Natural Diet& Nutrition
Ayurvedic / Natural Diet -
Ayurveda, or the science of life, is almost as old as Indian
Using only natural products, it adopts a holistic
approach, harmonising in the body, mind and soul. There are no
distressing side effects and it is an internationally acclaimed form
of healing. Today, the benefits of Ayurveda are recognised and
acclaimed the world over. This science is well accepted as a natural
and effective way of keeping the body healthy and free of toxins.
the ancient days, the qualities of each and every food preparation and
their effect on the tissues of healthy as well as diseased individuals
of various constitutions were studied in detail. Hence we find
references of dietary factors as etiological factors, which trigger
off, subdue, as well as aggravate many disease processes.
In almost all diseases Ayurveda has advised the avoidance of certain
food items, which have a tendency to aggravate the disease and
consumption of certain food items that have a beneficial effect on the
recovery from the disease.
Intake of food very slowly (vilambit ahar) leads to increase in
consumption. Food also becomes cold and hence tends to act like
poison, in the process it does not get easily digested
also should not be consumed hurriedly (atidrutam ahar) accompanied by
excessive talking, laughter and the person should not engage mind on
other things while eating, as all these leads to the food passing into
the wrong passage thereby delaying the digestion process. The food in
turn does not stay in the alimentary tract for the required time and
the person is denied of the experience of good or bad qualities of
diet is important for maintenance of health. However, if one does not
use his discretion regarding selection of food in relation to place,
time, constitution etc. as given below, the same diet can give rise to
disease by vitiating the doshas.
Rasas are extremely important in our diet and the
diet should primarily consist of all the six rasas. In medicine, the
Veerya (potency) is predominant whereas in diet, rasa is predominant.
Consumption of a particular rasa in large quantities in particular
seasons has also been advised.
It has been instructed that madhur rasa (madhur dravyam not only
constitutes sweet items like sugar, jaggery but also other food items
like wheat, rice, maize etc.) should be consumed first, amla and
lavana rasa should be consumed in the middle of the meal and tikta,
katu and kashaya rasa should be consumed at the end. There is some
ideological basis for this.When a person is hungry, the stomach is empty. Empty stomach
causes an increase in vata dosha. To pacify this vata dosha, madhur
rasa should be eaten first.Apart from this, kaphavruddhi is required to moisten the
ingested food. This is accomplished by the madhur rasa.
Since dravyas, having madhur rasa are difficult to
digest, it is advisable to eat these dravyas
first.After this, it is correct to use amla and lavana
The reason for this is not to pacify the remaining vata but also to
aid digestion by improving the agni.Lastly, katu, tikta and kashaya rasa should be taken as
these rasa increase the agni along with reducing the kapha which
increase after ingestion of food.
rule applies in relation to health. But in pathological conditions
this idea has to be modified accordingly. For example: In anorexia and similar kapha disorders, initially
ginger and salt i.e. katu and lavana rasa should be used.Of these, katu rasa pacifies the kapha while the lavana
rasa moistens food and pacifies vata. Similarly, the order of using these rasa can be suitably
altered taking into consideration the prakruti (nature of the person),
individual preferences and the condition of the doshas. At times, when rasa like
lavana, amla and katu, which
produce burning sensation, are used first, madhur rasa has to be used
in the end in order to reduce the offending pitta.
Like for instance,
in tropical countries, there is a custom to eat sweet preparations
before starting the meal. This is useful in moistening the annavanha
srotas (alimentary canal) before ingestion of food. Contrary to this,
in cold countries, there is a custom of taking soups of amla and katu
There is a definite order even in arranging food items in the dish:
Staple food like rice and chapatti are kept in the
center of the dish. On the left side sweet dishes are kept, then sour pickle
rasa is kept in the center (right in front of the eyes) and tikta or
katu rasa are placed on the right side of the plate.Diet and Place: Eating hot and pungent food in continental climate
(Jangala desh) or eating fatty and cold food items in maritime climate would
increase pitta and kapha doshas respectively.Diet
and Season: Eating hot and pungent food in summer or cold food in
winter would increase pitta and kapha doshas respectively. Quantity and Quality: Eating heavy food items in excess
or too less quantity of food of light items would increase kapha and
vata doshas respectively.New Tastes: Eating food to which one is not habituated
would also cause sudden imbalance of doshas.
Constitution and diet
If a person with vata
constitution eats dry food, person with pitta constitution eats hot
and pungent food and person with kapha constitution eats fatty and
sweet food, in excess; it would result in increase of the same dosha
in the body.
Diet and digestive
If a person with weak
digestive power eats heavy food items, it leads to formation of ama
(impaired functioning of body heat). Diet
and srotorodha (obstruction of the body channels): Diet, which
increases doshas and simultaneously damage tissues, leads to
obstruction of the body channels.Rasa primarily depends upon the six
different tastes, which are inherent in substances that tend to
diminish or increase the deranged humours and the fundamental
principle of the body as also to bring about a normal equilibrium
The particular sense object that is perceived by the tongue is called
rasa. It can also be defined as that Guna which can be perceived only
by the Rasna-Indriyas. According to each and every individual the
rasas can be evaluated by classifying them into six different types.
E.g.. sugar, banana, jackfruit, sugarcane, honey,
etc,. Generally food is sweet in taste, neutral in energy, and sweet
in its post-digestive effect. It nourishes and maintains humors,
dhatus, and malas (wastes).
E.g.- amla, tamarind, buttermilk, curds, mango( unripe), sour fruits
and pickled vegetables etc. All tissues are nourished by sour tastes
except reproductive tissues.
E.g. - All salts and sea food. Salts help in strengthening all tissues
but when used in excess it depletes the tissues.
E.g. - Sunthi ( dried ginger), maricha (black pepper), pippali (long
pepper), hing (asafoetida) etc. Spices and spicy vegetables do not
offer much nutrition but they stimulate digestion.
E.g. - Neem, karela (bitter gourd), chandan (sandalwood), manjistha
(Indian meddar), marigold, Adulsa (Malabar nut), Vekhanda etc. Such
vegetables offer little nourishment but they are useful in cleansing
the digestive organs, and help in digestion, if taken before meals.
Eg - Kulath (horse gram), Harda, ashoka, babbul (acacia tree), teak,
jambul (black berry), etc. They help in providing minerals but do not
Each of the six tastes also produce effects on each of the internal
organs. They have the capacity to adversely affect certain organs in
the body, when found in excess.