Diabetes

I can have mangoes!

USA based Rajeev Sehgal was diagnosed with diabetes five years ago and dreaded the thought that he would be on medications all his life. But things changed.

“I was diagnosed with diabetes 5 years ago and started with the smallest dose of Metformin and over time, graduated to the highest dose plus another pill to keep my sugar level under control. In addition, I was put on a statin to keep my cholesterol below a certain level, even though my cholesterol was normal. The thought of taking meds for the rest of my life always bothered me but I didn’t see any other option.

Things worsened in 2018 as my work got even more stressful than normal. My HbA1c had gone up to almost 9. That sort of woke me up and I started exercising regularly and eating a little healthier. It took me over 6-8 months to get the reading to under 7 with the highest dose of Metformin and another med. It again started bothering me that I would be on meds for the rest of my life.

I saw two documentaries – ‘Forks over Knives’ and ‘What the Health’ on Netflix. They started churning my brain again. So, I spoke with Shalu Nijhawan, who is a certified holistic nutritionist and works with SHARAN. She told me how she helped her husband and had worked with a couple more people to help them reverse their diabetes.

She created a diet plan based on the things I like to eat. On 18th Jan I started this new whole food plant-based diet totally devoid of animal products, processed foods and oil of any kind. I even learnt to cook without any oil at all and drink green smoothies for breakfast. I totally gave up tea, eggs and diet soda – my favourites.

It was challenging at first but the motivation of reversing diabetes kept me going. I started seeing a difference pretty quickly and Shalu guided me in reducing my medicine dose gradually and on 5th of February I stopped my medicine totally.

Now it has been over 3 months that I am medicine free and my diabetes is gone. I had my last official blood work done in early March and my HbA1c was 5.8. Overall, my blood report was almost perfect! In addition to this, I am enjoying eating mangoes and have lost 22 lbs and reduced 4 trouser sizes. Thanks to Shalu and SHARAN for educating me on the benefits of plant-based diet and guiding me through this process.” –Rajeev Sehgal, USA

Dr Shah’s book led me to a healthier lifestyle!

Delhi based Pramila D’Souza found the ‘Reversing Diabetes in 21 Days’ book and got in touch with SHARAN. Today she is on her way to being medicine-free!

“At 68, having battled with pre-diabetes for about 6 years, with ayurvedic medication, diet and exercise, I finally hit the diabetic range following a stomach infection. This is something I dreaded, as I have heard of many being plagued with complications arising from high blood sugar. My husband, who has been diabetic for the last 12 years, was already taking a cocktail of medications, costing thousands every month.

By sheer chance, on Facebook, I happened to read about a book titled ‘Reversing Diabetes in 21 Days’. Can diabetes be reversed? I wondered why millions suffer from diabetes mellitus. My curiosity peaked, and I purchased the book. It opened my eyes to all the things we eat and drink, unaware of their ill effects on our health, and I started on my own, to follow the diet more or less.

I then googled ‘SHARAN’ and saw that they offer consultations and diet. Rs. 6000 seemed a stiff fee to pay, but after much thought I decided to go for it, figuring that it was worth foregoing the thousands I would have to pay for testing, medication, multiple visits to a diabetologist or dietician etc.
The Senior Medical Consultant, Dr Sudhir Sethi, to whom I was referred, was located in the UK and I wondered how much ground we could cover in just an hour of video consultation. My apprehension was quite unfounded, as the doctor was very thorough, going through each of my multiple ailments and commenting/making suggestions. Following the consultation, he sent me a synopsis of our talk, along with a suggested diet.

With much excitement and anticipation, I commenced the treatment. Just a smoothie and fruit for breakfast? How on earth could I survive? However, in a few days my body adjusted, and the breakfast was quite satisfying. The recipes given in the book provided a variety. Within 3 weeks, my fasting blood sugar level dropped from 141 in July, to 123 in September, and in another week, to 108. Post prandial reading fell from 148 in July, to 96 in September. I also noticed that the joint pain due to rheumatoid arthritis was down by at least half, knots and inflammation on my knuckles were almost gone, and post-nasal catarrh that had been constant for a long time, was reduced considerably.

I am sure in another couple of weeks, I will progress to normal blood sugar levels, for which I really am grateful to God. I have immensely enjoyed learning to cook without oil, which my whole family benefits from, and having dates as a dessert is a welcome treat. Just a chance look at Facebook led me to follow a healthier lifestyle and I wish many more people have the same happy experience.”- Pramila D’Souza

Diabetes can be reversed through diet!

Dr Meera Gopi Kurian is a medical doctor based in Dubai who attended our 21-Day Health Retreat in June 2017. She posted her recent photo and got a lot of compliments

“Thank you for all the loving messages and wonderful compliments all you dear ones showered on me for my profile pictures.

Quite a few asked me one similar question, what is the secret of looking young. I can assure you that I didn’t look like this 15 months ago. I was around 14 kg more looking quite like a Telly Tubby wrapped in a saree. It all started with me meeting Dr Nandita Shah who is the founder of SHARAN. She claimed to cure chronic lifestyle diseases like diabetes, hypertension, inflammation, thyroid dysfunction, cholesterol and obesity among other things through a change in diet. As a physician, I was curious and sceptical to see if it really worked. So, I decided to go for the 21-day Health Retreat in June 2017 at SwaSwara in Gokarna, Karnataka. It was literally a life-changing experience. Dr Nandita did an extensive blood analysis before starting the treatment. To my horror and shock most unexpectedly I turned out to be a high diabetic. She treated me and all the 25 people who came for this retreat with various ailments with just food – the most delicious varieties of oil-free, organic, whole plant-based dishes. There was a vast variety of cooked and raw food and the most delicious green smoothies.

Instead of putting on weight with all this food tucked away till I burst, and the fruits I ate, I started losing inches and shedding a few kgs of my weight. My energy levels soared, my fitness level which was almost nil improved. Above all my blood sugar levels crashed and became normal in 10 days. From fasting 265 mg% to 110 mg%. All this with delicious food alone.

This gave me a lot of insight about how one feels to be healthy. I have continued to be on the vegan diet prescribed by Dr Nandita Shah. It is the most beautiful space I am in and I love it.

15 months have passed, I have lost 14 kgs, my blood sugar levels are almost consistently normal. My body feels free and lighter. And on top of it I look younger and my skin glows. All this with just the right food. Come to think of it, isn’t it fascinating?

Thank you, Dr Nandita Shah and SHARAN for putting me on the path of health and happiness. I am eternally grateful. Love you all.” – Dr Meera Gopi Kurian, Dubai

SHARAN did what my medicines couldn’t

Suman Raina, (Manager, Cabin Crew, Air India) was not able to bring her blood sugar levels down with conventional medications. But things changed when she started following SHARAN’s simple guidelines.

“I want to share with you this amazing fact that when my diabetes was diagnosed approximately five years back, my fasting blood sugar was an alarming 265 and HbA1c 8.5. I was put on medication which kept increasing in dosage, but I could bring it down only to 7.2.

Last year I turned vegan, by just following SHARAN online as suggested by my homeopath Dr Devang Shah and managed to get my levels to 7. After doing the ‘Reversing Diabetes and Hypertension’ seminar with Dr Nandita in January 2017, I took the 30 days challenge and then went for my annual medicals. My HbA1c level was 6.5 (the lowest in the last five years)!

The results were a great motivation for me to continue following the program and four months later when it was suggested that I reduce the medicines, I was pleasantly surprised to see my readings were almost at a non-diabetic level.

I cannot explain the amount of gratitude I feel towards Dr Grazillia, my SHARAN consultant, Dr Nandita Shah and the rest of SHARAN team for guiding me through this journey.”– Suman Raina

Well on the road to reversing diabetes

“I was a chronic diabetic and hypertensive for the past 10 odd years and my HbA1c levels were way off the normal range (>10). It was a glance at an article which appeared in Mumbai Mirror around the 1st week of April which mentioned that ‘diabetes can be reversed’. Reversal of diabetes? That piqued my curiosity and prompted my wife to follow up with Dr Nandita Shah and we eventually met up with Dr Rashmi Menon (Mulund, Mumbai) for the first meeting.

Typical case history was shared and dietary changes were recommended by Dr Menon, primarily giving up of animal and animal-based products (read non-vegetarian food, milk, curds, buttermilk, etc), oil-free diet, and move to organic food. Thus, began my journey to reverse diabetes from 11th April 2016 onwards.

My medications then were – Glicazide (60 mg) before breakfast, Metformin (500 mg) after lunch and dinner. Over a period of 3 months, my blood glucose levels (both fasting and post prandial) and HbA1c dropped to normal limits (5.8). Today I am just on a single tablet of Metformin (500 mg) in the afternoon. Hope to be off that too within the next 3 months.

Thanks to SHARAN, Dr Rashmi Menon and my wife (Sharda) for her continuous support for the beginning of my diabetes-free journey.” – Bharat Mani

HbA1c normal in 6 months & no medicines!

“I was detected as pre-diabetic in 2007. As per my doctor’s advice I started burning calories. Things were okay till Nov 2015 when we went on an Andamans Tour. There I lost my brand new mobile. This and other tensions at office resulted in a spike in my sugar levels. My fasting and PP sugars were 190 and 290, with HbA1c 10.9 and urine sugar 2++. I was immediately put on medication of 4 tablets – 2 for diabetes, one for BP and one for lipids.

A month later, by mid December 2015, the results were just the same. My dose was doubled with an additional tablet before lunch. From 1st January 16, I started exercise, brisk walking after every meal etc. I could manage the numbers to the required levels of 88 and 97 (F and PP). My physician was happy with me and reduced the before-lunch tablet by the last week of Jan 16. Meanwhile I started feeling hungry immediately after meals.

I saw some of SHARAN’s YouTube videos including ‘Health in your Hands – at Ahmedabad’. I started High Intensive Interval Training (HIIT) exercise, vegan diet, organic and whole foods, green smoothies, oil-free cooking, salads. In a period of 2 months, I reduced by 5 inches and about 18-20 Kg! My HbA1c has come down from 10.9 to 5.5! Right now, I have stopped all medicines!

I along with my wife Jyoti are “SHARAN” to you and would like to contribute to “SHARAN” as volunteers.” – Jayant Kirpekar, Pune.

Blood sugar, pressure, medicines – all reduced in just 2 weeks!

“I was a strict vegetarian from birth, and in the recent years also egg free. Two weeks ago, I gave up milk and milk products (which I used to take in plenty) after watching Dr Nandita Shah on You Tube.

A week later, I attended Dr Shah’s seminar ‘Reversing Diabetes and Hypertension’ in Dubai. I had both diabetes and high blood pressure. With 2,500 mg Metformin daily, my random blood sugar averaged 136 mg/dL. I am also on 2 medications for blood pressure with which my readings were around 160/94.

Following the seminar, I completely stopped using oil in any form. After being vegan for 14 days and oil free for 7 days the following changes occurred.

• My fasting sugar readings are consistently stabilizing around 90-95 mg/dL, despite taking only 1/2 tablet (instead of my usual 2 tablets).
• My blood pressure is stable around 131/75.

I systematically monitor and record these readings in order to take the chart to my doctor to taper down my medications.

I am a long-time yoga and meditation practitioner. It is my firm understanding that all diseases are the shameful reflections of our anti-natural lifestyle. I realized how a ‘small’ aberration in my food habits derailed my health and how easily I could begin the reversal by correcting these food habits.

Dear friends, health is our birth right! If we lose our health, it is only because we do not live, eat and think correctly as intended and designed by God. SHARAN is the ‘airplane route’ to help you win back your health – no matter what your illness is.”– Kandanat G Nandkumar, Dubai.

My diabetes and psoriasis have disappeared

“It’s almost a year now since I attended Dr Nandita’s one day workshop. My diabetes has permanently disappeared. My psoriasis has disappeared. I’m losing weight gradually but surely. I do enjoy a weekly Sunday brunch where I eat everything but now I naturally don’t feel like eating the dahi wadas and Bengali mithai. That’s me today on the left and me about 10 months ago on the right. Thank you, SHARAN.” – Sharmila Karnad, Dubai.

I got better despite all my travelling!

“Just to let you know I am doing wonderfully well and since I attended your seminar I have cut down my Metformin tablets from 4 x 500mg to 2 x 500mg a day and my insulin dose is almost 40% less than before the seminar. I also feel full of energy. This improvement has happened despite my intense travelling in the last 12 weeks. I carried my plant milk with me and almost totally cut out dairy. I am now in the process of reducing my insulin doses further as I am suffering from ‘low sugar’ now and then, despite attending several parties and having a fair bit to eat. I sincerely thank Ramesh, Milan and Dr Nandita for changing my perspective on diabetes. I have a similar situation with my two brothers who have diabetes and they have both noticed a tremendous improvement since stopping dairy products. I have recommended the non-dairy diet to many of my friends, and they have all seen improvement in their diabetes.”– Bharat Shah, Sigma Pharmaceuticals, UK, 4 months after attending Reversing Diabetes Seminar

Insulin reduced from 175 to 75 units in just 21 days!

