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Make Your Hair Grow Longer Quickly – The Ayurvedic Way

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Make Your Hair Grow Longer Quickly – The Ayurvedic Way

‘A long, voluminous, lustrous and healthy hair’ is considered one of the most appealing elements in our physical appearance. But it’s still a distant dream for most of us, right? We understand how you feel.

But, would you believe if we said that your dream is absolutely achievable through Ayurveda? Scientific researches [1] have proved that Ayurvedic formulations are highly effective in treating even autoimmune diseases of hair loss like Alopecia areata.

With the help of our Chief Ayurvedic Doctor at Vedix, Dr. Zeel Gandhi, we tell you all the remedies suggested by Ayurveda to grow your hair longer and faster. Read on.

How Does Ayurveda View Your Hair?

According to Ayurveda, the hair is a direct by-product of your bone tissue (marrow) and it is also linked to the central nervous system and gut. This means any weakness in the bone tissue, nervous system and digestive system will naturally result in hair loss or diminishing hair growth.

In other words, the imbalance in your unique constituency or ratio (prakriti) of Vata, Pitta and Kapha doshas (bodily forces) will lead to the underlying issues in bone marrow, nervous and digestive systems, which in turn reflect in your scalp and hair.

You can understand your underlying dosha imbalance or physiological imbalance by assessing your hair texture and type of hair problems you have.

For example:

  • The imbalance in Vata Dosha causes excessive dryness and flaky dandruff. Your hair becomes frizzy and brittle.
  • The imbalance in Pitta Dosha causes receding hairlines, hair thinning and premature greying.
  • The imbalance in Kapha Dosha can result in needless oil secretion. The excess oil blocks the follicles of your scalp, which leads to wet and sticky dandruff.

Now before we get into the Ayurvedic hair growth secrets, let’s first look into different external and internal factors that buildup toxins (ama) in your body, resulting in Dosha imbalance and simultaneous hair loss.

What Causes Dosha Imbalance And Hair Loss?

1. Over Styling

Over styling elevates the Pitta and Vata Dosha in your hair externally. When you apply extreme heat to your hair by styling it frequently, it dries up the moisture in your hair strands.

The heat also damages the hair cuticles, leading to dysfunctioning of the hair growth process on your scalp, which eventually results in baldness. The dry hair as a result of over-styling becomes vulnerable to split ends and breakage.

2. Poor Diet

When your diet does not include sufficient nutrients required for hair growth or if you have poor digestion due to any underlying disease in your digestive system, it affects your hair growth cycle severely. This is due to inflation in your Vata and Pitta Doshas.

You require hair growth vitamins-A, B group, C, D, E, along with iron, zinc and protein for hair follicles to stimulate healthy hair growth. However, excess intake of hair growth vitamins like Vitamin-A and proteins can lead to hair loss in some individuals.

This happens due to the inflation of Kapha Dosha. Hence, you need a balanced diet regimen based on your Prakriti and current dosha imbalance.

3. Stress Levels

Prolonged physical and emotional stress remarkably causes Vata or Pitta imbalances in your body. This accelerates your hair fall as stress changes the functioning of your immune system, causing inflammation in your hair follicles and hindering hair growth.

Uncontrolled stress is also linked to the condition Alopecia areata, which cause the hair to fall out in clumps and result in bald spots on the scalp[2]

businessman with stress

4. Lifestyle And Environmental Factors

Environmental stressors like exposure to toxins, smoking and pollution, etc. can severely impact your hair health. High pollution environments may increase the risk of sensitive scalp syndrome [3] which comes with painful hair roots, dandruff, itching and oily scalp.

Smoking, even when it is passive can cause damage to the DNA of the hair follicles and it also increases oxidative stress in the body, which leads to severe hair damage and hair loss.

5. Genetics

The genes you inherit from your parents and grandparents determine the shape, texture and hair growth cycles. Each hair follicle in your body has a continuous cycle of growth and resting phases, which normally lasts for a lifetime.

In case you have balding genes, the normal hair growth cycle can be disrupted in your 20s-30s. The symptoms are hair thinning and eventually bald spots on the scalp. Sometimes, increased accumulation of male hormones (DHTs) at hair follicle receptors causes hair fall. This is inherited through the genes [4] and can be attributed to the Pitta constitution.

6. Age

In Ayurveda, it is believed that in any individual, the phase from childhood till 16 yrs of age is governed by Kapha dosha, whose balance is the ideal condition for healthy and abundant hair growth.

The period from 16 years to 50 years is governed by Pitta Dosha, when you are more prone to hair problems related to Pitta imbalance. In old age, i.e after 50 years and beyond, the Vata dominates other bodily forces and you may have increased hair loss as the hair growth process gradually decreases.

7. Hormones

The acute change in your hormone levels will cause hair loss. Women may feel faster hair growth during pregnancy and they have hair loss at a faster rate than normal post-pregnancy. This is due to an increase in the level of estrogen hormones, which promotes a higher ratio of hair follicles in the growing phase.

The hair follicles return to the resting phase after the birth of the baby, which makes them feel as if they are shedding hair. Women experience hair fall even during menopause, though it is temporary and hair regrows with time.

How To Make Your Hair Grow Longer?

As mentioned above, problems related to hair are an early sign of poor health of vital organs like skeletal or endocrine systems. So, simulating long and healthy hair growth by treating the imbalanced doshas through Ayurveda is not just a beauty exercise but also essential for your overall health! Let’s see how you can do that.

1. Begin With An Ayurvedic Evaluation

To start with Ayurvedic ways for long hair growth, you need to determine your dosha imbalances. You can do that either by taking a dosha questionnaire or consulting an Ayurvedic practitioner.

This will throw light on the likely causes for the imbalance of your doshas, which you can address through 100 % natural Ayurvedic herbs and methods.

2. Condition Your Hair With Kesha Dravyas Before Hair Wash

Unlike the general procedure of using shampoo and then using a hair growth conditioner, Ayurveda suggests to condition the hair and scalp prior, and then go for rinsing with herbal cleansers/shampoos.

The following ingredients are Kesha Dravyas which are predominantly used to condition your hair in Ayurveda and are known to promote hair growth:

  • Narikela(coconut)
  • Tila (sesame seeds)
  • Bhringraj (Eclipta alba)
  • Neelini (Indigo)
  • Jatamansi (Nardostachys Jatamansi)
  • Brahmi (Bacopa)
  • Amala (Phyllanthus Emblica)

You can use herbal oils made from the above ingredients to massage your scalp and hair before you take a head bath.

You can also apply the henna paste, yogurt, aloe vera gel or eggs to your scalp and hair, and wash it after some time. These ingredients are well known for their moisturizing and conditioning action in Ayurveda.

How To Condition:

Ayurveda suggests two methods to treat your scalp and hair with warm oils.

A. Shirodhara

‘Shiro’ refers to the head and ‘Dhara’ means flow. In Shirodhara, warm oils are rhythmically poured on your forehead and scalp, which is then massaged. This stimulates the pineal gland (master endocrine gland according to Ayurveda) and balances the endocrine system.

Shirodhara also enhances the melatonin release, in turn improving the state of calmness, providing relaxation and relieving insomnia [5]. It is very much recommended when the major factor responsible for your hair fall is stress.

B. Shiro Abhyanga

‘Shiro’ refers to Head while Abhyanga refers to massage. It involves massaging hair along with neck and shoulders with Ayurvedic medicinal oils. It nourishes your hair, relaxes your mind and relieves you from physical and mental tensions.

Shiro Abhyanga pacifies excess Pitta Dosha while supporting hair follicles, and nourishing nerve endings and sensory organs. Oils like Brahmi Bringaraj Taila, Bringamalakadi Taila, coconut and sesame oils are generally used for Shiro Abhyanga.

3. Cleanse Your Hair With Ayurvedic Or Herbal Shampoo

Ayurveda provides you with powerful and natural hair growth shampoos/cleansers which are free of harmful chemicals like SLS, SLEs, parabens, silicons, etc. These harsh ingredients in chemical shampoos can clog your follicles and stop your hair growth.

The following are few natural herbs with cleansing action, which Ayurveda suggests as the best ingredients in hair growth shampoos:

A. Shikakai (Soap Pod)

Shikakai cleanses your scalp by removing excess oil and unclogging the toxins from your scalp pores. Ayurvedic texts mention that Shikakai has lather foaming quality and does not strip natural oil from your scalp and hair.

You can use Shikakai with a combination of Reetha (soap nut), Amla (Indian Gooseberry) and hibiscus to treat frizzy and dry hair due to the Vata imbalance.

B. Hibiscus Leaves And Flowers

The paste of Hibiscus leaves and flowers can be used as an efficient cleanser as it lathers very well. It fights Pitta imbalance and helps you achieve well-nourished, black and long hair.

C. Aloe Vera

Aloe vera is a cooling and soothing scalp cleanser, and very useful in treating Pitta imbalance by healing heated-up scalp with redness, rashes and itching.

