Author of the month - Jan 2012

  Author of the Month – Dr. Shantaram Kane

Dr. Kane is the author of “Diet & Lifestyle” which features in the Book Corner under the Health Related Section.

 Here is an interview with him: -

Tell us about yourself.

I have been engaged in research in Ayurveda full time since 1997. I have invented a simple kitchen technology which allows a 100 to 1000 fold reduction in the herbal dosage. II call these herbal extracts in oil as super-extracts.  Several volunteers have benefited from these super-extracts for a wide range of health problems. As part of this experience, he has also evolved simple to implement integrated strategies to link up diet, lifestyle and traditional medicine.

Prior to being a full time researcher in Ayurveda, I worked for 26 years in the R&D of Petrochemicals, Agrochemicals and Specialty Chemicals. I have held senior and functional head positions in Indian and MNC companies like NOCIL, Swadeshi Polytex, Gharda Chemicals and Amoco Chemicals-USA.

I have won several accolades including the ‘Distinguished Alumnus Award’ and the ‘Distinguished Service Award’ from IIT Bombay. I am an Adjunct Prof. of Chemical Engineering at IIT Bombay since 2001 and active in research on Bhasma and Homeopathy.

I obtained a B.Tech. in Chemical Engineering from IIT Bombay in 1965 and M. S. (1967) and Ph. D. (1971) in Chemical Engineering from M.I.T., USA.

You mention a simple kitchen technology to create upper extracts. Where can a reader learn more about this and its benefits?

To know more about my super-extracts, please follow the procedure given below:

1.1  go to my website, http://katonics.com

1.2  Click  on the heading - Super-extracts’

1.3   On the right hand side under ‘Recent Blog Entries’ click on Videos- Affordable healthcare.

1.4  You will find 6 video’s of a talk I gave at the Observer Research Fiubdatiin in Mumbai in August 2010. These videos provide a lot of information about the super-extracts.

What was your motivation behind writing this book?

     Improper diet and lifestyle is the primary cause of lifestyle diseases such as – cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma, arthritis, psoriasis etc. The incidence of these is increasing rapidly worldwide. Often, a comprehensive advice on this subject of diet and lifestyle is not a part of modern medical practice.

In helping a large number of volunteers, I became acutely aware of the importance of a quantitative dietary advice. I started compiling a lot of information and started giving it to them as guidelines. The benefits of this approach were soon obvious. One of my volunteer users suggested to me that I should convert all this into a book and that is how I decided to write a book. I wanted my book to be a useful practical guide for the day-to-day use of any person. I also wanted it to show them how to analyze information and use it by themselves for their own use i.e. how to get self-empowered.

There are a large number of books on Diet. However, I believe that my book is perhaps the first and only book which not only provides guidelines on what to eat but also how much and when and also what to eat less or not at all. It is written based on the positive experience of several volunteers who have used these guidelines.

What challenges did you face while you were writing your book?

For a first time writer, it is always difficult to decide what should and what should not be included in the book. I wanted the book to be a quantitative guide. The real challenge was to make it User-friendly. After all, I wanted the readers to actually sue it for their benefit. To achieve this objective, a number of features were included.

To begin with, I decided to present a sample diet with numbers. However, it was quite a challenge to create a sample such that anyone from 5 feet to 6 feet height and 20 to 70 years of age can easily adapt it for his/her use. This required a rather detailed explanation of how to weigh the quantities, how to make approximations and then how to modify the numbers to suit the individual.I wanted the book to not only to give practical guidelines for each item of diet but also to explain the underlying science.

I was afraid that this would deter many - even educated – readers from reading the book and therefore it might not get used. To overcome this problem, I split the book in two parts. The first part gives a general background and then directly goes into detailed instructions of what to do. Second part them gives many more scientific details. In the introduction “A Note for the Reader” was included. This explains how the reader should go about reading the book.

To make the overall subject easier to follow, I also divided various health issues into two or three major parts so that the discussion becomes easier to follow. I decided early enough that the book should have several tables which will provide a quick reference to enable the reader to make approximate estimates of several quantities. The final size and font size were selected to make the reading easier.

What impact do you think IIT education has on your success?

My intense hobby of Ayurveda and this book on Diet and Lifestyle are subjects totally different from my primary education in Chemical Engineering. I believe that IIT education gives a strong background in basic sciences. This was further augmented by my studies at MIT. These give you the confidence of getting into any new scientific field and develop expertise.

What books have most influenced your life most?

I have enjoyed reading books about scientists, technologists and Innovators. I enjoy reading about how they went about it.

What book are you reading now?

I have been involved in a curiosity driven exploration for the past 25 years and have had the good fortune of finding a series of unanticipated breakthroughs. I am therefore always looking for books on creativity, inventions, innovations and the like. I have been reading books by authors such as Malcolm Gladwell and others who have tried to analyze the key factors for the success of outstanding entrepreneurs.

Do you have any advice for other writers?

I think it is very difficult to write a book totally from scratch. One has to make some unconscious preparation for it. 

I started collecting bits and pieces of information on diet and diseases long before I decided tow rite a book. I think developing your own bank of articles in an area of your interest is a good practice. It will considerably reduce the mental resistance about the idea of writing a book.

I have also been testing my ability to communicate by giving talks on a wide range of technical and management subjects. The positive response tot these made me confident about my own ability to explain complex ideas to people from a varied background. One should find opportunities to test communication skill either through talks or through written articles.

You must then identify a subject area where you feel information is not being presented as you would like and you think that you can do a much better job. If so, then just start writing a book. Do show the draft to a good friend who will critically review it.

If you think you have a flair for fiction, it should also have been tested in a small measure as above and then you can launch into writing a book.

Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?

Please follow the guidelines given in “A Note for the Reader”. And follow them. Please do not think that you must read and understand the entire book before suing it. Read the parts such as Chapter 2 and start using it. Read later chapters, as and when you think you want to know more details.

If an alumnus or his friend wishes to avail of your advice or your remedies, how can it be done? Are you also open to delivering talks/lectures on your path breaking work?

If an individual wants to get my advice, I can be contacted at sgkane@gmail.com . I can also be contacted at 020-2567 2833 or 020-2356 6160. Feel free to call me on any day from 8 am to 8.30 pm except between 12 30 to 3 30 pm.

We can meet by prior appointment either at my residence in Pune or at the IITB guest house during my fortnightly visits to IIT Bombay.

I have already started giving talks in Pune on Diet and Lifestyle. A general appeal is enclosed. If it is in Mumbai, I am willing to discuss the details. Coming for just one talk outside Mumbai is very time consuming but can still be discussed depending on the nature and size of the group.