“My sugar levels have improved considerably, sometimes they are falling down to 69 and I have to keep on reducing my insulin! From 175 units a day, I have now reached 75 units. My weight is stabilising and in fact my temperament has also changed positively.” – Naresh Shahani

My diabetes reversal has liberated me!

“I am Ramesh Hirani. Two years ago, at age 39, I thought I lived a fairly healthy lifestyle with 4 hours of working out every week. Then the bubble burst! After a routine check-up for excess thirst I got diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. There had been no warning signs, no pre diabetic situation – all of a sudden I had a very high sugar count. The doctors wanted me to begin immediate medication.

This diagnosis was a complete shock to me. I was confused and angry. I felt that I had let my family down by allowing my health to deteriorate. These feelings started to affect my energy, work and personal and professional relationships.

Once reality set in, I decided that I would not let my diagnosis and disease beat me. I accepted my situation and chose to take responsibility and started researching for a natural way to combat diabetes. During this search, a friend recommended Gabriel Cousens’ book ‘There is a Cure for Diabetes’. This book gave me hope. It made me realise that I could actually reverse my diabetes rather than living off medication for the rest of my life.

I followed the principles of the book and within a couple of weeks my sugar levels already started to drop. I felt much more positive that there was a way out of my situation. However, after 4 months my blood sugar levels were still above what they should be, and I wanted to eliminate my diabetes once and for all.

I decided to join SHARAN’s 21-day health retreat in June 2014. This was based on very similar principles to what I had learnt in Gabriel Cousens’ book. The program, though, went beyond all my expectations. I learnt to tweak my diet so that my results continued to improve. We were taught about the causes of diabetes, what happens in the body, what medication does, how the disease can be completely reversed and how we could start living a normal life again.

Many participants were on a lot of medication and most had been ill for much longer than I had. By the end of the 3 weeks, all participants were down to normal blood sugar levels and medication was either completely eliminated or significantly reduced.

The difference in my vitality and general health has improved immensely and has already inspired others to learn more and start healing themselves. This is why I have decided to bring this ground-breaking and proven system to the UK – starting with a 1 day ‘Reversing Diabetes’ workshop with Dr Nandita Shah, the founder of SHARAN.

I want to support people in their healing so that they can be free of this dreadful disease just like I am. Learning that diabetes can be reversed has liberated me. I feel I have my life back. More importantly, it also means my wife and kids have me back healthier, happier and grateful.” —Ramesh Hirani, London

Magic is the word

“19th December 2012, the day after the ‘Reversing Diabetes’ seminar, will always be remembered as a very special day in my life. My lifestyle had been extreme: too much of non-veg and liquor were just a part of life. My sugar levels were never less than 250 and my dosage was increasing. Despite medicines before every meal my sugar was not in control.

Now it’s exactly two weeks since I started following your advice. I used to take 3 rounds of my park and my legs used to pain and get stiff. I had to rest for 15 min before taking another 3 rounds. Now I take 12 rounds at a stretch and feel that I can take another 10 rounds.

On day 3 my sugar levels were below 140 and from day 5 my minimum is 80 and maximum is 133. I am monitoring it daily and getting motivated day by day. A week later I went to my doctor to get myself checked. His first comment was that I looked better. My blood pressure was a perfect 120/80 compared to 180/110, 15 days before. My random sugar was just 90. Just 2 weeks ago, my fasting was 215 and PP was 280.

My weight has also decreased from 97.5 kg to 93.5 kg. The doctor cut down my diabetic and blood pressure medications. In just 2 weeks it looks like magic. Now I am not afraid of checking the sugar levels and BP any time and feel proud after that. What an eye-opener seminar and results. Magic is the word.” —Mohit Sawhney, New Delhi.

Vegan for life!

“After one year of being on a vegan diet, I’m off my diabetes medication. I have more energy, have lost weight and have peace of mind. It’s not just for a year, I’m vegan for life!” – Suvarna Avvari, Hyderabad.

It’s amazing!

“I have been following your recommendations though not fully but still I am experiencing results. I could reduce my dose of insulin by 8 units. This is something amazing! Thanks for making us aware about the possibility of reversing diabetes.” – Shilpa Abhyankar, Bahrain

I have better health now

“I started on a plant-based diet immediately and I am able to see the results. I have reduced my insulin by four units and am able to maintain better results. Apart from better diabetes management there are other positive indications of better health.” – Anuradha Goparaju, Bahrain

My entire family has benefitted

“My parents have been following a healthy, vegan diet ever since they attended the ‘Reversing Diabetes and Hypertension’ seminar. My father saw immediate health benefits in the form of significant drops in his sugar levels. My mother has been regularly preparing curd and buttermilk out of soy and peanut milk, but the best part is that neither of my parents even feel the need for yogurt of any sort on a daily basis. My father eats salad with his lunch and that acts as the required ‘coolant’ for his tongue and stomach after any spicy meal. Additionally, both my grandmothers who stay at my parents’ home, voluntarily follow a vegan diet and are full of praise for its health benefits. Thank you!” – Susmitha Subbaraju, Bengaluru (A cooking expert and vegan)

Reduced diabetic medication

“I have so far reduced my diabetic medication by approximately 30% while still maintaining average 14-day levels of approximately 6.4 HbA1c (which were never below 7.6 minimum previously even with the larger doses of medication). It is still early days, but I believe that this is a much healthier way of eating and I have only missed cheese (my old favourite) on one specific occasion. I started this programme at 69.2 kilos and now am at 67.6 with regular exercise. Thank you, once again, for your insight into how we can reverse diabetes.” – George F Middleton, Bahrain

My life changed for good

“Thank you so much for giving us this life-saving seminar. Since 21st January 2012 my life has changed for good. In less than 3 months I have lost 9 kg and am still counting. Sometimes I get cravings and indulge but you have given me that extra push that I was waiting for, to get on track. I have been able to make better choices and think wisely. My blood sugar seems to be getting better. Thank you and I am doing as much as I can to spread the word.” –Raees Abdulkhader, Bahrain

Sharp drop in diabetes

“My HbA1c has dropped to 6.2. The sharpest drop in my ‘diabetic career’! Also, the point to note is, it’s more than 7 years since the diabetes was detected and it’s only getting better instead of worsening! Our diet is changing the natural history of this rajrog! Thank you all, especially Dr Nandita & Dr Rupa.” – Dr Munjal Thakkar, Ahmedabad

Off all tablets since 9 months

“For the past 9 months I am off all tablets and enjoying life thanks to SHARAN’s program. Today I did my quarterly checking of blood sugar levels. Fasting was 89.6, and PP was 105.1, HbA1c was 4.97 despite no medicine for diabetes for past 9 months!” – Prof Vijay Joshi, Pune (Prof Joshi also now runs his own nutritional health organization called Yuktahar.)

Digestive Disturbances

My life changed for the better

SHARAN associate Shalini Goenka probably suffered from Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) since childhood but didn’t figure it out until much later. It was only few years ago that she experienced relief.

“Since my teens, I had to rush to clear my stomach after nearly every meal. This caused a lot of anxiety and I would think ten times before stepping out of my house. Later on, the condition hampered my professional life too. After marriage, I developed asthma because of my lifestyle and unhealthy eating habits. I would easily develop stomach cramps and feel gassy. My life actually revolved around this condition. In 2005, I even lost my voice due to ulcers.

Regardless, I consumed three glasses of milk every day, until I decided to stop dairy completely a few years ago. Doing so brought relief to some extent but the problems persisted. In 2017, I attended a seminar led by Dr Nandita Shah. The session was an eye-opener. I realized that although I had stopped dairy, I was not having the right combination of foods. After the seminar, I switched to whole, plant-based, organic foods. Particularly, I increased my consumption on raw foods and eliminated gluten from my diet. The change that I have experienced since then is nothing short of miraculous. My allergies have reduced, steroids and nebulizer doses are stopped, and I have lost 20 kilos of weight! My confidence has been truly restored.

Changing my diet has helped me so much that I now wish to empower others. That is the reason I decided to join the SHARAN team. Whole food plant-based is really the right way to eat.” – Shalini Goenka, Mumbai.

Lost acidity and weight, gained energy

“I joined SHARAN’s program to get rid of my acidity, as the doctors had prescribed medicines and I avoid pills like the plague!

My acidity literally vanished in three days! I felt great and decided to give the whole food plant-based diet a shot for some more time. The side effect was that I lost 12 kilos in eight months! Earlier, it had taken me three years to get from 65 kgs to 62 kgs and I was stagnant at that for years…and now I weigh 50 kilos!

Why this diet works is because Dr Nandita trains the mind. She explains very systematically what we should eat and what not, why we should eat it and how to even prepare the food! So once the mind is educated, the tongue follows suit. In essence we are actually eating more and still losing weight! There is no concept of starving oneself.

Not only that, I have gained so much energy! I am in my forties and people have started telling me I look like a college girl! But the best part is that my family too has adopted this diet. My husband’s cholesterol level has improved. One can only benefit by listening to Dr Nandita Shah, with the biggest gain being health!” – Reyna Rupani, Mumbai

No more bloating

“Around a year back, I was introduced to an amazing Whole Food Plant Based (WFPB) lifestyle by SHARAN. The experience was a total eye opener. Right from school through to college and later at work, I always had the problem of bloating. The issue was so serious that by evening the same trousers wouldn’t fit me at work!

By eliminating dairy, I felt a tangible difference in one week. A month later, my bloating issue completely disappeared. My friends thought I had lost weight!

SHARAN gave me an insight into how the dairy industry works. How the animals are treated with utter callousness. I realized that turning vegan was not about changing your lifestyle or food choices, it requires a reorientation of the mindset.

The added bonus was to learn how to cook nutritious as well as yummy meals without using oil, dairy or sugar. Prior to SHARAN, my dinner always included salads that had cheese as its main ingredient. Initially, after going on the WFPB diet, I really missed cheese. Out of sheer desperation, we started trying out different types of non-dairy cheese. The experiments were many and extensive. When I had shared my non-dairy feta cheese with friends at a potluck, it was an instant hit. This encouraged me to share my product with a wider consumer base. Our efforts eventually bore fruit when we introduced vegan feta cheese as our first product from Simply Pure (now Katharos)

As a committed SHARAN practitioner, I am keen to share, create awareness and make non-dairy products available to many more people; products without preservatives or chemicals that do not harm anyone. I am grateful to SHARAN for guiding me towards a holistic health journey. Thanks to them, I have been able to sustain my health and also help others!” – Jasmine Bharucha

For enquiries on Katharos’ range of non-dairy cheese, which is packed in a paper container, please reach out to Jasmine on 9820062393.

Kidney Disease

Health transformation with raw

63 year old B L Chandak’s (Executive Director, RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group) story is truly inspirational. Read on to find how he made the shift from a vegetarian to plant-based diet and how adopting a raw lifestyle has proved truly transformational for him.

“I was born in a vegetarian family and have always led an active lifestyle with regular exercising and outdoor activities. Yet, I was overweight and had health issues like hypertension and elevated creatinine levels. I was advised lifelong medicines.

In 2012, inspired by my daughter Kavita and my friend Anil Narang, I turned 90% vegan. I got the opportunity to attend Dr Nandita Shah’s 7-day programme and I followed that up with SHARAN’s 21-day health retreat in June 2018. Here she spoke about the benefits of a raw diet and cited the example of Victoria Butenko who changed her life by just adopting a raw diet. Inspired, I switched to a 100% raw diet. Now, all my foods are free of sugar and oil, and comprise lots of salads, green smoothies, berries, beans and seeds. I have also been to the Prakriti Shakti Wellness centre to discover more wonders of the raw diet.

My journey in the last eight months has been phenomenal. I reduced my weight from 80 kgs to 68 kgs, my waistline from 40 inches to 32 inches, and my creatinine level from 2.08 to 1.49. My BP remains stable at 120/80 and my medicines have been stopped.

The transformation is incredible. I feel more energetic, clock 10K marathons in 100 minutes, sleep without snoring, and travel worldwide with no change in my diet. My body fat and protein levels are just perfect. My key takeaway from this personal journey is my conviction that controlling hunger is the first element of self discipline. If we can control hunger, we can control anything.

As an added bonus, I have been getting a lot of compliments on looking younger. Truly, going green is the only way to go if we are to safeguard ourselves from diseases and live a fuller life.” – B L Chandak

Our medical problems resolved within weeks

Shailaja Menon, a professor of language and literacy, was diagnosed with early CKD. No one, not even her nephrologist expected the amazing results she experienced with SHARAN.

“In mid-2016, I came across the ground-breaking book by Dr Colin Campbell, ‘The China Study’. Inspired by its arguments against animal protein in the human diet, I became vegan for a year. During this time, I found myself under a lot of social pressure to consume dairy, even from my regular doctor who felt that a woman of my age needed dairy to meet her daily calcium requirements. After one year of trying veganism, I reverted to an omnivorous diet by mid-2017.

However, in early 2018, I was diagnosed with early stage Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), marked by protein in the urine, slightly decreased kidney functioning, and elevated creatinine levels in the blood. My BP was pushing the upper limits of normal (130/90). My nephrologist advised me to lose 5 kgs to better manage my blood pressure without medications.