D. Triphala Churna

The three fruits Haritaki (Chebulic Myrobalan), Bibhitaki (Terminalia bellirica) and Amalaki (Indian Gooseberry) are blended in the right proportion to form this Triphala churna. The mix of Reetha (soap nut), Shikakai(Soap pod) and Triphala churna is one of the best herbal shampoos that cleanse all the dust and dead cells, while providing long-lasting softness and shine.

Triphala moisturizes your hair and works actively on your hair texture to increase its volume. And, it is a Tridosha hara, which helps you combat almost all kinds of hair problems and can promote regrowth of your hair.

ayurvedic triphala churan

4. Professional Ayurvedic Therapies

A. Takradhara

Takradhara, a traditional Ayurvedic procedure, involves pouring the stream of medicated buttermilk over the forehead like in Shirodhara. Takradhara balances excess Pitta dosha, in turn relieving you from hair fall and premature greying.

B. Basti

The elimination and retention of excreta from the body are controlled by Vata, which is mainly located in the large intestine. Basti, the process of enema with medicated herbal oils or solutions is one of the best solutions to pacify Vata Dosha in the colon.

As there is a relation between Asthi dhara kala (membrane of the bone tissue) and Purisha dhara kala (colon membrane), Ayurvedic medications given rectally to balance the Vata in the colon, in turn keeps the health of bone tissues and hair.

Note: These two specific Ayurvedic therapies to pacify your aggravated Doshas needs to be administered by a qualified and experienced Vaidya.

5. At-Home Ayurvedic Treatments

A. Nasya

According to Ayurveda, the nasal passage is a sacred pathway to reach our very soul! Nasya involves the application or putting of specific herbal oil drops inside the nose, based on your imbalanced Dosha. In general, you can use Anu Thailam and Desi ghee.

Nasya helps to detox your head and neck region while cleansing the sinus and throat. It helps your body in repairing the damaged hair follicles and regenerate new follicles.

nasya therapy

B. Pichu

Pichu is a palliative treatment in which a long and thick layer of cotton gauze pad is soaked with warm Ayurvedic oil and applied over the ‘Crown chakra’ region on the head. The oil needs to be replaced periodically to maintain warmness.

‘’Pichu is one of the most effective therapies for Vata disorders,’’ says Dr. Zeel.

C. Karnabhyanga

Karnabhyanga or ear massage with warm Ayurvedic oil is one of the best techniques to pacify Vata in the ears, as your ear is one of the seats of Vata dosha. This immediately calms your mind and helps you fight hair fall due to stress or Vata.

D. Padabhyanga

Padabhyanga refers to massaging your feet with Ayurvedic herbal oil. You can achieve instant mental relaxation as Padabhyanga stimulates some special points on the feet, relaxing ligaments and improving circulation to lower limbs. This works best for improving your vision and mental health, in turn helping you combat your hair fall due to excess Pitta dosha.

You can also perform Kansa Vatki on your feet, where you can use a metal bowl made of an alloy of copper, zinc and tin (Red Brass) to rub onto and simulate your feet. According to Ayurveda, in Kansa Vatki, copper relieves you from pain and inflammation, zinc helps your body in the proper functioning of immune and digestive systems, and Tin aids in digestion and relieves you from insomnia and headaches.

kansa vatki foot massage therapy

E. Scalp Scrubbing

Scrubbing cleanses your scalp by eliminating dead cells, residue and other toxins accumulated as a result of pollution and harmful hair products. It also promotes good blood circulation and hair growth.

Some of the natural and homely ingredients which can be used for scalp scrubbing are as follows:

  • A mixture of sugar and honey
  • Methi (Fenugreek ) powder
  • A mixture of Onion and honey
  • A mixture of black pepper and freshly chopped ginger (slight irritation is expected)

6. Supplements For Hair Growth

As discussed above, balanced levels of many nutrients are essential for strong, healthy and long hair. Apart from hair growth vitamins (A, B, C, D, Biotin, etc.), you need minerals like Iodine, Zinc, Copper, Silica, Iron, Selenium and other nutrients like methionine, lysine, collagen, etc. to support your healthy hair growth process.

When you are not receiving sufficient nutrients from your diet, you can provide them through nutritional supplements as they are necessary not just for long and healthy hair growth, but for many essential body functions like thyroid, adrenal, etc.

Also, you can opt for herbal supplements, which are specific to the Dosha imbalance for oral consumption. For example, if you have a Vata Dosha imbalance, Triphala can be recommended as a herbal supplement, which enhances your digestive fire, aids gentle bowel detox and provides nourishment to your hair follicles. Similarly, other Dosha imbalances will have their specific recommendations.

Also, you can use herbs like Ashwagandha[6] (Indian Ginseng-a great stress reliever), which provides great support to your Adrenal gland. And, specific herbs like Brahmi (Bacopa) can be used as both internal and external medications to relieve yourself from stress, with an additional benefit of enhanced focus and recovery from conditions like brain fog.

Note: Please consult your Ayurvedic doctor before intaking any Ayurvedic herbs as oral medication.

7. Moisturize And Protect Your Hair With Shirolepa (Hair Mask)

To obtain healthy and longer hair growth, you can find hair masks/packs as one of the potential ways to provide essential nutrients for nourishment and root strengthening.

Ayurveda brings you Shirolepa (Shiro=Head and Lepa=Paste), where an Ayurvedic herbal paste specific to your elevated Dosha is applied to the entire scalp and hair shaft. You need to let the paste settle and interact with your scalp for a minimum of two hours before washing it off with lukewarm water.

Apart from pastes with Dosha specific ingredients, you can also use Amalaki + Buttermilk, Bhringraj (king of hair) and Henna, which are the most common options for Shirolepa. Henna is also a natural and toxin-free alternative to chemical hair dyes.

henna powder shirolepa paste

This rejuvenation therapy predominantly works well to reduce Pitta aggravation, while helping you repair split-ends, eliminate dandruff and control frizz. Also, Shirolepa is very useful in treating migraines, headaches and insomnia, which are co-occurring symptoms of Dosha aggravation along with hair loss.

8. Get Frequent Trims

Excess of Vata dosha leads to brittle hair and split ends, which stunt your hair growth. Regular trimming of those split and dead ends make your hair prone to lesser breakage and promote faster growth.

It is suggested to get your hair trimmed at least once in three months for good results. You can cut the splits of about half inch to one inch while trimming your hair.

9. Reduce Heat Styling

As mentioned before, constant styling dries your hair with heat, making it much harder to grow. Although you can prevent damage only to a certain extent by using heat protectants whenever you style your hair, the best way is to air dry your hair and stay completely away from styling processes.

Hair curling wands, straighteners, chemical relaxers or any other styling agents, which cause severe damage to your hair follicles accelerate your hair loss drastically. Sometimes, it may also lead to permanent hair loss when associated with genetic factors.

10. Brush Your Hair With More Care

Ayurveda suggests that you have to brush your hair every night to stimulate the scalp for longer and faster hair growth. But, aggressive brushing may cause physical damage to your hair, preventing its quicker growth. So, make sure you brush your hair gently.

While you can brush your scalp gently from left to right, front to back and vice–versa, you need to brush your hair shaft portion starting from the bottom and slowly detangle the knots as you work your way up.

You can follow the same procedure to detangle your hair extensions (in case you are using) to avoid excess pressure on your hair roots.

According to Ayurveda, using a wooden comb is always better as it won’t generate static electricity, which can cause damage to your hair.

woman combing brown hair

11. Being Healthy From Inside Out

Sticking strictly to everyday and seasonal healthy regimens (Dinacharya and Ritucharya) is what Ayurveda believes is a path for overall well being. Incorporating a routine along with fixed eating and sleeping habits can go a long way in strongly influencing your physiology and restoring balance into your life.

An everyday schedule trains your nervous system with reference points, which in turn eases the functioning of your body tissues to perform the same way at a particular time each day. This drastically reduces the release of stress hormones in the body.

Make a routine by waking up at a fixed time and doing regular exercise, which helps your body release tensions, enhance circulation and boost its natural capacity to rejuvenate itself.

Also, you can try activities like Pranayama and Yoga, which are extremely beneficial in calming down your nervous system. While Pranayama flushes out toxins of the body and regulates your mental disposition, Yoga improves your overall physical and mental health. Even, meditation can be an excellent tool to adapt your brain to combat excess stress.

Ayurveda also suggests different Yoga routines that are specific to pacify Vata, Pitta and Kapha Doshas.

yoga routine

Apart from the routine, make sure you spare some time every day to do things which you love, like reading a book, spending time with loved ones, or embracing the beauty of nature, which naturally calms your mind and restores your mental equilibrium. In turn, it tones your body’s response to stressful situations and thus, allows your hair to be more nourished and less prone to damage.

Avoid These Bad Hair Habits

1. Brushing Wet Hair

Your hair becomes fragile and more susceptible to breakage when it is soaking wet. So, it is best for your long hair growth if you avoid brushing while it is wet. Also, it is recommended to gently press the water off your hair with a soft T-shirt or hands, instead of rough-drying it with a towel. And, brush your dried hair with a wide-tooth comb.

