10 people, talking with them gives you relief," Dr. Dhiren added.
He further stressed the importance of sleep and said that sleep helps to cope with negative thoughts.
"Sleep is required to forget negative things and I'm not talking about mythology, I'm talking about actual science. Sleep is required to acquire skills and remember things. It also helps to cope with negative thoughts and stress which often lead to high sugar and obesity," Dr Dhiren said.
Sharing his views on taking help from a psychiatrist, Dr. Sandeep Nayar, principal director and HOD, chest and respiratory disease at BLK Hospital, said that it's not bad to get professional help for your well-being.
"We were lucky that we lived with our parents. In a nuclear family, most of the time the child lives since both parents are working. During COVID, physical learning in school was also suspended. So there are chances that the child may develop mental stress. But parents are a bit apprehensive about taking the child to the psychiatrist. It's not bad to get professional help," he said.
"Earlier, people used to gather in the evening and talk about different things but now this is not done. If you think you need help, please take it. There's nothing that you can't take over. It's just that you need some directions. Once you get the directions, you can walk through anything in life," Dr. Nayar added.
Lifestyle diseases are primarily based on daily habits and are a result of an inappropriate relationship between people and their environment. Highlighting various ways to prevent lifestyle diseases, Dr. Suresh Kumar, medical director of LNJP Hospital, said that one can prevent such diseases by doing regular exercise and adopting a good sleeping pattern.
"We have a large number of kidney disease patients. In India, patients with heart disease are 20 times more than the Japanese, six times more than the Chinese and five times more than the Americans. In all groups, the Indian population is highly vulnerable. The causes of lifestyle diseases, include fast food, smoking and a lack of exercise," he said.
"By taking less stress, adopting a good sleeping pattern, doing regular exercise and reducing smoking, one can prevent such diseases," he added.