Western medicine has no cure for this progressive disease. So, I did my own research, and came across Dr Nandita Shah’s work. I contacted her, and by the end of February 2018, I was on a whole foods plant-based diet. To my joy, my husband, who has been a diabetic for over 10 years, decided to join me on the diet, giving me support within the family. At that time, he was taking a cocktail of seven tablets per day for his diabetes, and his sugar was still not under control. He was planning to speak to his doctor about reviewing and increasing his medications.

Our medical problems started resolving in front of our eyes within a matter of weeks of starting the new diet. Every morning, my husband would report that his sugar was lower than it had been the day before! In coordination with his doctor, he started lowering his medications, until they were down to two minimal dosages a day. Within two-three weeks of starting the diet, there was no protein in my urine, and within five-six weeks, creatinine levels had normalised, and kidney functioning had become not just normal, but fairly excellent. My BP stabilised. Weight started melting off both our bodies, such that we lost over 8 kgs each in under three months. When I went to see my nephrologist (a highly qualified professional) for my three-monthly check-up, his jaw literally dropped in amazement. He said that he had never seen such dramatic BP changes (without medication) in such a short period of time. And while he could understand that the disease had not progressed, he had not expected to see my kidney functioning getting better over time. He asked me what I had done to effect the change, and promised to inform other patients of the same.

I should mention that this was an entirely different experience for me than my earlier year of veganism. At that point, being ‘vegan’ meant eliminating meat and dairy from my diet. It was defined by what not to eat. But the new diet was all about what to eat, rather than what not to eat. Yes, of course, meat and dairy were eliminated. But, in its place came a wonderful emphasis on delicious whole foods, plant-based nutrition. I found that I took naturally to the green smoothies, salads and whole grains, and felt nourished and sustained by my new diet. The food was actually delicious. This, along with our medical test results, helped me withstand the larger social pressure (at work and within the extended family) that viewed our diet as restrictive and radical. We would point out that it was more radical to undergo procedures like amputating limbs (due to diabetes) or undergo dialysis than to eat as we were eating, that it was more radical to eat ‘food-like’ substances at fast food chains than to eat ‘real’ food that is actually meant to be eaten.

Today, I would wholeheartedly recommend this approach to any person seeking to live a healthy/ethical/environmentally conscious lifestyle. Even as you regain your health on this diet, your perspective about what is ‘normal’ will shift – this has been a huge gain for me on my journey with SHARAN!” – Shailaja Menon, Hyderabad

Cancer

Breast cancer tumours have shrunk!

Update on Nov 2016
“When I was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma cancer in the left breast in May 2016, my doctor told me that if I didn’t go for an immediate full mastectomy, and then chemotherapy and radiation, my survival beyond 45 days was difficult. So, I started researching. I learnt that chemotherapy drugs totally destroy the immune system, they can kill the cancer cells but cannot kill the cancer stem cells. Most importantly, the chemo drugs are highly carcinogenic thus causing secondary grade cancer in many cases.

I also learnt that cancer cells are present in everyone and right from the time of our birth. Our immune system controls them. That’s when it struck me that all I had to do was boost my immune system with nutrition which would take care of the active cancer cells in my body. My search for a nutritionist led me to this wonderful organisation SHARAN. I very happily adopted the whole foods plant-based lifestyle immediately. I went for their extremely helpful cooking classes too.

Now my diet is 60-70% raw. Along with naturopathy and SHARAN’s recommended whole food plant-based diet and with God’s blessings, I am reversing the cancer very happily without any difficulties.

Two months after following this diet in the month of August 2016 I had done a thermogram which showed absolutely no metastasis. Out of the 2 lumps, 1 lump showed benign and the 2nd lump had inverted. The CA 15.3 tests which I regularly do till date are very much in the normal range thus showing absolutely no metastasis. The lumps are reducing in size day by day.

From the day of my diagnosis (May 2016) till date (November 2016) I have not missed a single day of my workout or my work.

Update July 2017
I got the ultrasound done this morning and I am so happy to share with you the lumps have almost reduced in half. The radiologist was very keen to know what my protocol is because of the remarkable reduction in the size of the lumps. I am really blessed to share this news and am sending you the reports. Thank you, thank you, thank you for starting SHARAN!” – Nisha Koiri, Mumbai

Surviving cancer for 10 years!

Ten years ago, Jaishree Kannan was diagnosed with cancer, which relapsed within nine months. Her body could not go through chemotherapy again and she decided to do things differently.

Read on as she shares her story of healing naturally.

“My life took a turn in 2007 when I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. I went through surgery and many rounds of chemotherapy. After a few months the doctor told me I was fine and to continue with the regular check-ups. But my problem did not end there, within nine months my cancer relapsed and this time my body could not take the strain of another surgery and further chemotherapies. I felt so sick and miserable, and I wondered if I could make it. At this time, I was forced to look for alternative methods to deal with my illness and the side effects of the chemos. It’s then that I began doing my own research and stumbled upon many wonderful articles and websites, including SHARAN, talking about whole plant-based food to reverse illness and that gave me hope to heal my cancer. During the same time my acupressure therapist encouraged me to drink green smoothies and also taught me how to make them. Until then I had never eaten a raw vegetable in my life and I was also very picky about fruits, so I hardly ate them too.

One fine morning I just started to eat differently. I ate a whole lot of fruits on an empty stomach, green juices, and huge bowls of salads. Initially I was too scared and my family too was equally tensed and wondered if I was doing the correct thing as one is advised during chemotherapy not to eat raw. I decided to take the risk as at that time I had no better option. Within a couple of days, I noticed that I was actually feeling better and all my mouth ulcers had disappeared. I was amazed and wondered how it worked and I became curious and began to explore by reading books and watching films in my quest to know more about the plant-based diet and its amazing benefits. A new world opened up in front of me and there was no looking back. I was later fortunate to attend many of SHARAN’s workshops and I understood this philosophy better and also met the most inspiring people in my life and I began feeling truly inspired & supported.

It’s now 10 years since I have overcome my cancer and I lead a very healthy and joyous life. I vouch for the whole plant-based diet to reverse any kind of illness or to remain healthy.” – Jaishree Kannan

Hypertension

The method is scientific and works!

Delhi-based scientist Dr Suman Govil cannot stop feeling grateful to her son and daughter-in-law for the best holiday ever, from where she came back with zero medicines!

Dr Suman Govil, a Ph.D. in Botany from University of Delhi has worked in the Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India as a senior advisor from 1982 to 2018. A vegetarian by birth, she had a lot of health issues including polycystic ovaries and its complications, severe osteoporosis, hypertension, and low immunity resulting in several bouts of cold and cough every year and cervical spondylitis. And if that was not enough, she was also overweight.

Despite her son and daughter-in-law’s warnings that milk is bad for health, leads to leaching of calcium from bones and stone formation she did not make changes, perhaps because of her conditioning and addiction to tea.
Immediately after her husband’s kidney stone surgery, she and her husband attended SHARAN’s health retreat in June, 2018.

She found the methodology adopted by Dr Nandita and her team scientific, systematic and holistic and appreciated the camaraderie with the team and participants. Apart from health benefits, she felt, it was the best holiday of her life. The scientist in her always wanted evidence, and she got enough of that from the medical tests before and after, which showed significant reduction in total cholesterol, triglycerides, etc. Both she and her husband benefitted tremendously from following the SHARAN lifestyle, are totally free from all medicines, are lighter by 11-12 kg each, and their energy levels and stamina have improved a lot. And naturally they witnessed dramatic improvements in other participants as well.

Totally motivated, she took up the facilitator training in January 2019 in order to spread this lifestyle to friends, relatives and everyone that she comes in contact with, in order to lead a happier, healthier and ethical life and leave a better planet to future generations.” – Dr Suman Govil, Delhi

I want all of India to benefit like me

Shammi Sethi, an avid cyclist and health enthusiast, started his plant-based journey only four months ago. Delighted with the changes that he experienced, he now wants to support others and has launched an organic store and vegan cafe called ‘Rare Earth’ in Mumbai

“It has been four months now that I have been on this journey. I eat only organic food, no processed food and a lot of raw food. I have been a cyclist since childhood and very fitness conscious, so I thought I was eating healthy because I was vegetarian. I had a lot of cottage cheese for protein and pulses, beans, vegetables, etc. but still felt lethargic. Something was wrong – I had to get better.

Then suddenly one day I was diagnosed with hypertension. I was lucky because it was detected just a day prior to me going for a 150 kms cycle ride. My blood pressure was very high and fluctuating and I didn’t have a choice but to start medication. I wasn’t happy because I don’t like chemicals and the medicines could never heal me. I was told I have to take it for life, and not one but 3 BP meds including 1 beta blocker and a statin (please check online for the side effects of these medicines).

A year prior to this I met my dietician who asked me to take some tests before suggesting a diet. My cholesterol was high and vitamin D was less. I followed it for a while then gave up because I was busy with work. I was stupid and that lead to my hypertension. If I would have followed the diet I would have been okay.

Luckily for me I was guided to Bhavna Kapoor, a nutritionist with SHARAN and after following their diet, I am having only one tablet instead of 4! After this one tablet too, my BP is in control and in fact the doctor said he would watch for another few months and then remove this tablet too!

I am happy that I was dedicated: I got a plant-based tiffin for lunch, for dinner I supervised my food and now have learnt to cook even! Whenever I go for dinner to anyone’s house, I carry my own food. I don’t use the microwave oven, no non-stick cookware, only steel or iron and only eat organic food. My energy levels have definitely gone up. I’m feeling great.
I felt that it was a struggle procuring good organic food. I had to order online or call different suppliers which was painful, so I thought of putting all products under a single roof – ‘Rare Earth – the organic store’! I truly wish and hope to see a healthy India.” – Shammi Sethi, Mumbai

Blood pressure controlled with no medicines

“I had high blood pressure for two years. I tried medicines but they did not work for me as my BP used to drop. After I went completely on Dr Nandita Shah’s diet, I started getting normal reading. My BP used to be 180/90 or 170/100, now it shows 120/70!” – Vijaylakshmi Singh

Reversed diabetes, hypertension and obesity in 4 months

“I am a General and Laparoscopic Surgeon at BCJ Hospital and Asha Parekh Research Centre, Mumbai. Also, I am its Trustee and Chief Executive. Being a doctor, it was evident to me that this method could work and was risk-free. Since June 2011, I am following these dietary principles. I also attended the health retreat at SwaSwara resort, Gokarna. I reversed diabetes, hypertension and obesity in 4 months and am leading a very healthy life now without any medications. I would now like to spread this message through our hospital as well.” -Dr Suketu Shah, Mumbai

I reversed hypertension of 18 years

“I had been suffering from high blood pressure for the past 18 years. It was not an issue as it used to be under control with medication.

I switched to a whole plant-based diet and for the last 10 days was on 3 glasses of smoothie as breakfast. Nothing else till 12:30 or 1 pm. My pressure and pulse started dropping drastically to the extent I had to go through ECG, sodium tests, etc. My doctor reduced the dosage and yet it kept coming down. Finally, I was asked to stop the medication completely and today I am feeling fine. Also, I have lost around 13 kgs and today I weigh 49 kgs. A huge thank you to you for I have been able to reverse my high blood pressure.” – Vaidehi Mody

Weight Loss

I joined to lose weight and acne but got much more!

Anushree Goyal joined SHARAN’s 2 months Personalized Weight Loss program and apart from losing weight, her sleep improved a lot too!

“My journey with SHARAN and Nutritionist Poonam Sharma has been nothing short of wonderful. I joined the program with the aim of losing weight and bettering my acne, but what I got in return was much more.

Ms Poonam Sharma has been the best mentor one could ask for — she not only checked with me regularly but also gave me recipe ideas that suited my individual cravings. The personalised program that I got helped me stay motivated, made me more aware of my food choices, and made me want to follow the diet. The best part about this is that there are healthy alternatives to everything, and after a point in time, you would not even want to eat the junk that you were so fond of before.

According to Ms Poonam Sharma, the key to a healthy life is to eat in awareness, which instantly resonated with me. The program has got me into a healthy routine, which I can stick to. I have come out feeling lighter with my skin glowing and sleep getting better, thanks to the whole food plant-based, oil free diet.

I would recommend this program and her guidance to everyone looking for a helping hand in changing to a vegan diet because she makes it so easy and fun!” -Anushree Goyal

I lost all my post pregnancy weight

Chennai based 29 year old Meghna Goyal, a new mom, shares how she managed to lose 25 kilos in six months!

“After delivering my baby, I was in a fix with my weight loss. I thought cutting calories was not an option as I had to feed the baby. So, weight loss seemed impossible. Believing in what I was told that breastfeeding would automatically lead to weight loss, I went with the flow for the first three months when I realized I had not dropped even one kg.

At this point, a friend suggested that I go on a vegan diet. I read about it extensively and watched videos related to breastfeeding and weight loss. I learnt that there was no correlation to how much milk we consume and how much milk we produce while lactating. I decided to switch to a vegan diet and started my journey on 4 March, 2019.

I consulted dietician Poonam Sharma and followed SHARAN’s guidelines of the whole food plant-based diet. Soon enough, I had no milk cravings, egg cravings, or sweet cravings. Instead, I started craving vegetables. Vegetables have become my best friends. Now, I am a pro at cooking tasty food without oil.