2. Using Hot Water

Washing hair with hot water is one of the common bad hair habits responsible for hair fall and premature greying (aggravated Pitta issues). Avoid using hot water for your hair as it damages the skin and nerve roots on your scalp. Ayurveda suggests hair wash with lukewarm temperature water at normal times and room temperature water during summer.

3. Hair Colors

Chemical processes such as dyeing and highlighting your hair can result in broken hair and slowing down hair growth. The bleach in chemical dyes lifts the outer cuticle, making your hair strands brittle and frizzy. Also, the harsh chemicals used in hair dyes may increase the risk of various kinds of cancer [7].

showing damaged hair

4. Over-Washing Your Hair

Over-washing or shampooing your hair strips the natural oils that are vital for your hair and scalp health, leading to brittle hair and breakage. For obtaining long hair faster, you can limit your hair wash to 2-3 times per week. Also, make sure you gently massage your scalp and hair with warm Ayurvedic hair oil before hair wash.

Quick Tips For Better Hair Growth

  • Drink sufficient amounts of water.
  • Sleep adequately, 7-8 hours of sleep regimen is necessary.
  • Include vegetables, fruits and other foods in your diet to supply necessary vitamins naturally to your body that enhance your hair growth.
  • Avoid smoking and drinking alcohol as they build up toxins in your body, which lead to hair loss.

Note: If you experience any unexplained and severe hair loss, consult your doctor immediately as certain illnesses and health conditions, which may need prompt medical attention, can cause hair loss.

The Last Word

As you can see, Ayurveda provides you with plenty of options for hair care and longer hair growth. Apart from holistic remedies and practices of incredible wisdom, the most important aspect of Ayurveda is finding solutions that your Prakriti requires the most.

This is why Vedix provides you with a customized Hair care regimen that best aligns with your condition based on your Dosha levels.

Know Your Dosha Now

Incompatible Food Combining – Ayurveda

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Incompatible Food Combining – Ayurveda

Incompatible Food Combining

It is no surprise to see on the market today so many digestive and dietary aids for the stomach, along with pills for gas and indigestion. Most of these conditions likely begin with poor food combining. This is a subject of much debate amid the growing concern about diet and the many theories on the topic.

Ayurveda, an ancient holistic science of healing, offers a logical approach for determining correct diet based upon the elements comprising an individual’s constitution: vata, pitta and kapha. This approach is quite different from the contemporary view of a balanced diet, based on eating from various food groups. Ayurveda believes that understanding the individual is the key to finding a truly balanced diet. It teaches that the gastric fire or agni in the stomach and digestive tract is the main gate through which nutrients enter the tissues and then pass along to individual cells, to maintain the life functions.

According to Ayurveda, every food has its own taste (rasa), a heating or cooling energy (virya) and a post-digestive effect (vipaka). Some also possess prabhava, an unexplained effect. So while it is true that an individual’s agni largely determines how well or poorly food is digested, food combinations are also of great importance. When two or more foods having different taste, energy and post-digestive effect are combined, agni can become overloaded, inhibiting the enzyme system and resulting in the production of toxins. Yet these same foods, if eaten separately, might well stimulate agni, be digested more quickly and even help to burn ama.

Poor combining can produce indigestion, fermentation, putrefaction and gas formation and, if prolonged, can lead to toxemia and disease. For example, eating bananas with milk can diminish agni, change the intestinal flora, produce toxins and may cause sinus congestion, cold, cough and allergies. Although both of these foods have a sweet taste and a cooling energy, their post-digestive effect is very different – bananas are sour while milk is sweet. This causes confusion to our digestive system and may result in toxins, allergies and other imbalances.

Similarly, milk and melons should not be eaten together. Both are cooling, but milk is laxative and melon diuretic. Milk requires more time for digestion. Moreover the stomach acid required to digest the melon causes the milk to curdle, so Ayurveda advises against taking milk with sour foods. These incompatible food combinations not only disturb the digestion but also cause confusion in the intelligence of our cells, which can lead to many different diseases.

Before you say “This is MUCH too complicated, how will I ever figure it out?”, there are some useful guidelines to introduce you to these concepts. And remember that Ayurveda is a strong proponent of the “go slowly” school of thought.

You might want to introduce yourself to food combining by eating fruit by itself, as many fruits create a sour and indigestible “wine” in the stomach when mixed with other food. Once you have adopted this change into your eating habits, try other suggestions from the list below. As a general principal, avoid eating lots of raw and cooked foods together or fresh foods with leftovers.

Various Factors that Can Lessen the Effects of Bad Food Combinations

  • A strong digestive fire (if we are so blessed) can be the most powerful tool of all to deal with “bad” food combinations.
  • Different quantities of each food involved in a combination can sometimes help significantly. For instance equal quantities by weight of ghee and honey are a bad combination—ghee is cooling, but honey is heating—whereas mixing a 2:1 ratio is not toxic. The reason? Prahbav, the unexplainable.
  • Very often spices and herbs are added in Ayurvedic cooking to help make foods compatible or to ease a powerful effect, e.g., cooling cilantro in very spicy food.
  • If our bodies have become accustomed to a certain food combination through many years of use, such as eating cheese with apples, then it is likely that our body has made some adaptation or become accustomed to this. Which is not to say that we should continue this practice, but to explain why the newcomer to apples and cheese may experience a strong case of indigestion whilst the “old-timer” digests it adequately.
  • Antidotes, like cardamom in coffee, or ghee and black pepper with potatoes, often can help alleviate some of the negative effects. (Coffee is stimulating and ultimately depressing to the system, and potatoes cause gas).
  • If foods with different and possibly aggravating qualities, such as a mixture of vegetables, are cooked together in the same pot, the foods tend to learn how to get along. Using appropriate spices and herbs helps with this too.
  • Eating a ‘bad’ combination occasionally usually does not upset the digestion too much.

Some Useful Tips to Aid Digestion

  • Eat ½ teaspoon fresh grated ginger with a pinch of rock salt before each meal to stimulate agni.
  • Salt also aids digestion, and helps to retain water.
  • Alkalis help digestion and regulate gastric fire.
  • Ghee stimulates agni and improves digestion.
  • Small sips of warm water during a meal will aid digestion and absorption of food. Do not drink iced water as it slows agni and digestion. Indeed ice water should not be taken under most circumstances, as it is too shocking to the system.
  • Proper chewing is essential to good digestion, ensuring food gets thoroughly mixed with saliva.
  • A cup of lassi at the end of a meal also aids the digestive process. Make by blending ¼ cup yogurt with 2 pinches of ginger and cumin powder in 1 cup water.
  • Ideally, one should fill the stomach with one-third food, one-third liquid and one-third should be empty.

The following table lists some* of the incompatible food combinations worth avoiding.

DON’T EAT WITH
Beans fruit; cheese, eggs, fish, milk, meat, yogurt
Eggs fruit, especially melons; beans, cheese, fish, kitchari, MILK, meat, yogurt
Fruit As a rule, with any other food. (There are exceptions, such as certain cooked combinations, as well as dates and milk, which have the same rasa, virya and vipaka.)
Grains fruit; tapioca
Honey** With equal GHEE by weight (e.g. 1 tsp. honey with 3 tsp. ghee); boiled or cooked honey.
Hot Drinks mangos; cheese, fish, meat, starch, yogurt
Lemon cucumbers, milk, tomatoes, yogurt
Melons EVERYTHING – especially dairy, eggs, fried food, grains, starches. Melons more than most fruit should be eaten alone or left alone.
Milk BANANAS, cherries, melons, sour fruits; bread containing yeast, fish, kitchari, meat, yogurt
Nightshades, e.g., potato, tomato melon; cucumber, dairy products
Radishes bananas, raisins; milk
Tapioca fruit, especially banana and mango; beans, raisins, jaggary
Yogurt fruit; cheese, eggs, fish, hot drinks, meat, MILK, nightshades

*Foods in CAPITALS are the most difficult combinations.

**According to ancient Ayurvedic literature, honey should never be cooked. If cooked, the molecules become a non-homogenized glue that adheres to mucous membranes and clogs subtle channels, producing toxins. Uncooked honey is nectar. Cooked honey is considered poison.

