By Hilary Bainemigisha

DR. Herbert Mugarura, 52, looks younger than his age, he rarely falls sick and when he does, responds faster to medication. The answer, he says, may lie in his lifestyle; food and stress management strategies.

For example, he eats sweet potatoes unpeeled. He would rather peel the cooked potatoes as he eats them.

“Peeling a sweet potato removes lots of nutrients, leaving only starch, water and a few proteins. There are lots of vitamins in the first layer.”

The family doctor in Middle east Bugolobi Hospital, says other foods you should not peel are Irish potatoes and bananas. “Even for rice and maize, those who remove husks lose a lot in terms of value,” he adds.

Mugarura, who is also a prolific writer on healthy lifestyle and sexual health, sleeps on average seven hours a night, his breakfast has no sugar or sugary ingredients and it is mostly comprised of millet porridge.

“I prefer sugar from natural sources like honey, canes and ripe bananas. Processed sugar, especially white sugar, is not good,” he says.

The doctor takes a fruit mid-morning or just plain water and at times, sorghum porridge.

“I try to dodge lunch about twice a week. And when I eat, I avoid fried food. I usually eat unpeeled matooke, Irish or sweet potatoes (sometimes roasted), rice or posho.”

Between lunch and supper, he takes fruits. “I grow a variety of fruits, spread throughout my compound and I really encourage people who have some land around their houses to grow fruits like mangoes, guavas, oranges, pine apples and tangerine.”

Mugarura does not take alcohol and rarely snacks. “I cannot remember the last time I ate pork. I prefer mulokony (cow hooves) because it also has therapeutic value.

And how about exercise? “I walk a lot. I walk from home to work. For me walking is not a problem considering my humble background. I used to walk from home in Mparo to school in Kabale, a distance of about 13 miles. I have ever walked from Mparo to Rukungiri, Ntare to Rubaare and Mparo to Rugarama. I was a sportsman, running long distances.

Mugarura says today, many people have machines to do work for them; cars for transport, electricity for energy and this makes them live a sedentary lifestyle. “They should endeavour to find some work to do,” he says.

“My principle advice is if you can, do it yourself. Wash your car, dig, sweep your house, cook, repair what you can, walk, take the stairs instead of a lift. Make sure you get a chance to sweat at least once a week.”

Another piece of advice is to try and be stress free. “Ignore stressful situations,” he says. “Tame yourself to ignore what you cannot change and you will easily forget.”