And here’s the best part of my journey – I lost 25 kgs in six months, without a day of starvation. My baby is healthy too!” – Meghna Goyal

I have lost an incredible 13.2 kg

31 year old Tabish Ansari from Noida took a consultation from SHARAN dietician Poonam Sharma and not only managed his pre-diabetic condition, he also lost 13 kgs in four months!
“When I started my journey with SHARAN, I weighed 107 kg and my HbA1c count was 6.7%, which is the ceiling value for pre-diabetes. A bit more negligence and I would have fallen into the agonizing cycle of medications for diabetes. With Poonam Sharma’s continuous monitoring, guidance, dedication and motivation over the last four months, my HbA1c level is now at 5.6% and I have lost an incredible 13.2 kilos. Of course, I am still obese, but I am also happy, more energetic and feel light.

Before SHARAN happened to me, I had consulted with a plethora of dietitians but none of their approaches convinced me the way Poonam’s did. The recommendation of ‘Forks over Knives’ helped me understand the concepts and misconceptions around food. For instance, potatoes never spiked my glucose level despite eating them every day. They, in fact, helped me manage my hunger pangs and food craving.

It is indeed difficult to change food habits but the primary thought/mantra that kept me going was, “let’s eat nutritious food rather than temporarily satisfying taste buds and being on meds lifelong”. All of this was never possible without Poonam’s supervision and my dear wife Mrs. Fauzia Karim Ansari who ensured that the kitchen was always well equipped, and my portions were kept in check. SHARAN is not just about a diet, it is a way of healthy living, a lifestyle improvement! Alhamdulillah (Thanks to God) for the SHARAN mentorship and for the caring efforts of my lovely wife.” – Tabish Ansari

I no longer worry about my health. I feel empowered!

“I am a 42 year old mother of two lovely girls aged 19 and 15. I turned vegan in January of 2015 and I proudly declare that it’s one of the best decisions in my life. This was after I attended Dr Nandita’s ‘Peas vs Pills’ seminar. Often people ask me why am I vegan/ whole plant based? In one word, it just gives me so much clarity. I no longer wonder or worry about my overall health. I feel empowered! Watching me blossom, many people around me turned vegan -my children, husband, sister, mother, niece, friends.

I released 21 kgs in 3 years and have successfully managed to maintain it. Initially my weight release was slow but steady but when I coupled it with mind therapy I found an amazing difference. A few side effects of this lifestyle change are more energy (been running half marathons last 3 years), feeling peaceful and calm, age reversal, reconnection with animals and nature, de-addiction from junk and refined food and a step towards minimalism. I urge every non-vegan to give this lifestyle a 90-day trial. I promise, you will report victory!

I have a lot of people to thank on this journey: topping the list is Dr Nandita. Her simple and straight forward seminar changed my life.” – Sandhyaashree Rajiv, Mumbai

From XXL to L in 8 months!

“I had just graduated from catering college and Reyna from SHARAN encouraged me to put up a food stall at the Juhu Organic Farmers market, where everything was dairy-free! I took it as a challenge and started making dairy-free chocolates. Week after week as I started going to the market and meeting like-minded people, I got inspired to give veganism a try. This made me connect more with animals and after that whenever I would see a dog, a cat or a chicken, I would see them in a different light. That’s when I realised how I was also inflicting pain on animals. I joined the ‘Cooking for Health’ class, which is held on the 1st of every month at SHARAN. That’s when I went oil-free, organic and sugar-free too. The time I spent at the market every week made it also easier to stick to the diet, as everything you get there is healthy!

I turned plant-based only 8 months ago but I see tremendous changes. I have lost 10 kgs already and aim to get fitter. Also, I have gone from XXL to L! I can see a big difference in my energy levels, which percolates into my work! I now take part not only in the Juhu Organic market, but even at the other ones organised by SHARAN. I feel so much livelier and am grateful to my family for supporting me. Even though they have not made all the changes, they are going to get there as they can see the changes in me.

The motivation to go on this journey is Reyna aunty and have learnt a lot from her and keep learning. She introduced me to the Farmer’s Market that influenced me to change my course as a professional chef to being a vegan chef. I started my journey by making only chocolate. Just two months ago I started my own brand of vegan ice creams called ‘Vegan Heart’. I love making ice creams vegan and coming up with new flavours! I am now vegan for life.” – Kanupriya Wadhwa, Mumbai

In spite of travelling, I find the WFPB diet very easy

44 year old entrepreneur Manish Rao attended Dr Nandita Shah’s ‘Reversing Diabetes and Hypertension’ seminar in Bangalore in January this year. He believes it is one of the best things that has happened to him.

“Hi friends, I wanted to share that becoming vegan and eating natural is one of my best journeys because I am getting both active and better.

Over the last two months, I have lost 8 kilos plus become healthier, more energetic and have a warm feeling of well-being. No colds or coughs anymore. I have eaten fruits, vegetables, sprouts and other good foods in abundance. I also feel spiritually pure, my heart is lighter and food is a source of joy, not guilt or denial as before. I’m working on getting more active in the kitchen and being aware of what goes into my system. I have been following posts of the WhatsApp group created for those who attended the seminar and they give me more and more drive.

I haven’t checked my blood pressure yet but with the amount of weight loss that I have experienced, I am sure that next week, when I go for my check up, the medicines are going to reduce. It’s been a massive breakthrough for me because since that one day at Dr Nandita’s seminar, I haven’t touched any dairy or dairy products, sugar, white rice, etc. In spite of travelling at least once a week, I have been able to adapt to the diet very easily. There are abundant options available. Also changing my food patterns after 44 years, has given me so much confidence that I don’t perceive health as a threat anymore. I understand my health is in my hands.

I really appreciate the conviction and support that SHARAN and JustBe provide in synchrony. Thank you one and all.” – Manish Rao, Bengaluru

Alongside my mother, I too regained health!

26 year old Prashant Iyer took a consultation with SHARAN dietician Poonam Sharma for his mother Uma who was pre-diabetic. Not only did her health improve, so did his!

“I got in touch with Poonam back in July for my mother who was pre-diabetic at that time. She was proactive from the word go and she interacted freely with my mother every week and regularly followed up on her health. My mother is 62 years old, and given her age, I thought a major weight loss may not be possible. And diabetes is all about weight management. But Poonam was hands on, and not only did my mother’s weight come down from 72 kg to 65 kg, her HbA1c also reduced from 5.8 to 5.6, just below the pre-diabetic range!

I also benefitted from her diet – I lost 5 kgs as well, and my HbA1c, which was normal, came to a healthy range of 4.6. This diet change is for life! Now we are mindful of eating things, which have oil or ghee in it. We found new ways to cook without using ghee or oil, which didn’t seem possible when we started. Although, it took a bit of time, it was worth it. But as they say, good things come to those who persevere, and rightly so. One just has to be disciplined enough to follow. You won’t need to sacrifice the taste, as the diet is very customisable. You can ask for anything and everything and you wouldn’t be disappointed. Thank you, Poonam and SHARAN, for everything.” – Prashant Iyer

I lost 60 kgs in one year!

Dr Saurabh Chaudhuri, MD Radiology, Professor & HOD, Hi Tech Medical College & Consultant Radiologist, attended ‘Peas vs Pills’ program by Dr Nandita Shah on 22nd March 2015.

“From that day onwards, my life has taken a drastic change for the better. My weight that time was 140 kgs, BP 150/110 and HbA1c was 9.6. Following the instructions given in the program I shifted to total whole food plant-based diet and lost 5 kgs every month which continued for one year consistently. So, I lost a total of 60 kgs in one year and my weight came down from 140 kg to 80 kg as shown in the photograph. During the program I had asked Reyna whether cooking without oil was possible and when she said yes, it was news to my ears. Subsequently Suraj who cooks for me attended the oil-free classes.

The best part about the program, which I liked, was that you don’t have to miss out on the delicious items. There is a replacement for everything. Because of this, there is no craving. On 3 September 2015, Suraj and I attended the 10 days training program at SwaSwara by SHARAN. I reversed my diabetes and hypertension. My BP came down to 120/80 and HbA1c to 5.6. Although I am from allopathic background what is most appreciable is that this dietary plan is totally natural, based on human instincts. The understanding touches logic as well as the heart. This journey of weight loss and reversal of hypertension is the journey within and the most enjoyable journey of my life. I had to visit my tailor time and again, got a lot of appreciation from family, friends and well-wishers. I sincerely feel that this whole food plant-based diet is the need of the hour and this knowledge should spread far and wide. Kudos to Dr Nandita and her team for spreading this knowledge all around the globe.” — Dr Saurabh Chaudhuri, MD (Radiology), Consultant Radiologist and Associate Professor, Bharati Vidyapeeth Medical College, Pune

I experienced miracles

SHARAN Seminars

I reversed my asthmatic bronchitis of 32 years!

“I was suffering from asthmatic bronchitis since the age of 12. I used to have attacks of sneezing and I just thought it was allergies. I was 18 years old when I had my first episode of asthmatic bronchitis and then it used to happen every 2-3 months. I couldn’t figure out the reasons and just chalked it up to the Mumbai pollution. I could never get wet in the rain, have cold beverages or travel easily due to my fear of getting an asthma attack.

At the age of 40, I came across information about Dr Nandita Shah and I attended the ‘Peas vs Pills’ seminar. There was an eye-opening testimony of a gentleman who was on daily inhalers for asthma as well as high cholesterol. He had attended a previous workshop by Dr Nandita after which he immediately went on a whole food plant-based diet. Within the next 2 months, his cholesterol dropped and didn’t need the inhalers anymore!

My husband encouraged me to follow this diet and since then we have been whole plant-based. It’s been 6 years and I haven’t had an attack and sometimes I forget that I was a patient of asthmatic bronchitis! I am a homoeopath, BHMS Gold medallist, but still couldn’t ever figure out the reason for my situation.

Today I am so happy as I love playing and getting wet in the rain! I have refreshing cold water during the hot summers! I travel easily with no fear of getting an asthmatic bronchitis episode! I have not even bought any more asthmatic medicines in these 6 years either!” – Dr Jaghruti K Jani, Mumbai.

My life changed at the age of 61

“Being born in a non-vegetarian family, I would not take a single meal without a non-vegetarian dish on the menu. It was not because of anything, but taste. However, in my late forties a question from a wise man triggered me thinking, “why to kill a living being for taste of 2 cm of tongue, there is nothing before and after that?” On further analysis I realised that there is no taste in the animal flesh itself. It is only the additives which make it tasty. The horrible condition in which the animals are kept and finally slaughtered because of the demand for their flesh also convinced me to become vegetarian. Within a few months I realised the health benefits of vegetarianism.

The same line of thinking, both medical and ethical reasons, guided me to veganism. Milk, which is meant for the calf, is snatched by humans. The condition in which the milking animals are kept and the way they are treated is equally horrible. That is why, today at 61, I am vegan.

I attended the one-day program ‘Peas vs Pills’ seminar of Dr Nandita Shah of SHARAN. The seminar proved to be very informative and has given me better understanding about veganism and the benefits of a whole plant-based diet. It has also taught me to be vigilant about vitamin D and B12 levels.

Today I feel more energetic, active and my weight has reduced and maintained. As a practicing lawyer, I am on my toes during all working days, with more mental and physical agility. My journey from slumber and unconsciousness to an alert and conscious person has made me an empowered and responsible person.” – Ahmad Abdi, Mumbai

Depression, anxiety, panic attacks, BP reduced

47 year old Vijaylaxmi Singh who was going through mental health issues, describes how the whole food plant based diet, is nothing but miraculous.

“I was having depression, anxiety and panic attacks, off and on, for almost 25 years. Later due to this stress, I got hypothyroidism since the last 12 years and the additional ‘bonus’ due to all this stress was high blood pressure since the last 3 years.

I had almost lost hope and was in a bad condition when I came for the SHARAN seminar. I attended only due to Dr Nandita Shah, as I knew her since very long and trusted her. After the seminar I don’t know why but I continued the diet without any hope and just did it as there seemed to be no other solution. However, to my surprise, I started losing weight. It inspired me as I always wanted to lose weight. Later after fifteen days, I checked my blood pressure which used to be 180/90 and it was normal! That really pushed me further to continue.

Two months of religiously following the diet, one day something terrible took place. Earlier, I would have surely got a panic attack but now, only my thoughts were making me feel that I will cry and get a panic attack, but my body was not reacting! And I realised that day that this diet does miracles. Since so many months now I have not got panic attacks! I don’t know how much my depression has come down, but I can confidently state that it’s a miracle diet which makes you not only physically healthy but mentally too. You become more calm, focused and spiritual. Thank you, Dr Nandita Shah and Reyna for all the support.” – Vijaylaxmi Singh

I want all to lead a plant-based life

“I’m on a vegan diet, but not oil-free yet. Although I am free from disease, there was joint pain, which has reduced after going dairy-free. I have a few more kilos (8 kg) to shed to reach my ideal weight. My goal in the new year is to reach my ideal weight, explore more vegan and oil-free cooking options personally. I’m aspiring to reach out to as many people as I can to lead a plant-based diet. You are quite an inspiration! It all started after attending your ‘Peas vs Pills’ workshop in Bengaluru.” – Janaky Venunathan

Black discoloration disappeared in just 24 days

“I had a big black spot on my forehead, which has disappeared within 24 days of adopting the whole food plant-based diet. I have also lost 5.5 kgs, thanks to Dr Nandita and my friend Sareeta who told me about SHARAN.” – Ashok Purohit

Haemoglobin increased from 6.8 to 10.2 in just 21 days!