Introduction to Panchakarma – Ayurveda

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Introduction to Panchakarma – Ayurveda

Introduction to Panchakarma

Ayurveda emphasizes preventative and healing therapies along with various methods of purification and rejuvenation. Ayurveda is more than a mere healing system; it is a science and an art of appropriate living that helps to achieve longevity. It can guide every individual in the proper choice of diet, living habits and exercise to restore balance in the body, mind and consciousness, thus preventing disease from gaining a foothold in the system. According to Ayurveda, every human being is a unique phenomenon of cosmic consciousness, manifested through the five basic elements—Ether, Air, Fire, Water and Earth. Vata—a combination of ether and air, pitta—a combination of fire and water, and kapha—a combination of water and earth, are called the tridosha. These are the three humors or the three organizations of the body, which are also derived from consciousness. Each individual constitution or psycho-somatic temperament is determined by the relative proportions of these three doshas at the time of fertilization. When the embryo is formed, the constitution is determined. There are seven basic constitutions with one or more doshas predominant according to Ayurveda. They are: vata, pitta or kapha predominant, vata-pitta, pitta- kapha or kapha-vata predominant and vata-pitta-kapha in equal balance, a rare occurrence. Every individual constitution has its own unique balance of vata, pitta and kapha (VPK) according to its own nature. This balance of VPK is the natural order. When this doshic balance is disturbed, it creates imbalance, which is disorder. Health is order; disease is disorder. Within the body there is a constant interaction between order and disorder, thus once one understands the nature and structure of disorder, one can re-establish order. Ayurveda believes that order lies within disorder. Order is the state of health, as defined by Ayurveda. This exists when the digestive fire (agni) is in a balanced condition; the bodily humors (vata, pitta and kapha) are in equilibrium, the three waste products (urine, feces and sweat) are produced and eliminated normally, the seven bodily tissues (rasa, rakta, mamsa, meda, asthi, majja and shukra/artava) are functioning normally, and the mind, senses and consciousness are working harmoniously together. When the balance of these systems is disturbed, the disease (disorder) process begins. The internal environment is governed by vata, pitta and kapha, which are constantly reacting to the external environment. The wrong diet, habits, lifestyle, incompatible food combinations (e.g., milk and fish, melons and grain, yogurt and meat or eating cooked honey, etc.), seasonal changes, repressed emotions and stress factors can all act either together or separately to change the balance of vata, pitta and kapha. According to the nature of the cause, vata, pitta or kapha undergo aggravation or derangement, which affects the agni (gastric fire) and produces ama (toxins). This ama enters the blood stream and is circulated throughout the body, clogging the channels. Retention of toxins in the blood results in toxemia. This accumulated toxicity, once well established, will slowly affect prana (vital life energy), ojas (immunity), and tejas (cellular metabolic energy), resulting in disease. This can be nature’s effort to eliminate toxicity from the body. Every so-called disease is a crisis of ama toxicity. Ama is the basic internal cause of all disease, due to the aggravated doshas. Herein lies the key to the prevention of disease: help the body eliminate the toxins. To stop the further production of ama, Ayurvedic literature suggests putting the person on a proper diet with appropriate lifestyle, habits and exercise, and administering a proper cleansing program such as panchakarma. (Although panchakarma is often thought of as the entire procedure, it really is only one part of a group of therapies belonging to a class of cleansing procedures called shodana. There is also a group of milder techniques called shamana for those not strong enough for shodana.)

Purvakarma: Pre-purification Measures

Before the actual operation of purification begins, there is a need to prepare the body with prescribed methods to encourage it to let go of the toxins. These two procedures are snehan and svedana. Snehan is the oil massage. Oil is applied to the entire body with a particular type of massage that helps the toxins to move towards the gastrointestinal tract. Oil massage also makes the superficial and deep tissues soft and supple, thus helping to remove stress and nourish the nervous system. Snehan is given daily for three to seven days, as indicated. Svedana is sudation or sweating and is given every day immediately following the snehan. An herbal concoction may be added to the steam to further loosen the toxins from the individual. Svedana liquefies the toxins and increases the movement of toxins into the gastrointestinal tract. After three to seven days of snehan and svedana, the doshas become well “ripened.” A particular panchakarma method is then given according to the individual’s constitution and disorder, prakruti and vikruti, respectively.

Five Basic Shodanas: Cleansing Methods

  • Vamana: therapeutic vomiting or emesis
  • Virechan: purgation
  • Basti: enema
  • Nasya: elimination of toxins through the nose
  • Rakta Moksha: detoxification of the blood
Vamana: Emesis Therapy

When there is congestion in the lungs causing repeated attacks of bronchitis, colds, cough or asthma, the Ayurvedic treatment is therapeutic vomiting, vamana, to eliminate the kapha causing the excess mucus. Often times this also releases repressed emotions that have been held in the kapha areas of the lungs and stomach along with the accumulated dosha. Once the mucus is released, the patient will feel instantly relieved. It is likely that congestion, wheezing and breathlessness will disappear and that the sinuses will become clear. Therapeutic vomiting is also indicated in chronic asthma, diabetes, chronic cold, lymphatic congestion, chronic indigestion and edema. After vamana, resting, fasting, smoking certain herbal cigarettes, and not suppressing natural urges (i.e., urination, defecation, gas, sneezing, coughing) is recommended. If vamana is administered properly, the person should feel relaxation in the lungs, will be able to breathe freely, will have lightness in the chest, clear thinking, a clear voice, a good appetite, and all symptoms of congestion disappear.

Virechan: Purgation Therapy

When excess bile, pitta, is secreted and accumulated in the gall bladder, liver and small intestine, it tends to result in rashes, skin inflammation, acne, chronic attacks of fever, biliary vomiting, nausea and jaundice. Ayurvedic literature suggests in these conditions the administration of therapeutic purgation or a therapeutic laxative. Purgatives help relieve the excess pitta causing the bile disturbance in the body. In fact, purgatives can completely cure the problem of excess pitta. When purgatives are used, the patient should not eat foods that will aggravate the predominant humor or cause the three humors to become unbalanced.

Basti: Enema Therapy

Vata is a very active principle in pathogenesis (disease). If we can control vata through the use of basti, we have gone a long way in going to the root cause of the vast majority of diseases. Vata is the main etiological (causal) factor in the manifestation of diseases. It is the motive force behind the elimination and retention of feces, urine, bile and other excreta. Vata is mainly located in the large intestine, but bone tissue (asthi dhatu) is also a site for vata. Hence the medication administered rectally effects asthi dhatu. The mucus membrane of the colon is related to the outer covering of the bones (periosteum), which nourishes the bones. Therefore, any medication given rectally goes into the deeper tissues, like bones, and corrects vata disorders.

Nasya: Nasal Administration

The nose is the doorway to the brain and it is also the doorway to consciousness. The nasal administration of medication is called nasya. An excess of bodily humors accumulated in the sinus, throat, nose or head areas is eliminated by means of the nearest possible opening, the nose. Prana, life force as nerve energy, enters the body through the breath taken in through the nose. Prana is in the brain and maintains sensory and motor functions. Prana also governs mental activities, memory, concentration and intellectual activities. Deranged prana creates defective functioning of all these activities and produces headaches, convulsions, loss of memory and reduced sensory perception. Thus nasal administration, nasya, is indicated for prana disorders, sinus congestion, migraine headaches, convulsions and certain eye and ear problems. Breathing also can be improved through nasal massage. For this treatment, the little finger is dipped into ghee and inserted into the nose. The inner walls of the nose are slowly massaged, going as deeply as possible. This treatment will help to open the emotions. (Nose tissue is tender and for this application the fingernail must be kept short to avoid injuring the delicate mucus membranes.) Since most people have a deviated nasal septum, one side of the nose will be easier to penetrate and massage than the other. The finger should not be inserted forcibly. The massage should proceed by slow penetration, the finger moving first in a clockwise and then counter-clockwise direction. By this means, the emotions that are blocked in the respiratory tract will be released. One may use this treatment each morning and evening. In this way, breathing patterns will change as the emotions are released and the eyesight also will improve.

Rakta Moksha: Traditional Ayurvedic Method for Purification and Cleansing of the Blood

Toxins present in the gastrointestinal tract are absorbed into the blood and circulated throughout the body. This condition is called toxemia, which is the basic cause of repeated infections, hypertension and certain other circulatory conditions. This includes repeated attacks of skin disorders such as urticaria, rashes, herpes, eczema, acne, scabies, leukoderma, chronic itching or hives. In such conditions, along with internal medication, elimination of the toxins and purification of the blood is necessary. Rakta moksha is also indicated for cases of enlarged liver, spleen and gout. Pitta is produced from the disintegrated red blood cells in the liver. So pitta and blood have a very close relationship. An increase in pitta may go into the blood causing toxicity, and thus many pitta-genic disorders. Extracting a small amount of blood from a vein relieves the tension created by the pitta-genic toxins in the blood. Leeches have been used as an alternative to bloodletting. Bloodletting also stimulates the spleen to produce anti-toxic substances that help to stimulate the immune system. Toxins are neutralized, enabling radical cures in many blood-borne disorders. Certain substances such as sugar, salt, yogurt, sour-tasting foods and alcohol are toxic to the blood. In certain blood disorders these substances should be avoided to keep the blood pure. For rakta moksha treatment other than bloodletting, there are blood-purifying practices involving herbs, gem therapy or color water therapy. For any rakta moksha treatment or related alternative treatment, it is beneficial to refrain from yogurt, salt, sugar, alcohol, marijuana, sour and fermented foods.