“Thanks to eating organic plant-based foods and smoothies, my haemoglobin has gone up from 6.8 to 10.2 in just 21 days!” – Rashmi Lalla

Having healed myself, I now help others heal

“As a classical homeopath for 15 years and teacher of homeopathy to medical physicians at the Sharei Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem, I understood that symptoms are the language that our body speaks, to help us create change in our lives and adopt new tactics to maximize our health.

Diagnosed with bone cancer at age 39, I refused intrusive interventions, choosing minimal surgery and holistic approaches instead. I am very grateful to have been cured and to be alive today.

At age 52, I was diagnosed with the onset of metabolic syndrome. I decided to do everything possible to avoid the medications that were pushed on me by the concerned medical staff after bad blood test results. I turned to a whole food plant-based diet.

It was clear to me that my energy, every cell in my body, every blood vessel, my thoughts as well as my connection to the world around me would be affected by the products that I chose to ingest to nourish myself. I had been so careful to protect myself from violence, stressful situations, enmity, but I kept swallowing products that were detrimental to my health and well-being.

I wanted to learn as much as I could to help myself and others now! I turned to Dr Nandita Shah, a medical doctor and nutritionist living in India, and the founder of SHARAN. I attended ‘Peas vs Pills’ and I sat in Dr Shah’s clinic for 3 months, following a course in the University of California, San Francisco in the Prevention of Chronic Disease through Nutrition. I completely reversed my own symptoms, lost 13 kg without dieting and set on my way to inspire others to follow the same path to vibrant health.

I am now also a graduate of the T Colin Campbell Centre for Nutrition Studies with a certificate in Plant Based Nutrition from Cornell University. I now practice as a Whole Food Plant-based Nutrition specialist, with my own organisation, ‘The Healthy Kitchen Initiative’. I teach people new food strategies to take care of the onslaught of deteriorating health and in most cases reverse their symptoms entirely. I teach people that it is possible to live at optimal health, with youthful energy, compassionate love in the heart and minimal impact on the planet.” – Myriam

My skin is glowing!

“I attended the ‘Peas vs Pills’ seminar in Jan 2016. Just the prior week, my gynaecologist had prescribed me a list of medicines for heavy menstrual flow, one of which was hormones! I knew I didn’t want to be on hormones. So, thanks to the Almighty above I was guided to this seminar and it changed my whole outlook on food and eating habits. I wanted to turn vegetarian but because of the dieticians who stop you from eating bananas, chikoos and dates because of their high calories, and instead encourage you to eat fish for omega 3 and chicken for protein I was not one!

On day 1, after having no tea, I had a terrible migraine type of headache all day and throughout the day! No amount of rest or sleep helped but I was determined. I think determination is all one needs to have and achieve just about anything in life! I also did not know how to cook vegan meals and what to eat in between meals. But I managed the day.

On day 2, the headache left, never to come back. That was it! My addiction to tea was gone! My craving was for the sugar in the tea. Once that sugar craving was satiated with fruits that I’ve loved since childhood, my craving for tea was over. The green smoothie is a magic drink to replace my morning tea habit.

The main change was that I was less lethargic which was previously blamed on my anaemia. So much energy! No naps after meals anymore. Things started falling in place with buying organic and cooking vegan.

My family could not understand it. But I was feeling so good inside that I knew I had to make my family aware of the negative effects of the animal products we consumed daily! When my husband booked a trip to Hong Kong, I was terrified about how I would manage the diet abroad. But again, thanks to the WhatsApp group and its members who are very supportive, the ideas flowed in. I bought a Nutriblend so I could make my smoothies and carried peanuts and dried fruits for back up. Like I said, ‘your thoughts create your destiny.’ I found plenty of vegan options in Hong Kong restaurants! For instance, when I ordered a salad, I just requested the chef to prepare the dressing without any oil or when I placed an order for a French onion soup, it was minus the cheese and butter. When I ordered a ‘cream of mushroom soup’, it was just the cream of mushroom soup in the literal sense! It was delicious without any dairy.

My daughter who lives in the US, was surprised seeing my picture yesterday! My skin is glowing, I have lost 4 kilos and she says I look 35. I am feeling so energetic all day. I am feeling blessed. Thank you, SHARAN and the entire group on Whatsapp for your support.” – Heena Chandani

Blood sugar normal in one month

“I attended the ‘Peas vs Pills’ seminar one month ago. I am trying to implement the dietary suggestions as far as possible. I am glad to say that I have lost 6 kg and my blood sugar level is normal. Thank you so much for your guidance and friendship.” —Dr G Visakha Kumar

Helps reduce menopausal symptoms

“I came to your course last year and after that I became a vegan. I feel very healthy now and I maintain my weight. Now I also understand the connection between a healthy plant-based diet and the symptoms a woman can get when she reaches menopause. The problems I had before I became a vegan are gone.” —Helena Maass, Sweden

Haemoglobin count went up

A Christian bought up in Kerala, Rose was led to believe that she was living the perfect healthy and balanced lifestyle with a non-veg diet up until January of 2015. When she attended one of SHARAN’s smoothie classes, she realised it was not so, and immediately stopped consuming all milk products. After attending an ‘Eat Well and Live Longer’ workshop, she disposed of her microwave oven, and all sugar and oil products from her home.

Her whole family turned vegan with her after watching the documentary ‘Earthlings’ and attended SHARAN’s workshops too. This helped her to stick to her decision of cooking and staying vegan easily. She and her family are following an organic plant-based diet since then.

Rose is also a passionate cook and conducts several cooking workshops for SHARAN. She wants to spread the word about this lifestyle because she knows a lot of ailments can be cured with this change. She believes if she can help even one person, she would be grateful to God. —Rose Pinto, Mumbai

Improved energy, better skin and weight loss

Anney was a hardcore non-vegetarian who grew up in a social and family environment where they believed milk was the lifeline, especially for kids going to schools and colleges and the mantra was “eat anything and everything which doesn’t bite back”.

Towards the end of 2014, she attended an introductory talk by SHARAN and was quite impressed by the concept and decided to give it a try and became a ‘semi-vegan’. Meanwhile, she also started observing the positive changes that her other vegan friends were undergoing and sincerely wished to follow this path.

Early 2015, Anney’s husband attended SHARAN’s seminar on reversing diabetes and she herself attended ‘Eat well and Live Longer’ seminar and both of them became 100% vegans.

While enjoying the health benefits like improved energy, better skin and weight loss, the real gain, she feels, is a clearer conscience because now her diet is not cruel to the animals. —Anney Verghese, Mumbai

So glad I turned vegan

Consultation

Urticaria, weight gain and anxiety – no more

“I suffered from severe urticaria for nearly two and a half years. I would wake up in the middle of the night with unbearable itching and big red hives on my hands and legs. I had tried everything: nothing cured my condition, no home remedies, no tablets, not even skin specialists could cure it. I was somehow temporarily suppressing the allergy by taking antiallergic pills. I was suffering both physically and mentally, it was traumatic.

Thanks to my pregnancy last year, I started avoiding milk. Gradually I stopped consuming dairy products and by 6th or 7th month of pregnancy I quit dairy completely. Within just 5-6 months of quitting dairy, the allergy had gone completely. It was like a new lease of life for me. Now there was no looking back at dairy.

But there was another major health issue. I had gained a lot of weight, close to 25 kg during pregnancy. I had anxiety issues and post-delivery lacked energy to do just about anything. And I was still consuming oils, sugar, jaggery, refined and inorganic products unaware of their harmful health effects.

I had been doing a lot of research on the net on how to live a healthy dairy-free life since 3rd-4th month of my pregnancy. And I was lucky to have found SHARAN. One nutrition consultation with SHARAN and I was clear about my future health dietary/lifestyle choices. Poonam, my nutritionist at SHARAN, gave me a detailed synopsis and diet plan to follow. And within a month of following their diet I was able to lose close to 7 kilos.

Thanks to SHARAN I am consistently losing all those extra pounds with more energy and enthusiasm. Anxiety has reduced and as a result I feel less emotional now. I hope more and more people get their awakening for food and live a happy healthy life.” – Shilpashree, New Delhi

I am healed of brain membrane inflammation

“I had been dogged by health issues like IBS, hypertension and musculoskeletal problems for most of my adult life. Around 5 years back, I attended a ‘Peas vs Pills’ workshop, which did make me reconsider my consumption of dairy, but since I was neither diabetic nor overweight, I did not feel the need for making sweeping dietary changes.

Then about 3 years back, a sudden spell of seizures at work left me almost immobile. It was diagnosed as an inflammation of the right dural membrane, which basically meant that there was a thickening and inflammation on one side of the membrane covering my brain. I was put on steroids, TB drugs, epilepsy drugs and osteoporosis medicines, as the cause of inflammation was unknown. Because of these my kidney and liver parameters deteriorated and to control that I was given even more drugs.

I came across a nutritionist who treated inflammatory disorders. She put me on a non-dairy diet but recommended fish and olive oil in salads. I was also given lot of supplements. I was taking close to 30 pills a day. I had ended up substituting my allopathic medicines with supplements. My condition improved up to a point. When an abdomen sonography revealed early cholesterosis of the gall bladder, it came as no surprise.

To understand for myself the role of nutrition on health, I completed a one year diploma in nutrition therapy from the UK, started reading the book ‘China Study’ by Dr T. Colin Campbell and slowly it began to dawn on me how the whole food plant-based diet is ideal for overall health. Aided by the SHARAN cooking classes and a consultation with Dr Nandita Shah I got on the right path.

After 8 months of being medication free, my reports showed no signs of cholesterosis and there are no signs of the other illnesses too. My biggest reward has been that my faltering career is again back on track. As an oil industry professional, I am now strong enough to go for review visits to offshore oil platforms, a far cry from the days when I could not even stand without tottering. To celebrate my recovery, I also recently got myself certified as a plant-based nutritionist from the Centre of Nutrition Studies, Cornell University.

I am now completing a course on whole plant-based nutrition as it has helped me heal tremendously. Thank you for showing the light, SHARAN!” – Sharmila Roy

SHARAN helped my mother and me

“I was suffering from various health issues like obesity, asthma, high blood pressure, sciatica and hypothyroidism. I thought that medicines would take care of all my health issues and in some time I would be back to normal, living my life happily. But this did not happen, and I was depressed.

Then the worst happened. My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. I was in absolute anxiety and emotional distress. I consulted SHARAN for her and learnt that a plant-based diet can help us recover from many diseases. Our conversation gave me hope for myself, and my mother. I gave the new lifestyle a try to support my mother.

Within two weeks I realised that my mother’s body was giving a positive response to the diet. My mother did not suffer from chemotherapy side effects as other patients do. This diet helped me reduce 7 kg and helped me recover from all my health issues.

This incident taught me things about myself that I could not have learned in any other way. I discovered that I had a strong will and more discipline than I believed. We carry all the power to heal ourselves within us. I now want to help many other people heal with this knowledge. I wish you all good lives!” – Swati Kothekar, Thane

From unwell to certified health coach!

“My wake-up call was being admitted in the Intensive Care Unit of a hospital at the age of 34 years. I was admitted with a blood oxygen level of 80 instead of 95 and I could not breathe.

The doctors told me I had developed asthma due to ‘some allergies’ and that I would in all probability need to be on daily medications for the rest of my life. In addition, I was told that I was pre-diabetic and due to a family history of diabetes, it was only a matter of time before I developed the same. When I was recuperating at home post the health scare, I found that my eyes were dry and painful most of the time. The doctor told me I was at the risk of developing a disease called glaucoma.

I was prescribed a lot of medicines including steroids and none of the doctors could tell me a single thing that I could do to prevent all these diseases from becoming a permanent part of my life. It was a helpless, hopeless situation to be in. What made it worse was that I was only 34 years, vegetarian (I used to eat eggs occasionally) and a non-smoker / non-drinker.

After the initial shock wore off, I decided that there must be some way that I could help myself. I started researching on the internet. One thing led to another and soon I chanced upon Dr Nandita Shah’s interview on reversing diabetes. Hearing her say that “diabetes is reversible”’ was like music to my ears. I was intrigued and wrote her a long email describing my medical issues and she reverted the next day. I took a one month telephonic consultation with her and she taught me about the effects of food on our bodies. I started following what I learnt and in a matter of weeks, I started to feel much more energetic. I stopped taking my daily asthma medicines and I was fine. I got my blood sugar tested and got back a normal reading. I felt that I got my life back.

I was so impressed with the results that I decided to complete the one of its kind certification course in Whole Food Plant Based Diet from E-Cornell University. This is a program developed by Dr T Colin Campbell, author of ‘The China Study’. I successfully achieved the certificate in 2014.
My mission in life now is to help as many people as I can to come off the unnecessary medications given by traditional doctors and share my knowledge that it is indeed possible to prevent and reverse many diseases.” – Shruti Malik, New Delhi

21-Day Health Retreat

It’s six years that we don’t require medicines

“My family and I used to frequently visit the doctor since someone would catch a flu at least once in two months.