Lifestyle and Diet: The Key to Health and Wellness

During any step of panchakarma therapy, traditional Ayurveda recommends certain lifestyle and diet guidelines. It is advised to get plenty of rest during the panchakarma experience and to avoid strenuous exercise, sexual activity, late nights, loud music, television and other such stimulating experiences. It is also advised to take particular care to keep warm and away from the wind and to observe one’s thoughts and experiences during this time. A mono-diet of kitchari and ghee is recommended, as well as essential restrictions on cold drinks, cold food, caffeine, white sugar, recreational drugs or alcohol and dairy products—all substances which should not be resumed (if at all) until sometime after panchakarma is completed. The reason for this diet is that during the cleansing process the digestive fire (agni) takes a rest. Also, as toxins move back into the gastrointestinal tract, the power of digestion is further slowed. Kitchari will provide adequate nourishment, is very easy to digest, nourishes all the tissues of the body, is excellent for de-aging of cells and assists in the detoxification and cleansing process. Kitchari is a seasoned mixture of rice and mung dal, and is basic to the Ayurvedic way of life. Basmati rice and mung dal both have the qualities of being sweet and cooling with a sweet aftertaste. Together they create a balanced food; an excellent protein combination that is tridoshic. Panchakarma is a very special Ayurvedic operation requiring proper guidance from a highly trained and skillful Ayurvedic practitioner. This should not be undertaken with information from an article or a book. One should consult with an Ayurvedic physician, not just someone with a modest amount of training. Panchakarma is done individually for each person with their specific constitution and specific disorder in mind, thus it requires close observation and supervision.

© 1994, 2002. All Rights Reserved. Adapted from “An Introduction to Panchakarma”, by Vasant Lad, MASc, Ayurveda Today, Volume VII, Number 1, Summer 1994.

Mind Power and the Creative Power of Thoughts

Leafy
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Mind Power and the Creative Power of Thoughts

Mind power is one of the strongest and most useful powers you possess.

This power, together with your imagination, can create success or failure, happiness or unhappiness, opportunities or obstacles. This depends on your mindset.

Your thoughts are the main ingredient of this power, and when you add to them focus and emotions, thoughts become powerful and can affect your reality.

The thoughts that pass through your mind are responsible for almost everything that happens in your life.

Not all thoughts are equal. Stray ones that you think once or twice cannot do much, but your predominant thoughts, the ones you repeat often, influence your behavior and attitude, affect your actions and reactions, and shape your reality.

As your thoughts are, so is your life. Weak thoughts hardly have any effect, but powerful thoughts can create great changes.

Mind power is composed of your attention, your mental images and your thoughts.

Thoughts are energy. Though subtle and invisible, they can affect reality.

Just like the wind, which is invisible, but can be powerful, so are your mind and thoughts.

The Power of Thoughts Is a Creative Power

Thoughts are like a video that plays on the screen of your mind. What you play there, determines the kind of life you live and the experiences you meet.

To make changes in your life, you have to play a different video, one that you like more.

You can train and strengthen this power. You can use it to make changes in your life, and you can also influence other people’s minds.

Your mind power plays an important role in creative visualization and the law of attraction.

If you plant seeds, water them, and give them fertilizers, they will grow into healthy and strong plants.

Thoughts are like seeds. They have a natural tendency to grow, get powerful, and manifest in your life, if you feed them with your attention and allow them to grow.

Your attention, interest and enthusiasm is what makes them powerful. If you show lack of interest in a certain thought, it will not gain strength and would not be powerful.

  • Your thoughts affect your subconscious mind, which in turn, influences your actions in accordance with these thoughts.
  • Your thoughts might also pass to other minds, and affect other people.
  • When you focus on your dreams and goals, you will attract into your life people, who are in a position to help you with achieving your dreams.
  • Powerful thoughts affect your life and can affect the life of other people. Be careful of what you think.

This might seem strange and unbelievable. You don’t have to accept these words, but if you analyze the kind of thoughts you think, and the kind of life you are living, you will discover interesting things. There is a correlation between ones’s thoughts and one’s life conditions.

You are a manifestation of the Universal mind. The power of your mind is part of the creative power of the Universe, which means that your thoughts work together with it.

The best proof you can have that this works is by using mental methods to make changes in your life. This is well explained at this website, and in more details, in my book Manifest and Achieve Whatever You Want.

Make Your Dreams Come True with the Law of Attraction

Discover how to manifest whatever you want, no matter what your current reality is.Get the eBook

When Does This Power Manifest?

When you repeat the same thoughts over and again, this mighty power helps you make your thoughts come true.

Using the power of thoughts effectively, is an act of “practical daydreaming”.

How to Use the Power of Thoughts

  • Use your imagination to visualize a perfect scene of whatever you want to accomplish.
  • Put a lot of detail, color, sound, scent and life into these mental scenes.
  • Repeat this visualization often, with attention and the belief that is going to come true.

Your subconscious mind will accept these mental scenes as real experiences, because it does not distinguish between real and imaginary experiences.

It will therefore, make changes in your life and attract opportunities to you, to make your reality match the images in your subconscious mind.

Actions, situations, and objects that you visualize frequently, eventually, manifest on the material plane in a natural way.

This manifestation does not happen overnight. It needs time, and depends on how ambitious and earnest you are to get what you are thinking about, and how much time and attention you put into this practice.

You can use this process to change negative habits and build new, positive habits or skills.

You can also use it for attracting money and possessions, for promotion at work, for building a business, improving health and relationships, changing circumstances, and for practically almost everything.

To make this power work for you:

  • Pay attention to the thoughts you think.
  • Do your best to reject negative thoughts
  • Allow into your mind only thoughts that bring good, happy, and positive results.

Your Thoughts Become Your Reality

As already said, to get proof that our thoughts become reality you need to:

  • Pay attention to your thoughts and how they affect your life.
  • Focus on you dreams and goals, feed them with your attention, and give them prominence in your life.

Your thoughts and imagination determine whether you fail or achieve success. They determine the events you attract into your life and the people you meet.

You can have more control over your life when you know how to control this mental force and how to use it effectively when you can focus your attention, and when can visualize the life you want.

American Authors Who Wrote on This Topic

In the 20th century and early 21 century many authors have written articles and books on this topic and made it popular throughout the world, and especially in the U.S.A and the United Kingdom.

Among them is William Walker Atkinson, who wrote many books on mind power, Charles F. Haanel who wrote the “Mater Key System”, and Shakti Gawain, who is well-known for her books on creative visualization.

Other influential authors are Napoleon Hill, known for his book ‘Think and Grow Rich’ and other books, Melita Denning and Osborne Phillips, who wrote on creative visualization and other esoteric topics, Joseph Murphy, and many more.

Here are a few quotes from these authors:

We always attract into our lives whatever we think about most, believe in most strongly, expect on the deepest level, and imagine most vividly. –Shakti Gawain

Imagining what you want as if it already exists opens the door to letting it happen. –Shakti Gawain

“Thought is a force – a manifestation of energy – having a magnet-like power of attraction.” –William Walker Atkinson

“If you are not satisfied with what is coming to you, start to work and change your mental attitude and mental states, and you will see a change gradually setting in.” –William Walker Atkinson

“Every thought is a cause and every condition is an effect. Change your thoughts and you change your destiny.” –Joseph Murphy

“Busy your mind with the concepts of harmony, health, peace, and good will, and wonders will happen in your life.” –Joseph Murphy

“There are no limitations to the mind except those we acknowledge, both poverty and riches are the offspring of thought.” –Napoleon Hill

“Whatever your mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve. –”Napoleon Hill

Make Your Dreams Come True with the Law of Attraction

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About the Author

How to Reduce Muscle Pain Naturally

Leafy
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How to Reduce Muscle Pain Naturally

The most modern medicines used for muscle pain have side effects. Generally, these medicines cause stomach pain, gastrointestinal bleeding, kidney damage, and liver damage.

Today, we discuss natural medicine for muscle pain. Also, discuss how to combine and use them for getting relief from muscle pain.

Generally, I recommend using dried ginger powder and ashwagandha together for muscle pain. From an ayurvedic perspective, pain is caused by Vata dosha aggravation. According to ayurveda, ginger and ashwagandha both pacifies vata dosha. Ginger also promotes digestion. Ashwagandha also provides strength to muscles.

From a modern science perspective, both herbs act as anti-inflammatory and analgesic.

However, you will not get instant results like modern pain killers, but the continuous use of dried ginger and ashwagandha is beneficial for attenuating muscle pain. The combination accelerates the recovery of muscle strength, reduces soreness, and alleviates pain.

Now, the question – how you should use it and how much you should take it.

Herbs Ratio Mixing Example
Ashwagandha Powder 2 Parts 100 grams
Dried ginger powder 1 Part 50 grams

You can mix ashwagandha and dried ginger powder in the ratio of 2:1. Take 2 parts of ashwagandha powder and 1 part of dried ginger powder. For example, if you take 100 grams of ashwagandha powder, take 50 grams of dried ginger powder. Mix both herbs thoroughly.

How much should you take this mixture?

The dosage should be around 3 grams and should be taken twice daily. You can take it with water or add in your favorite smoothies.

Green Herbs’ Smoothie

Leafy
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Green Herbs’ Smoothie

Green herbs’ Smoothie has a special place in the healing diet. It is an essential part of the Stablizing Phase Diet. We also highly recommend it during the Preventing Phase Diet.

Green herbs’ Smoothie promotes green’s intake. Most people feel difficulty taking fresh herbs and green leafy vegetables. It is the best solution for them.

Green Smoothie with herbs provides a huge amount of antioxidants and phytonutrients, which help maintain optimum health. Some herbs like basil have neuroprotective, cognition-enhancing and stress-relieving effects. Mint also acts as a neuroprotective. (1, 2)

The green leafy vegetables provide the strongest protection against major chronic diseases. If you take one serving of these greens, they also reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. (3, 4, 5)

Recommended Time: 7:30 AM to 9:00 AM.

Recommended Ingredients

Ingredients Recommended Restricted
Smoothie Base Water, Coconut Water, Cucumber, Celery, homemade plant-based milk Melons, Yogurts (including plant-based yogurts)
Leafy Green & Petiole Vegetables Arugula, Celery leaves, Chicory green, Collard greens, Curry Leaves, Dandelion, Dill Leaves, Drumstick, Endive, Fenugreek Leaves, Kale (black, green, or red), Lettuce (all types), Mustard leaves, Parsley, Radish Greens, Spinach, Sorrel, Swiss chard, Turnip greens, Watercress and Bok Choy (from cruciferous vegetables) Amaranth, Beet green, Chard (Silver beet), Colocasia
Fresh Herbs Mint (all types) and Basil (all types), Curry leaves, Culantro (Mexican coriander), Dill leaves, Fennel (green), Fenugreek leaves, Giloy, Hyssop, Moringa, Oregano, Parsley, Rosemary, Vietnamese cilantro –
Fruits (fresh) Any (preferably berries) Melons
Dried Fruits (optional) Currents, Dates, Sultana, Raisin, Apricots, Prunes, figs –
Seeds and Walnuts (optional) Chia Seeds, Flaxseeds, Hemp seeds, Poppy Seeds, Pumpkin seeds or Walnuts All other nuts and seeds

Notes:

  1. In this type of smoothie, smoothie base, leafy greens & petiole vegetables, and fresh herbs are important than other ingredients. Fruits, dried fruits and seeds and walnuts are optional. You can use fruits for adding sweetness to the smoothies.
  2. You should not use spinach, sorrel and swiss chard more than once a week. These are high in oxalic acid, which may increase the risk of oxalic acid’s kidney stones. It is also known for blocking calcium absorption in the body.
  3. Berries (Acai Berries, Barberries, Bilberries, Blackberries, Blueberries, Cranberries, Goji Berries, Loganberries, Mulberries, Raspberries (all types), and Strawberries) are the most recommended fruits. You can also make a smoothie without fruits. Fruits are just added for sweetness.
  4. Dried fruits (dates, raisins, etc.) are highly recommended for underweight people. Prunes and figs are recommended for people with constipation.
  5. Seeds and walnuts are highly recommended for children and healthy adults. You can choose any from the listed above in the table, but you should prefer flaxseeds.

How to Make a Green smoothie

Smoothie Base or Water ** ½ cup (120 ml)
Leafy Green & Petiole Vegetables 1 cup (chopped)
Fresh Herbs – Mint or Basil (any type) ¼ cup (chopped)
Fruits (preferably berries) 1 cup (sliced)
Dried Fruits (e.g., Dates, Raisins, etc.) 15 g
Seeds & Walnuts 1 tablespoon

Note: ** If you are using cucumber or celery as a smoothie base, you should take one medium-sized cucumber or two medium stalks of celery. These smoothies are generally thick. We recommend eating with a spoon. If you like normal smoothies, you can increase the amount of smoothie base to 1 cup.

Recommended Method:

  1. Put all ingredients except fruits (and soaked dates, sultana, or raisins) in a blender.
  2. Blend to make the smoothie.
  3. Now, pour the smoothie into a glass.
  4. Add sliced soft fruits (and soaked dates, sultana, or raisins) as the topping.
  5. Eat a smoothie with a spoon.

Alternate Method:

Alternatively, you can blend all ingredients along with fruits. But keep smoothie mild coarse to encourage chewing. For this method, we recommend using a low-speed blender instead of high-speed blenders.

How to Take Smoothie

  1. If you make a smoothie with the recommended method, eat a smoothie with a spoon. Chew it well. Keep each sip in your mouth for a while to mix it well with saliva and anaerobic bacteria.
  2. If you make a smoothie with the alternate method, your smoothie should be mild coarse to encourage chewing. Keep each sip in your mouth for a while. Do not swallow it immediately. Chew it well. Let it mix with anaerobic bacteria that present in your mouth. These bacteria reside in the grooves, crypts and tongue in your mouth. These bacteria reduce nitrates present in leafy greens and petiole vegetables to nitrites in the mouth. These nitrites are converted into nitric oxide in the stomach when mixed with gastric acid. Nitric oxide is the most important molecules and plays an important role in vasodilation and blood flow regulation. It also acts as a strong cellular antioxidant. It is also important for healing benefits. If you gulp the smoothie down into your gut immediately without chewing and mixing it with anaerobic bacteria, you will not get these benefits. Therefore, keep the smoothie mildly coarse and chew smoothie.
  3. Rinse your mouth after eating a smoothie to protect the enamel. Why is rinsing important? Because when you blend, some amount of fructose present in fruits gets separated from the fibre. It may hurt your enamel.

If we need to chew, why do you advise smoothies?

We advise because blending helps to break open the cell walls and increases the bioavailability of nutrients in our body to a maximum extent. All plant cells have a cell wall made of cellulose. Our enzymes are not capable of breaking it down. Chewing helps break down cell walls, but it can only break down around 10-30% of the cells, depending on how well you chew. So, cell walls of 70-90% of cells remain closed and are not broken open. Making a smoothie by blending do this job better than chewing. Chewing is also important and essential to mix it with saliva and anaerobic bacteria, as discussed above.

Why do we advise fruits as a topping?

Because fructose gets separated from the fibre when we make fruit juice or blend fruits, it mainly applies to fruit juice. Some amount of fructose also gets separated from fibre during blending. Blended fruits still have a huge amount of fibre, which still force slow absorption. Fructose absorption from fruit juice is very rapid. Its absorption from a coarse smoothie is slow because fibre content is not fully separated in such smoothies. But from whole fruits, its absorption is extremely slow. That is why we recommend fruits as a topping. Suppose you ask me which is best, better, good and worse. I will answer the whole fruit as the topping is the best. Blending coarse smoothie is better. Normal smoothies are also good. Adding fruit juice in smoothies is worse.

Recommended Daily Amount

If you make a smoothie using the above method and taking the recommended ratio of ingredients, you need to decide the quantity according to your age group as given below:

Age Group Minimum Recommended Amount
1-2 60 ml
2-3 80 ml
4-8 120 ml
9-11 200 ml
12-13 250 ml
14-18 320 ml
19-50 350 ml
51-70 320 ml
70+ 250 ml
Pregnant 350 ml
Lactating 350 ml

Note: You can drink more as per your tolerance. The minimum recommended amount is the required amount to get healing benefits.

Tamas, Rajas, Sattva : Concept Of Mind In Ayurveda

Leafy
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Tamas, Rajas, Sattva : Concept Of Mind In Ayurveda

Ayurveda classifies a human into two types. First is the body and the second is the mind.

Have you ever thought about how your state of mind affects your health? Ayurveda suggests that your mind has a potential influence on your overall health and well-being.

All the Ayurvedic approaches to treat any aspect of health takes into account your body, mind, and spirit. It is because an imbalance in any of the three aspects can negatively impact your health and well-being.

In this article, we are going to discuss the most important aspect of your health which is often neglected, “The Mind”.

Ayurveda has many tools to clear your mind of any kind of disturbances, give you mental clarity, rejuvenate your mental capacity, and fine-tune your mind.

So, let’s get started with the Ayurvedic approach towards mental qualities of an individual.

Ayurvedic Concept Of Mental Constitution

Ayurveda suggests the energy in your body moves via the different body channels. These channels are referred to as Srotamsi in Ayurveda.

The prime channel in your body in the Ayurvedic tradition is the channel of the mind. It is known as Mano Vaha Srotas.

The Channel of Mind plays a vital role in overall health and well-being. Before moving into the Ayurvedic particulars ask yourself where is the mind in your body residing? Probably, your answer is the brain inside your cranium.

But, in no way, Ayurveda has confined your mind location to the brain only. Instead, the ayurvedic culture has taken the channel of mind broadly.

It suggests the mind is what you are, how you behave, how you act, and how is your body. Now, let’s move forward to the bigger picture of your mind origination.

Origination Of The Channel Of Mind

Ayurvedic culture says the root channel of your mind is not your brain but your heart. So, for knowing your mental constitution you have to get out of your heads out step into your hearts.