Over many visits and realising that the doctor was giving the same medicines each time, we started stocking up on those in the house and each time we saw symptoms of a cold, cough or fever we would have antibiotics, antiallergics and other medicines! The same happened after I got married and had kids. I had become an expert, kind of a self-proclaimed doctor prescribing which antibiotic is to be taken for which condition to my friends and relatives too!

We were not aware that antibiotics weaken the immune system and we were doing more harm than any good. The side effects would be chest congestion, prolonged cough, cold and ear infections which we never realised was because of the medicines. Over time we needed more and more as the resistance built for the antibiotics in the body.

All this changed when I switched to the whole food plant-based diet after joining SHARAN’s 21-Day Health Retreat. It’s been six years that my family and I haven’t seen these medicines again. Recently when my father was almost unconscious due to some health issues and was not allowed to go to hospital due to the covid situation, my brother gave him only whole food plant-based meals and within a month my father was again walking and talking!

Our body heals itself and we get good nutrients from the food which helps our body handle the sickness with its own mechanisms. Now I don’t even keep a painkiller in my house. And we are free from medicines. It is a huge money saver and a huge relief for my entire family.
I am in all gratitude to SHARAN which has transformed mine and my entire family’s life. I am still a self-proclaimed doctor but now my prescription holds lots of fruits, vegetables and my WFPB cooking classes.” – Seema Bali, New Delhi

You are what you eat!

Nidhi Nahata, food therapist and founder of JustBe resto cafe in Bangalore, is bringing the same change to the world that SHARAN brought to her life.

“My journey towards clean eating began with an epiphany three years ago. I was undergoing health issues including high cholesterol, migraine and rosacea, and I was adamant about not taking any medication to control these conditions. The 21-day Health Retreat conducted by SHARAN changed my perspective towards clean eating. It was interesting to learn about the profoundly beneficial effects of a whole food plant-based (WFPB) diet. The fact that such an approach is also evidenced by science and research as the healthiest form of nutrition for humans made it even more convincing and compelling for me.

When I returned from the retreat with the newly acquired power of knowledge, I first changed the way food was regarded and eaten in my family. I implemented the whole food plant-based diet concept in our kitchen and saw my son’s chronic asthma being cured, my husband’s gastrointestinal issues and various other health concerns of my family members and friends being resolved. I was keen to extend this awareness to others as well. Thus, was born the JustBe resto café, a SHARAN certified eatery.

I believe in the saying “you are what you eat”. Good and natural food not only provides for the body, but also nourishes the soul. I have replicated the same concept of healthy eating at JustBe – to serve nutritious food designed by nature for the human body and brain with no added sugar, oil or dairy, free of all refined and processed ingredients, and free of synthetic colours and preservatives. This to me is the ultimate tribute to SHARAN, which changed my life and those of my dear ones.” – Nidhi Nahata, Bengaluru

The method is scientific and works!

Delhi-based scientist Dr Suman Govil cannot stop feeling grateful to her son and daughter-in-law for the best holiday ever, from where she came back with zero medicines!

Dr Suman Govil, a Ph.D. in Botany from University of Delhi has worked in the Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India as a senior advisor from 1982 to 2018. A vegetarian by birth, she had a lot of health issues including polycystic ovaries and its complications, severe osteoporosis, hypertension, and low immunity resulting in several bouts of cold and cough every year and cervical spondylitis. And if that was not enough, she was also overweight.

Despite her son and daughter-in-law’s warnings that milk is bad for health, leads to leaching of calcium from bones and stone formation she did not make changes, perhaps because of her conditioning and addiction to tea.
Immediately after her husband’s kidney stone surgery, she and her husband attended SHARAN’s health retreat in June, 2018.

She found the methodology adopted by Dr Nandita and her team scientific, systematic and holistic and appreciated the camaraderie with the team and participants. Apart from health benefits, she felt, it was the best holiday of her life. The scientist in her always wanted evidence, and she got enough of that from the medical tests before and after, which showed significant reduction in total cholesterol, triglycerides, etc. Both she and her husband benefitted tremendously from following the SHARAN lifestyle, are totally free from all medicines, are lighter by 11-12 kg each, and their energy levels and stamina have improved a lot. And naturally they witnessed dramatic improvements in other participants as well.

Totally motivated, she took up the facilitator training in January 2019 in order to spread this lifestyle to friends, relatives and everyone that she comes in contact with, in order to lead a happier, healthier and ethical life and leave a better planet to future generations.” – Dr Suman Govil, Delhi

I had the best time of my life!

“On the first evening of the SHARAN 21-day Health Retreat, Dr Nandita Shah gathered all the participants and facilitators in the SwaSwara library. We sat around in a circle, each taking turns to express our reasons for being there.

I sat between my mother and maasi (mother’s sister), shifting uncomfortably in my cushy armchair as people listed various ailments, including diabetes, high blood pressure, and hypothyroid. When they asked me why I was here, I looked at my mother and said, “well… my mother went to a ‘Peas vs Pills’ seminar. And she thought this would be a good idea.”

On the sixth evening, as I was stroking Yogi and Veda, the hotel dogs, I told my mother “Mom, every single person here is sincere and genuine and they actually want to turn vegan. But I don’t want to be vegan; I dreamt about paneer paratha last night!”

By the 17th day, I experienced a shift. I think I was actually the very last person in the retreat to experience this shift. There were different triggers, of course. For me, it was learning about the cruel treatment of cows, calves, hens, and chicks in the dairy and egg industries. For some, it was the movie nights in the library. For others, it was seeing blood sugars go down and medicines reduce.

On the 21st day, the changes in each person’s physicality and consciousness were undeniable. Perhaps you’ll be quietly reluctant at first, like I was, but day by day, as you experience everything the retreat offers, you will become ever more emphatically eager. I could feel myself improving with each lecture, with each walk, with each meal. With each entry in my gratitude journal I grew more aware of how lucky I am and how little I appreciate my life and myself. By recording my goals and efforts and expectations in the ‘Healthy Habits Now’ journal, I was able to recognize the aspects of the program that most benefited me. I released stress, kilograms and inches, received an abundance of energy, and through it all, side by side, had one of the most rewarding holidays of my life.

I saw dolphins dance during the Prakruthi walk, enjoyed Mayavi’s incredible vegan ice cream and Nandini’s mind blowing mango mousse, huffed and puffed my way to Gokarna 10 km away, coaxed my body into surya namaskars in daily yoga (although daily may be an exaggeration in my case), fed stray dogs and explored a library in the Goan wilderness with Reshma, and enjoyed art therapy in the beautiful art studio. I even swam 60 lengths in one sitting while I was there – my personal best – and helped cook an Indo-Chinese dinner without hurting myself (or anyone else)!

At the very least, attend the SHARAN 21-Day Retreat for pakodas by the poolside, aquarobics with Captain Joseph, beach walks with Yogi and Veda, remarkable recipes, and magical massages. At the most, go to discover what everyone is searching for – happiness and health.” – Sanjana Thakur

Holistic healing

Mr Srinivas Kantheti, Consultant from Mumbai, age 54 who was on several medicines for high blood pressure and had a few other complaints, including osteoarthritis due to which both knees had been operated on, wrote as follows:

“It’s slightly more than a month since we first met at the SHARAN 21-day Health Retreat.

While the camp per se ended a couple of weeks back and the results were nothing short of amazing, I wanted to update you on the journey since then.

It’s been only two weeks but I am seeing major changes physically, mentally and spiritually.

Physically I am getting lighter every day with a total weight release as of now of 11.5 kgs (this is in 5 weeks!) My trousers are getting loose and the only reason I am not shopping for new clothes is that I feel confident that another 5 kgs will be released over the next six months.

My BP is now in the 120 /80 range with half a Coversal which maybe I can drop soon.

The body has started healing itself. I had an attack of cold and fever last week which got cured on its own without any medication.

Physically I am feeling energetic, looking forward to walking and yoga every day. The long walks at Mumbai Airport are no longer a challenge.

I like my face in the mirror and have been complimented by friends on my radiance. Overall, I am feeling younger.

Mentally, I am much calmer. I am more in the present and enjoying my old loves of music, reading and photography.

One important experience in the last two weeks is the complete absence of attraction towards tea, coffee, alcohol, non-veg food, dairy products, fried food and packaged food. It’s not a question of will power. Will power is needed where one has to resist an attraction. Thanks to the knowledge, techniques and skills learnt at the 21-day workshop, I have come out of SwaSwara with a mental make up where these addictions have no longer any attraction.

In the past I had paid just a cursory attention to animals and to nature / environment. WFPB diet is the centre stone to expand spiritually by including all of God’s creatures in our compassion.

The food we eat makes us the persons we are. WFPB diet is the way nature intended for us to live. I feel every day that I am getting more and more integrated with nature. This for me is as much a spiritual journey as a mental and a physical one.

I want to express my gratitude and heartfelt thanks to all the five of you – Dr Nandita, Nandini, Mayavi, Capt Joesph and Dr Sarvanan – for guiding me on this path and unlocking this marvellous world for me.” – Srinivas Kantheti, Mumbai

Happier, healthier and fitter

“Shashi and I have a decade long history of medical problems and medication for diabetes, high blood pressure and excess weight. We had heard about the SHARAN residential program for reversing these lifestyle diseases for a long time from our son, but didn’t do anything about it, until he lost patience. One day he just booked us in for the June 2014 program, bought the air tickets, and that was that.

What a wonderful transformational experience it turned out to be! It is no exaggeration to say that our lives have changed in body, mind and soul. The most important learning for us has been that medication (and higher doses of it as time goes by) is not the best and only way to tackle our problems!

It has been six months since we took the program. We are so much happier and healthier and fitter than before. Our medical results are impressive (even our doctors have a hard time believing it). All our parameters are better than before and are further improving. Medication has been halved. Shashi has reduced nine kgs and I five. Life has somehow become simpler in so many ways and more joyful.

We have still some way to go. There are challenges. But we are alert and aware of the pitfalls and taking care!” – Siddharth Khanna, Pune

Total health turnaround!

“I came in contact with SHARAN as a filmmaker. I attended SHARAN’s 21-day program in June 2015. I already knew that my cholesterol levels were high, but I was not on any medications because I did not want to take them. When my tests were done at SwaSwara, I was also surprised to see that I was pre diabetic! I was happy that by destiny I was in a place where I would now heal. Gradually other problems also improved. I had always had digestive problems and frequent attacks of sinusitis and these also improved. In less than 21 days my HbA1c went down from 6.6 to 6.2, and my cholesterol and triglyceride levels too dropped considerably. Today, 6 months later, I have dropped 8 kg and I feel great.”– Angana Jhaveri, Award winning documentary film director, Mumbai

I love to experiment with cooking now

“2014 has been a watershed year for both me and my husband. We went for SHARAN’s 21-day Health Retreat and our entire outlook about our wellbeing and food changed. I was never fond of cooking and was afraid of failure. But now, cooking has become my passion. I enjoy spending time in the kitchen and keep experimenting with all kinds of dishes. I have also lost 10 kgs and feel so much lighter and healthier. I am so looking forward to a brighter, joyful 2015 and many more years after that. Wishing the same for all of you.”– Shashi Khanna, Pune

I reversed 45 years of constipation

Making the change to a whole food plant-based diet and vegan lifestyle is a strong experience of great significance. I thought I had conquered a lot becoming vegetarian, but now that I realise what it really means to be vegan, it has changed my life.

I now consider it a moral responsibility to take care of my body, by respecting it, fulfilling its needs without feeding it as if it were a dust bin.

I was always a great cook and had a food business. With the discovery of raw vegan cuisine and its various and delicious recipes, I reversed 45 years of severe constipation and went from taking many medicines to none in a short period of time. I also experienced a deep change in my approach to the preparation of food, the control of my body’s health and victory over the types of little aches that I have carried on with for years, mistakenly believing they are just part of me.

My plans are to become a Health and Food Coach and change the lives of many others. I am working towards this and thoroughly enjoying it.”-Jenny Sugar, Milano, Italy

SHARAN transformed my life

“SHARAN came into my life and transformed me dramatically. I reduced my weight by 17.6 kgs. eating the whole food plant-based way taught by SHARAN at the amazing 21-Day Disease Reversal Retreat. Recently when I met my relatives, they were so surprised and told me I look 10 years younger. I feel so good and young again with increased energy levels.

A year ago, I was suffering with severe back pain and I could only manage to walk a few metres. Yoga could not help my back pain as losing weight was impossible even with severe dieting. I was starving myself and only managed to lose 3-4 kgs on my own. And I gave up. Then SHARAN came into my life! All thanks to you, SHARAN, for giving me my life back.

I am loving this new lifestyle. It changed my life. Thank you for sharing this whole food plant-based knowledge with us. With lots of love and good wishes to you.” —Seema Bali, New Delhi

Life changing experience

“In the year 2002 I went for a complete health check-up at the Lilavati Hospital. I was advised tab Glycomet since my blood sugar was borderline high. I went for SHARAN’s 21-day Health Retreat where complete blood tests and regular blood sugar checks were done. My fasting was 126, and PP was 164. That was a shock! Gradually my blood sugar levels came down to 100 fasting and 110 PP. I lost 4 kg of weight in those 21 days, and 4 kg more in the first two months after coming back to Mumbai. I still continue to do well. These 21 days were a life changing experience!” —Ritaa Vazirani, Mumbai.

It’s been a wholesome journey

“I really feel deep gratitude to you for transforming my life. I really didn’t know that food was creating so much havoc in my body. It’s been six months now and I can see the gradual changes! I haven’t lost much weight, but I do feel lighter and have lost inches! I feel more confident of myself. Also, the migraines are almost gone but I don’t tell others this because then I feel it gets jinxed. I am just sharing it with you. Dr Nandita, I still remember your words from that 2nd night at SwaSwara when I had got a severe migraine, “the day you know the reason, it will go away!” Yes, I know that stress and accumulated emotions are reasons besides food. I do still get headaches at times, because of a hectic schedule, heat and improper food. But then the next day it’s gone. And another benchmark is that I am able to wear contact lenses in a row for two or three days without migraine. So, it’s been a really good feeling.

I am also less weepy now, as the migraines triggered mood swings but don’t overpower me so much. On that note I must say here that not having migraine has reduced my claustrophobia to a great extent. Even on flights! And I have been able to go on adventures which earlier I just couldn’t think of. I did snorkelling last week when earlier even open space used to give me phobia of closed spaces, like being in deep sea on a boat or on a top of a mountain, when you don’t see anything except nature! Now that fear has reduced almost 90%!

So, all in all, it’s been a wholesome journey till now, both inwards and outwards and I feel completely surrendered to it!” – Pinky Sarita

6 Weeks to Weight Loss and Health Gain

Not only did I lose 20 kgs, I gained health too!

“It’s been a year since I started my journey with SHARAN. I am so excited to share that I have lost 20 kgs and for a 56 year old newly minted grandmom, I have never felt better!

I joined SHARAN’s ‘Six Weeks to Health Gain and Weight Loss’ program, with a single point agenda – to lose weight! Luckily, I had no ailments or health issues. I had done some research on all the wonderful work Dr Nandita Shah was doing but for a foodie like me, to give up my favourite foods and dairy in the blink of an eye was a frightening thought. I vividly recall learning during the first SHARAN class of how animals were mistreated and was visibly shaken. That night, I loudly announced to my very surprised family that I had decided to turn vegan. That was my turning point! My family played a central role in this beautiful new journey of mine, always encouraging me in all my big and small victories.

Overnight, we turned to eating a whole food plant-based diet and our new addiction was the green smoothie. We also started enjoying our two hours of exercise – yoga, dance and walking. Our 16 hour intermittent fasts, thrice a week, helped melt the kilos away!

The guidance received from both Reyna Rupani and Rose Pinto has brought me this far. They nudged me ahead to be the best version of myself! As I write this, I am brimming with gratitude. I want to thank Dr Nandita Shah and everyone at SHARAN for this change. Thank you all for being a part of my life!” – Sunali Mehta

Nothing short of magic!

Gautami Desai joined our ‘Six Weeks to Health & Weight Loss’ program in November last year. After experiencing the changes in herself, she can’t help but spread the goodness of the whole plant-based diet. And what a wonderful way she has chosen to do so.

“SHARAN has done nothing short of magic for me. I am a portfolio manager with long hours of stressful work. I had help at home, so was able to eat home food most of the time, which I always thought was very healthy. Until I was introduced to SHARAN! Since quite some time I was feeling so exhausted that when I reached home in the evening, I could barely get up from the sofa, leave alone spend any quality time with my family. I needed to sleep for 8-9 hours a day and I was ashamed at times when my son woke me up in the morning after getting ready for school. I had acidity and stomach upsets often which I easily blamed on stress. Many people suggested many things like exercise, spirituality, dietician, etc. I did all of it without realising that everything needs extra energy and I did not have that. Obviously, nothing lasted for long.

About 6 months back, my sister-in-law, Kinjal, who had done the SHARAN Six Weeks course, started sending some delicious dishes for my son and she said it was completely oil-free. That went on for some time and my son loved them so much that, one day, while Kinjal was travelling, he got upset that those dishes would stop coming for a while. That triggered the ego within me, and I decided to do a one day course, and ended up doing the 6 weeks course.

SHARAN has totally changed the way I feel and the way I think. Energy comes from the right food and only after the course I realised how wrong I was as far as food goes. I can easily get up early morning, meditate, exercise, work for long hours and spend happy time with my family in the evening. Losing five kgs in three months was something I had never imagined could happen to me. I would recommend SHARAN to anyone. Instead of giving silly gifts, I have been giving SHARAN’s ‘Basics Cooking Class’ as a gift to my friends, relatives and staff. I will forever remain grateful to SHARAN and Kinjal for once again planting life into me” – Gautami Desai

Confident of overcoming temptation!

Alpa Dani (centre) is currently doing the ‘Six Weeks Weight Loss’ program, and this is what she shares, after the fourth week in the program

“Reyna, I want to thank you. Yesterday I had a pre-birthday celebration with my friends, but did not eat anything other than a salad, nor did I touch the cake. My friends were shocked with my perseverance of not having a bite of non-veg as I just loved that before! They even complimented me on my glow! You have helped me overcome one of my biggest weaknesses!” – Alpa Dani

I saved myself from medications

“By leading an active life comprising walking, badminton, yoga and golf, and also being a vegetarian, I was hoping that I was doing all the right things to avert the health conditions that my parents had. Little did I know then that my food still wasn’t right, especially dairy products and oil. My food was undoing the effect of physical activity on my body and bringing me to the brink of health conditions like hypertension and diabetes. With my family history behind me, my doctors were preparing me for managing these with medications. I thought I had no choice but to manage these lifelong.

That’s when my wife came across SHARAN. We stopped all animal products, sugar and oil, and now eat healthy food, including lots of fruits. We follow simple activities like regular walking and stress management. While we enjoyed the journey of empowering ourselves to heal with a group of participants, we started seeing wonderful results in terms of weight reduction, normal health parameters, and a fresh and positive outlook towards life. The transformation was a wonderful feeling.

Now, 5 months after attending the workshop, we follow the regime and enjoy the food and continued healing. We eat zero or single grain meals, lots of vegetables and lots of fruits. I lost 8 kgs and several inches! My wife lost 10 kgs. We now feel energetic all day. We owe it all to Anubha and SHARAN for showing the way. Sarve bhavanthu sukhinaha!” – Dayanidhi M G, Bengaluru

Everyone wants to know my secret

“I met Anubha in October for help losing weight for my upcoming engagement in January. Apart from weight loss, I also suffered from chronic insomnia for which I used to rely on an ayurvedic herb to ensure a good night’s sleep. I also had a lot of aches and pains in different parts of my body and I had no idea why. I watched the ‘Forks Over Knives’ documentary in August and was introduced to SHARAN by a friend in October.

Anubha’s caring and loving guidance really helped me keep my motivation levels high and I started seeing results in 3 days. I didn’t need to rely on any herbs to help me sleep and all the aches and pains disappeared. I also started losing weight and in about 6 weeks, I had lost 4 kg which was beyond my goal of 3 kg. Suddenly everyone started asking me how I looked so great and my secret of weight loss. My skin started looking clearer and I was in overall better health. I was in a better mood, more energetic and was able to take decisions faster.” – Srishti Jain, Bengaluru

I lost 10 kg in 2 months

Neha Veekas joined the ‘Six Weeks Weight Loss’ program in September. This is what she says.

“I gained 10 kg health by letting go 10 kg weight in a period of two months. I have become 4 inches and 2 sizes fitter! I didn’t think I could continue the SHARAN way, but I did! Six more months, then I will have better ‘after’ pictures to show you! Slow and steady wins the race!” -Neha Veekas

‘Reversing Diabetes in 21 Days’ Book by Dr Nandita Shah

I reversed diabetes just by following this book!

48 year old Rajesh Shet from Udipi developed diabetes in March 2019. He was already on blood pressure medicines for the past ten years. So, he decided to take his health in his own hands and is now diabetes-free!

“My wife happened to receive a WhatsApp forward of Dr Nandita Shah’s video from her friend and chanced upon the online version of her book ‘Reversing Diabetes in 21 Days’. She had lost her father, aged 78, due to diabetic complications two years ago. She ordered the book and gifted it to me saying she wished she had read the book earlier as it would have benefited her father.

I have been following the diet as prescribed in the book since September 2019. Along with a daily exercise routine, I lost about 8 kgs in 5 months. I was well supported by my family doctor who made sure that the tests were done every month and the medicines were gradually reduced. I was asked to take my medication on alternate days for one month, then twice a week for one month, and thereafter stopped completely. I feel great and relieved of a burden. I am much more energetic now and this has brought a lot of positivity in my life.

I have gifted this amazing book to some of my close friends and colleagues. They have read it and also tried to change their lifestyle and seen positive results.

I am truly grateful to Dr Nandita for the inspirational book that has made me believe that diabetes can be defeated. The explanations are simple yet powerful with the personal experiences of many. I could easily relate to the situations mentioned in the book.” – Rajesh Shet, Udipi

Veganism is the lifestyle for a sustainable future

“I was diagnosed with thyroid about a year ago and was surprised! I was only 41 years old and leading such an active life; how could this happen to me?! It’s then that I decided to take care of myself. My sister-in-law in Hyderabad who also has thyroid and blood sugar, was also working on herself and had attended the ‘Freedom from Diabetes’ program. That’s where she learnt about Dr Nandita Shah, who was Dr Tripathi’s mentor and bought the book.

I slowly started just following whatever she did, but without much understanding. It was when I visited her and saw Dr Shah’s book, ‘Reversing Diabetes in 21 Days’ that I started understanding more. I am so impressed with the way she has explained why veganism is the lifestyle for a sustainable future. I have explained in her words to my two teenage children who were non-vegetarians, and now they are both trying to avoid milk and meat in all forms. My daughter looks really motivated and even makes different types of vegan smoothies for herself every morning. I’m really happy when she does that. I will not say they have become vegan as they give in to chocolates and ice creams, though rarely – but each time I tell them that the choice is theirs as they are young adults.” – Suchitra Karnani, New Delhi.

Auto Immune Disease

Completely free of multiple sclerosis medications

Sharanya Abishek, an entrepreneur from Chennai lost her vision in the left eye overnight when her daughter was just one year old. She was immediately admitted in the hospital and after a week of IV steroids, recovered her eyesight. But a series of tests showed the diagnosis as an auto immune disorder called ‘Multiple Sclerosis’. She and her family had never heard of this before and were shocked and helpless. Her neurologist explained that she should not be exposed to heat whatsoever. Living in Chennai, she confined herself to an AC room. She felt her life was doomed. She could not cook in the kitchen, take her daughter to the beach or to the park, or even play with her. She felt like a vegetable in the fridge.

After several rounds of IV steroids, she was put on oral steroids and then on immunosuppressants. These medicines took a toll on her body and her mind. She could not walk straight, felt hungry and disturbed all the time. The costly immunosuppressant had to be imported from the US once in 3 months at the cost of Rs. 30,000 per month. The doctor’s visits, MRI scans and 15 other tablets added to the bills. All this with no guarantee of a cure. Her neurologist warned that without this she might lose her eyesight or end up in a wheelchair all her life.

A one hour phone consultation with Dr Nandita Shah changed her life. Though she did not know what to expect she followed everything to the T.

In 3 months, she saw results. She stopped her sleeping pills and started to sleep better. She was able to be more active, the umpteen boils all over her body vanished. She was finally able to take care of herself, her family and most importantly her daughter. All tablets, other than the immunosuppressant, were stopped. In 7 months, she was ready to taper this too. Finally, even this medicine was tapered and stopped in just 2 months.

In January 2021, 3 years since she stopped her medicines, she joined the SHARAN team in order to spread this message. She is now living her dream life of taking care of her 6 year old daughter. Having seen the immense benefits of the WFPB diet, her entire family is also following this lifestyle with her and reaping extraordinary health benefits. – Sharanya Abishek

From patient to health coach

“In 2003, I started to lose strength in my muscles. It took doctors 18 months to diagnose me with an autoimmune muscle wasting disease called LGMD (Limb Girdle Muscular Dystrophy). I was told it was a progressive disease with no way to stop the degeneration. I became weaker as my muscles continued to slowly break down. Mentally too I was in a bad state. I was unable to play with my kids, my family life was severely affected. I became scared of any sort of movement as I invariably fell flat while walking or even standing. I was prescribed several medications for anxiety, depression, chronic constipation, skin disorders and chronic pain. Many a times, I would just lock myself in the bathroom and cry for hours in helplessness.

My depression and disillusionment worsened over time. I started getting excruciatingly painful bouts of hip bursitis and had to routinely opt for steroid based injections. Eventually, they too stopped working. Needless to say, I completely lost all hope of living a normal life.

Then a very dear friend of mine recommended that I try learning a breathing technique called ‘Sudarshan Kriya’. What followed was surreal but true. After practising the Sudarshan Kriya breathing technique for about 40 days, my years of stress, anxiety and depression simply went away. The rhythmic breathing gave me immense amount of energy. The best part, I no longer needed anxiety and depression pills and my dependency on stimulants such as coffee simply vanished.