The Vedic science considers Heart as the energy hub of your body. They define heart as the root of physical and energetic pathways in the body.

It is connected to every minute body tissues and cell via three different channels. No other body organ has this level of integration in your body.

Your heart center is the chair of emotion, purest form of self, and of course the love you have for others. So, Ayurveda asks you to fundamentally view the mind as a whole instead of just restricting it in your brain.

The mind is affected by every cells and tissue in your body. Thus, there exists a direct relationship between the mind and the over health.

If your mind is imbalanced your body cell and tissues would be imbalanced and would eventually imbalance your physical health.

Openings Of Channels Of Mind

The channels of mind have multiple openings that open up in the exterior of your body. These openings strategically balance the state of mind.

The first opening of the mind are the five sense organs (eyes, nose, tongue, skin, and ears). The mind receives the sensory inputs on a daily basis.

Regardless, of what kind of sense (negative or positive) you experience daily, your mind tends to align with the qualities of your daily sensory experience.

For example, if you are exposed to a lot of stress, your body system would develop an association with the energies of stress and begin to predict its reoccurrence.

This would eventually bring a negative feeling or fear in your mind and body and eventually affect your health in a negative way.

Same way if you expose yourself daily to love, healthy relationships and mindfulness of other, your sensory organs will be filled with the energy of love.

However, the degree of sensory emotions and its relation with the channel of mind varies from person to person. For example, a news about a natural calamity may dishearten someone to the core and for some, it might be normal.

The perceptions of different sensory organs and its reaction are thus related to your channel of mind. To get a better overall well-being we have to balance our channel of mind too. Ayurveda stresses you to balance your channel of mind along with the doshas to keep your self-healthy.

Now, let’s move on to the bigger picture and see what are the type of channels of mind prevalent in the society i.e. the types of personality and mental qualities you possess.

In Ayurveda, your personality is of two types— one is Physiological, and another is Psychological.

The physical features of your body are classified based on Dosha body types (Prakriti) and thus they fall under the Physiological classification.

In the same manner, Ayurveda has classified your mental functions into three personalities knowns as Gunas and thus they fall under the Psychological classification.

These fundamental gunas are the prime elements responsible for your emotions, mental well-being.

In Ayurveda, there are three types of mental qualities of an individual—Tamas, Rajas, and Sattva.

  • Sattva is the potential energy. Presence of sattva helps you stay conscious.
  • Rajas are the kinetic energy. It makes your thoughts, emotions and feeling creative.
  • Tamas is the inertia. And without tamas, there is no sleep.

Out of these, you dominate some specific qualities of one guna. And the same guna affects your perception, social relations, communications and physical activities.

The three qualities are not separate— they are just different sides of a single energy and are equally important for your body.

In fact, if these three qualities are not balanced together, it will break the rhythm of your living.

You can find nature of your mental constituents by using this simple Ayurveda Mental Constitunets Application.

The Qualitative Nature Of Gunas And Their Functions

As you know your mental constitution has three Gunas and so is your personality. An individual personality is off three types— tamas, rajasic and sattvic. So, let’s go forward about all the three in detail.

Tamas: Inertia, Dullness

It is the mode of rest, inactivity & idleness. It alerts you to take rest when you are tired of an intense workout.

And when Tamas is too much in quantity, it leads to a lack of intelligence. You are often depressed, lazy, sleepy even in daytime. You become exhausted with little mental activity.

Using your senses, you look for temporary satisfaction. Mostly you like to eat, drink, sleep and have sex. You turn greedy, possessive and apathetic towards others.

You don’t bother to blame or harm others for your self-profits. Being depressed you go anxious. And often crave for short-term reliefs like alcohol, sedatives, and other additives.

Your food habits often include liquor, animal products, meets, over processed and frozen recipes.

Rajas: Stimulated, Cravings

Rajas are state of calmness, excitement & active. All your movement and activity happen due to rajas. So, you find sensual enjoyment, pleasure, and pain, effort and restlessness when rajasic.

When excessive in rajasic qualities you are loving, calm and patient until the moment one serves your self-interests.  You are self-centered, egoistic — friendly and loyal towards those who fulfill these desires.

For example:

When you grow into an adult, in your classes or playgrounds you feel passionate about some particular activities. But when you find someone better than your level, you compare yourself with them. You go egoistic. Aggressive.

You compete and work hard to become a perfectionist. Power, prestige and want the control of others in your hand is your thinking but may lack in proper planning and direction.

You are more likely to maintain the same pattern throughout the life and tend to sleep for eight-hours and suffer from fear of failure.

In fact, most us are living in this state—the world of rajas. Seeking satisfaction from external sources—through our senses.

Sattva: At Peace, Free From Attachments

Sattva is the mode of reality, purity, spiritual consciousness, and clarity in perception. It promotes happiness, joy and makes you free from materialism.

When sattvic qualities are dominant, you are religious, pure-minded and become a truth-seeker. Your follow good manners, behave affectionately and do not get angry quickly.

Even if you work efficiently, your mind does not get tired. And need a night of sleep more than four-five at night only.

Your looks become vibrant, fresh and attractive. It happens due to the expansion of wisdom, happiness, and joy.

Emotionally you are humble, creative and respectful to others. You are caring for every life and existence— birds, trees, animals.

You cherish every moment you live—with full of energy. Yogis, saints, and monks are sattvic practitioners.

You can elevate your conscience to Sattvik by following simple Sattivk food to your diet and doing yoga.

Mind And The Three Doshas

Moving forward to find the interrelation of doshas and mind. As mind and body are interrelated so there the mind also influences the balance of the doshas.

An imbalance in the mind causes an imbalance in the Doshas. The Vata, Pitta, and Kapha influences the mind, emotions, and consciousness and thus the overall health. Let’s get a deeper understanding of the same.

Vata And The Mind

The Vata dosha controls your nervous system and the mind. Your Vata doshas and your mind both are made from air and ether elements.

So, when your Vata is balanced, your mind feels creative, strong intuition, spiritual understanding, ability to expand, and clear thoughts.

An imbalance in the Vata can cause instability in mind, agitation, hypersensitive or too many emotions, and make you get into excessive Rajas.

It can also make rapid mood changes, fear, scattered self, demotivation, ungroundedness, too many thoughts, over the active nervous system, and a sense of loneliness.

When Vata in your body is excessively high you can feel disassociated with the world, you feel insecure about your relations and the materialistic things.

The imbalances of the Vata dosha in relation to mind are a result of overexertion, prolonged working hours, stress, multiple works, travel, loud music, exposure to nicotine, caffeine drugs, over-exercising, lust and over the use of technology.

You can also elevate your vata in the mind by a Vata-provoking diet. Such a diet has too many light and dry foods like raw vegetables, dried fruits, and crackers.

Pitta And The Mind

This dosha governs your insight and intellect. The Pitta is related to the gray matter in your brain and thus has a whole lot of connection with the mind.

A balanced Pitta affects your mind with positive qualities like courage, confidence, intelligence, willpower, leadership, a futuristic vision, acceptance, satisfaction, enthusiasm, cooperation, and the ability to surrender oneself

An imbalance of Pitta dosha in your body can align a lot of Rajasic qualities in your body. The imbalance will take you towards negative emotions like anger, hatred, frustration, impatience, envy, judgemental, criticism, over-ambitious, irritability, and a negative desire for power.

You end up aggravating your Pitta and your mind by eating excessive heat, upward moving energy in the body, liver imbalances, over the extended period of focus, and by disregarding the needs of the body.

Moreover, Pitta and the Rajas is also increased by a Pitta-provoking diet that is too hot, spicy, oily, and contains a lot of fried and junked food.

Kapha And The Mind

The Kapha dosha governs the lubrication in your body. This dosha is related to the white matter in the brain, the adipose tissues, and the nervous system. It is also strongly connected to your memory.

When the Kapha dosha is balanced in your body you will have positive feelings like love, patience, groundedness, loyalty, compassion, endurance, patience, and sharp senses.

Kapha dosha is aligned with the Tamas mental constitution. An imbalance in it causes the tamas quality to build up in your mind.

An imbalanced Kapha dosha tends to make you lazy, lethargic, depressed, stubborn, greedy, emotionally possessive, and increase the desire towards materialistic things.

This kind of aggravation of Kapha and mind is caused by heaviness in the physical, mental, and emotional spheres and also a result of downward moving energy in the body.

A sedentary lifestyle including inadequate physical activity, heavy food, cold food, and lack of interest towards life can result in such imbalances.

Raise Your Love Frequency to Manifest Your Soulmate

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Raise Your Love Frequency to Manifest Your Soulmate

Love has been described as an intangible connection between two people that feels exceptionally good and yet, the word and experience of love, cannot be easily defined.

There is wild, crazy “being in love,” and there is the love of a child, friends, family, pets, co-workers, neighbors, community, etc. Then there is “divine love” and connection to God, Goddess or whatever higher power you subscribe to. I think we can all agree that having love and being loved is a good thing.