I began to think more clearly and took the bold step of taking charge of my own health by enrolling for a year long holistic nutrition program. Based on what I learned, I adopted a Whole Foods Plant-Based diet, and underwent lots of cleansing through juicing and smoothies among other things. Very soon, I saw my pains and aches begin to disappear, my balance improved, and frequency of falling down become less and less. Within a year, I stopped taking all medications. It has been six years now that I have been medication free! My condition has improved significantly and even though I still have LGMD, I consider myself the luckiest person on the planet. I am able to walk and do many of the daily chores that I once thought were impossible. I can even play with my son! In the last four years, I have completed three 5K walks as a proof that true health lies in adopting a holistic lifestyle. This has allowed me to find a deeper meaning to life.

Now, my passion is to help others maintain, improve and restore their health. As a health coach, I encourage people to make the necessary changes to their and their loved ones’ diet and lifestyle before they are diagnosed with some form of sickness. It is much easier to prevent an illness than to recover from one.” – Syed Abbas

Thyroid

Within two years, thyroid medications have totally stopped!

Vandana Tiwari had a hypothyroid problem for which she was advised lifelong medication. She was searching for a natural cure since a long time. She came to know about SHARAN and learnt about the plant-based diet. She started attending all the possible cooking classes, movie screenings, seminars and potlucks, which were organised by the SHARAN team in Mumbai. As she equipped herself with the knowledge and implemented it in her life, within 6 months her thyroid levels improved and the doctor reduced her medication. Her acidity disappeared completely and she lost 7 kilos too! Within two years, her thyroid medications have been totally stopped.

A wonderful cook and a mother to two demanding boys, Vandana started experimenting a lot in the kitchen. She came up with innovative ways to make so many things including ragi noodles from scratch, oil-free pickles, baked samosas, whole wheat bread and more. Inspired by the changes she felt, coupled with her passion for cooking, Vandana now conducts amazing cooking classes for SHARAN. – Vandana Tiwari

PCOD and Infertility

Plant-based is the right way!

23 year old Radhika Handa, who had PCOD and migraine issues, decided to give healthy veganism a try. In a few weeks, she noticed a difference.

“About a year back I had decided to turn vegan (due to ethical reasons) and slowly started transitioning from my non-vegetarian diet. But I could feel that all the efforts that I was taking weren’t working very well, as my health started taking a hit. I had major stomach issues, loss of energy, and weakness in general. I already had PCOD and migraine and adding the other issues I started to question the vegan diet. During the Covid-19 lockdown I came across the SHARAN Instagram page, and the 2 months personalized weight loss program, and immediately decided to give it a try.

My nutritionist was Shalu Nijhawan and she gave me some amazing insights into veganism and a great diet plan. She made me realise all the wrong steps I was taking earlier that were destroying my health and gave me solutions to fix them. Just a couple of weeks into the program I started noticing changes in my body. Within only 2 weeks, most of my stomach issues were gone. I was no longer having severe bloating or acidity. I had much more energy than before, and within a month, my migraine headaches were completely gone. (Earlier I used to get migraines every 2nd week and had to take medicines).

I have lost 4 kgs, but more than the weight loss, I’m grateful for all the other changes that I can see and feel in my body. My skin is also looking much healthier than before. Seeing all these changes in me, even my mother decided to turn vegan and now follows the same diet as me. I’m very happy with the results of this program and excited to see how much more veganism can improve my lifestyle.” – Radhika Handa

I reversed my PCOD, so can you!

33-year old Prachi Jain, a secondary school teacher, successfully reversed her PCOD and even conceived after 8 years of marriage!

“I had been trying to cure PCOD for the longest time through a number of treatments, but nothing really helped. I was equally keen to conceive. But during the treatment, I was detected with insulin resistance as well. This made the reversal of PCOD even more difficult.

At this juncture, I recalled SHARAN nutritionist Madhura Vayal’s talk that I had attended some years ago. I opted for a consultation with her. Soon after committing to a vegan diet, the symptoms started improving. Eventually, my move to a whole food, plant-based, gluten free diet completely cured my condition. The programme wasn’t too difficult to follow. In fact, I loved the food, especially the plant-based cheese and desserts.

I felt a lot more energetic and my skin cleared too. The complete detoxification, thanks to my vegan lifestyle, normalised my menstrual cycle. But the biggest reward I received was the news that I had conceived, within just eight months of going vegan. Today, my husband and I are proud parents of a healthy one year old son.” – Prachi Jain

From piles to pregnancy

“My story with SHARAN began in December 2014. I have been constipated since my childhood and in my early thirties, I developed piles (haemorrhoids). My piles were large and created a blockage internally, due to which, if I had to pass stools it meant a good struggle for half an hour and sometimes pain. I even used to pass blood at times with the stools. After the torturous journey, I needed rest and it meant at least 4 hours as my energy would drain and my legs used to feel weak. My gastroenterologist suggested an operation.

My father said that it was hereditary as he too had it. I saw the operation conducted on YouTube and it definitely seemed painful, and I further researched on what causes piles, symptoms and treatments. Are there any alternative therapies? The answer was affirmatively ‘yes’. Fortunately, I attended a smoothie class by Reyna Rupani where I was introduced to SHARAN. I was totally convinced about the whole food plant-based diet as it meant lot of fibre for the body, which is also a vital requirement for curing piles. I thought of giving it a try and within 2 months, my piles reduced to 70% and that too without any medicines or laxatives! Also, I didn’t have to undergo the operation!

I started feeling energetic and light as passing stools became easier. I was losing weight automatically, bloating of stomach and waist size was reducing. My husband was surprised at my energy and he too started the whole food plant-based diet. Within 6 months we were high on energy, weight was reducing, there was a glow on the face.

Being a childless couple for almost 12 years, we were happy with our life and we had made the decision that we will not try any artificial methods to have a baby. Due to the changes with whole plant-based lifestyle, we became healthy and one day we got the news that I was pregnant. It was a total surprise! We have named our little boy Kreshiv.” – Anjali Tejani, Mumbai

Asthma/Respiratory Complaints

I haven’t had a single asthmatic attack in 9 years!

Mumbai based Dr Jaghruti K Jani was suffering from asthmatic bronchitis for 28 years until she changed her diet.

“I was suffering from asthmatic bronchitis since the age of 12. I used to have attacks of sneezing and I just thought it was allergies. I was 18 years old when I had my first episode of asthmatic bronchitis and then it used to happen every 2 to 3 months. I couldn’t figure out the reasons and just chalked it up to the Mumbai pollution. I could never get wet in the rain, have cold beverages or travel easily due to my fear of getting an asthma attack.

At the age of 40, I came across information about Dr Nandita Shah and I attended the ‘Peas vs Pills’ seminar. There was an eye-opening testimony of a gentleman who was on daily inhalers for asthma as well high cholesterol. He had attended a previous workshop by Dr Nandita after which he immediately went on a whole food plant-based diet. Within the next 2 months, his cholesterol dropped and didn’t need the inhalers anymore!

My husband encouraged me to follow this diet and since then we have been whole plant-based. It’s been 6 years and I haven’t had an attack and sometimes I forget that I was a patient of asthmatic bronchitis! I am a homoeopath, BHMS Gold medallist, but still couldn’t ever figure out the reason for my situation.

Today I am so happy as I love playing and getting wet in the rain! I have refreshing cold water during the hot summers! I travel easily with no fear of getting an asthmatic bronchitis episode! I have not even bought any more asthmatic medicines in these 6 years either!” – Dr Jaghruti K Jani, Mumbai.

An experiment that’s still working!

Mumbai-based couple Kiran & Arun Bhatia share how a 3 month experiment has snowballed to 3 years and there is no looking back for them.

“In 2008 we got our house remodelled. The aftermath of eight months of breathing sand, cement and dust filled air was that Arun had a severe asthmatic disorder. An 18 month dosage of inhalers and steroids arrested the situation but the condition of heavy breathing still prevailed. In 2015, a casual day picnic to the Gowardhan Dairy farm near Pune revealed the ‘well cared but torturous’ treatment of cows for milk production. This was truly an eye opener. Then a visit to the SHARAN counter at the organic farmers market where we tasted a dairy-free sugar-free cake made us want to know more. A quick insight on the benefits of being vegan and SHARAN’s activities gave Arun new hope of getting rid of his asthma. Our only concern – could a family whose day starts with milk-loaded tea and ends with a glass of milk and umpteen servings of paneer, yoghurt, lassi, basundi, icecreams and other milk- based goodies in between give up all of these, in a jiffy? Tough but not impossible, we told ourselves. No harm in trying for 3 months, we could always go back to our former diet but try we must, I pointed out.

We have always believed that there is no gradual process of ‘giving up’ – it’s either completely in or completely out. We picked a date 24 December, 2015 – our family dinner on Christmas Eve. The table was laden with a host of meat dishes and milk-based desserts. Arun and I simply announced that we were going vegan. Everybody around us had a hearty laugh, my mother-in-law started wondering what to do with the food cooked, but we were adamant. We had crossed one hurdle and we expected many more, but we held on to our decision.

We travelled to the UK for a 2 week vacation and were amazed at the vegan options widely available. Today, after almost three years we have only gained a host of good habits and happily let go practices that were ingrained into us over the years. So now, we experience:

– more energy during the entire day as our body puts less effort to digest what we eat
– less occurrences of asthmatic attacks and are off medicines totally (barring a standby inhaler for emergencies during travel)
– increased intake of raw veggies, fruits and all kinds of nuts
– weight loss by 5-7 kgs
– zero desire to eat meat-based food: we just don’t miss it.

If you were to ask us if we have become 100% vegans and do not consume a drop of milk, I would have to say no, not yet. But we are almost there and will admit that besides eggs, our non-veg consumption is zero and our milk consumption has dropped by 90%. We are constantly on the lookout for vegan options to satisfy our small cravings that still persist but whatever we have achieved till date has made a huge difference to our health. And we are aware that there is no turning back now. Our 3 month trial with so many positive outcomes has convinced us both to accept veganism as our dietary way of life forever.” – Kiran & Arun Bhatia, Mumbai.

Asthma is all gone

“I attended the ‘Peas vs Pills’ in Hyderabad 5 months ago and the same day I decided to turn vegan. I have since been following it religiously. I’ve lost nearly 10 kgs and it looks like my asthma also has gone. I was allergic to peanuts too, but just this month I experimented on myself and had some peanuts – all looks well as of now. The first week/month was a little hard but I was able to do it! I sincerely want to thank you.” —Rekha Saraf, Hyderabad

Vitamin D Deficiency

I never thought I would be vitamin D deficient!

“I never imagined I would be vitamin D deficient. I live close to the beach in a relatively rural area of India and travel a lot on my bike. My skin is exposed to the sun. Yet, after 50 years of relatively healthy teeth, I found myself with a cavity. After being away from dentists for so long I had to visit one! Since I take such good care of my health and my teeth, I felt a bit defeated. But I was determined to find out why I had developed the cavity. It was a wake-up call. I got my vitamin D levels tested and found them lower than normal. And all along, I had thought I was getting a fair amount of sunshine just because of where I live!

The experience taught me a lot about this vital vitamin. I learnt that receptors are around our eyes and that if we wear sunglasses our body is tricked into believing that it’s not sunny. This can cause other parts of the body to behave inappropriately even causing sunburn. I learnt that darker skin, like mine, needs more exposure to the sun to absorb vitamin D. I also understood that calcium deficiency is usually because of vitamin D deficiency and acid yielding foods and not because of a lack of intake of calcium.

Calcium tablets should never be prescribed or taken – they only cause kidney stones and calcification of arteries. Deficient calcium intake is unknown. Dairy is not a good source of calcium either as it is acid yielding in the body. We just need to make sure that we get enough of the vital vitamin D.” – Dr Nandita Shah

Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Vitamin B12 supplements came to my rescue!

SHARAN Dubai co-ordinator Ram Prasad was suffering from a frozen shoulder for months. He took all possible treatments, but nothing worked. One email to Dr Nandita and he found his cure!

“Some lessons are learnt the hard way. But it does not have to be so for you! I was elated after my first SHARAN seminar and I stopped dairy immediately. It took some time to go oil-free and then organic. I thought everything should be okay now. Little did I realise, there was still something I had overlooked!

I started getting minor pain in the shoulder. Initially, I brushed it off and ignored it for a few weeks. One morning, I just couldn’t move my hand and I was in intense pain. I rushed to an ayurveda doctor. It turned out to be a frozen shoulder. The joint movement was stuck. The doctor said that it might take several months to get well. The pain intensified after massage. I then rushed to a chiropractor. That didn’t help either. Finally, I wrote an email to Dr Nandita asking for advice. I was asked to get my Vit B12 & Vit D checked immediately. The reports showed the levels were alarmingly low! Dr Nandita advised me to quickly supplement with injections and tablets. In two days, I got major relief. In a week, I was almost normal!

Though Vit B12 and Vit D are in the 5-point SHARAN plan, I neglected them till it turned into an emergency! I have been enjoying great health since then.” – Ram Prasad, Dubai