The entire Universe is made up of energy and we impact this energy field with our thoughts, feelings, emotions, beliefs and actions. All of us are vibrating, all the time, at various frequencies. When we are in fear, self-doubt, judgment or anger, we are vibrating at a low frequency. When we are focused on love, inspiration, doing good for others, we are vibrating at a higher frequency….the frequency of love.

Think of yourself as a radio tuner with many stations. Do you want to stay tuned into the FEAR channel of the BLISS channel? You have the power to change channels at any time and it requires that you stay aware of your thoughts, feelings and emotions and rise up to the challenge of being an emotionally mature adult and turn the dial from the negative channel to the happy channel.

Many of you have heard the saying, what you put your attention on grows. When your attention is on love, you magnetize even more love. Conversely, when your attention is on not having love, or you are focused on how lonely you are, or any area of lack, you inadvertently draw this experience to you, and you are actually repelling that which you desire.

One of the fastest ways to raise your love frequency is by doing a very simple daily practice.

First, make a list of all the people that you love that you know also love you. Then each day, look at this list and, as you do, put your attention on your heart as you allow yourself to feel the love you have for each person and from your heart send them a wave of love. By spending a few minutes each day filling yourself with the experience of love and cosmically sharing that love, you not only raise your love frequency but also make your heart magnetic to more love.

When you are consciously tuned into the higher love frequencies you not only become magnetic to love you also radiate your essence and become much more attractive. Another big benefit comes from the scientific research from the Institute of Heartmath which has proven that when you are focused on feelings of love, appreciation and gratitude you boost your immune system for up to 8 hours which means you will be healthier and happier!

Additional sure-fire ways to raise your love frequency:

  • Be kind to yourself and others

    Fill yourself with feelings of love, appreciation and gratitude.

  • Practice forgiveness.
  • Practice receiving.
  • Practice knowing and trusting that you’re co-creating with the Universe; and remember that if you have a desire, the desire is proof for the seeds for its fulfillment.

One last thought: Deepak Chopra says that if you have the desire for something, that, in itself, is proof of its potential! Just as you are seeking your soulmate, he or she is also seeking you.

Gut Acting Up? Try These 5 Ayurvedic Remedies for Immediate Relief

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Gut Acting Up? Try These 5 Ayurvedic Remedies for Immediate Relief

Indigestion, bloating, acid reflux, diarrhea, or constipation? Ayurveda says your kitchen has the answer.

In Ayurveda, agni (fire) is viewed as the source of life.

It’s literally the gatekeeper of good health and a metaphor for all metabolic functions in the body. Everything you eat is looked upon as an offering to agni — and what’s a more potent, direct offering than food?

What you eat can nourish and strengthen this fire, boosting your digestive system — or it can smother it, leading to an impaired, weakened, or imbalanced agni.

According to Ayurveda, harmful foods, such as fried foods, processed meats, and very cold foods, can create undigested residue that forms toxins, or in Ayurvedic terms “ama.” Ama is described as the root cause of disease.

So, the health goal is to balance this metabolic fire. When it comes to good eating habits, here’s the best advice most Ayurvedic practitioners give:

  • Eat only when hungry.
  • Keep gaps of at least three hours between meals, so the previous meal is digested.
  • Avoid smothering agni with cold, wet, spicy, oily, and fried food.

“A diet of light simple foods is the best. Alkalis help regulate this gastric fire. Ghee stimulates agni and improves digestion. Proper chewing is essential to good digestion, too,” says Dr. K.C. Lineesha of Greens Ayurveda in Kerala, India.

1. Constipation? Drink ghee, salt, and hot water

“Consume a drink made with ghee, salt, and hot water. Ghee helps lubricate the inside of the intestines and salt removes bacteria,” says Ayurveda and naturotherapy practitioner, Meeinal Deshpande. Ghee contains butyrate acid, a fatty acid with anti-inflammatory effects that may help with digestion.

Deshpande also suggests eating a ripe banana two hours after dinner, followed by a glass of hot milk or hot water.

A tablespoon of castor oil — a known stimulant laxative — taken at bedtime may also provide relief.

However, those who are pregnant should avoid castor oil. Consult a healthcare provider if you’re considering castor oil for a child under 12 or taking for prolonged use if you’re over 60.

2. Bloated? Try warm water and fennel seeds or ginger

Basically anything taken with warm water can help bloating, according to Dr. Lineesha.

She especially recommends fennel seeds with a glass of warm water. But you could also consider ginger with a drop of honey.

If you don’t want to prepare a hot drink, chewing on fennel seed after eating can aid the digestion process and reduce gas and bloating.

If you’re a tea drinker, reach for mint tea for fennel tea to help with bloat.

3. Acid reflux? Fennel seeds, holy basil, and other spices may do the trick

“Pop some saunf (fennel seeds), tulsi leaves (holy basil), or a spice like clove in your mouth and chew slowly,” suggests Amrita Rana, a food blogger who conducts workshops on Ayurvedic food.

“Anything that increases saliva in the mouth can help balance the stomach’s acidity,” says Rana.

She recommends freshly made drinks like coconut water with bits of tender coconut or buttermilk (takra) that’s been homemade by churning water and plain yogurt together.

According to Ayurveda, buttermilk soothes the stomach, aids digestion, and reduces irritation in the stomach lining that causes acid reflux.

4. Diarrhea? Eat gourds and keep hydrating

“Bottle gourd (cabalash) is excellent for diarrhea. You can turn it into a soup, a curry made with tomatoes, or a stew, and eat it with rice,” says dietitian Sheela Tanna, who prescribes Ayurvedic remedies for her patients.

“[This specialty produce] has a lot of fiber and water content, and is easy to digest, low in calories, and light on the stomach,” Tanna notes.

It’s important to avoid dehydration when you have diarrhea, so drink a lot of fluids, more than you normally would.

Plain water is best, but you can also try buttermilk or fruit juice — especially apple and pomegranate — or ginger tea. Ginger stimulates digestion and is full of antioxidants that rehydrate the body and replenish lost nutrients.

Ginger is a great remedy for healing diarrhea.

“According to Ayurveda, if someone has diarrhea it’s not good to stop it immediately by giving medicines,” says Dr. Lineesha. Instead, she recommends taking ginger to ensure the toxins, and the diarrhea, leave the body naturally.

5. Indigestion? Cooked veggies and soupy dishes may help

If your stomach is upset, check to see what you’ve eaten over the last 24 to 48 hours and “find a counterbalance,” suggests Rana.

If afflicted with indigestion, she suggests avoiding dairy or big grains (rice), raw vegetables, and anything that makes the stomach work hard to digest it.

“Have cooked vegetables that are steamed or stir fried, and only add spices that aid in digestion like ginger, cinnamon, black pepper. For meals, soupy and liquid-like dishes help,” Rana says.

Juices are useful too, says Dr. Lineesha. Take equal quantities of onion juice and honey or a glass of buttermilk mixed with a 1/4 teaspoon of garlic paste for relief.

If you have acid reflux, heartburn, or inflammation in the digestive tract, garlic and onion may aggravate it further. Be mindful of what foods work best with your specific body and needs.

Here are a few suggestions to follow, according to Ayurveda:

  • Incorporate spices like turmeric, cumin, fennel seeds, coriander, and hing (asafetida) in your diet.
  • Drink ginger or cumin tea once a day.
  • Avoid ice-cold drinks or food.
  • Don’t drink ice water as it slows agni and digestion.
  • Don’t snack, if not hungry.
  • Take small sips of warm water during a meal to aid digestion and absorption of food.
  • Avoid contradicting food combinations, such as very hot and cold food or raw and cooked food together.

By following these guidelines, you’re maximizing the moments to keep your gut good, grateful, and happy.

Joanna Lobo is an independent journalist in India who writes about things that make her life worthwhile — wholesome food, travel, her heritage, and strong, independent women. Find her work here.

Benefits Of Eating On Leaf Plates And Metal Plates

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Benefits Of Eating On Leaf Plates And Metal Plates
Ayurveda has explained food timings, nature of food to be consumed, position to be taken while consuming the food etc can also be found with its benefits, merits and demerits.

Ayurveda recommends use of mud, metallic vessels for cooking and leaf plates for meals. This has many scientific reasoning and health benefits.

Introduction

Once such unique concept is explained here below and it is related to the Patra bhojana – leaf plate meals. (Patra=leaf,

bhojana=intake of food).

References are cited to explain the benefits of different kind of metallic plates used for cooking, serving, preserving, eating etc.

Science, reasoning

The food particles in the micro levels react with the good phyto-chemicals of the plant leaves. This in turn yields in negating the adverse effects of the food in micro level. The inter-reaction between the food and the plate is more pronounced in hot or acidic food substances.

In case of metallic vessels – if you ever have taken bath from water boiled in a bit iron / copper / bronze vessel, you might have noticed the difference between that experience versus the common tap water bath experience. It is more soothing and energizing.

Metals advised

As per Ayurveda, metals like gold, silver, iron etc do have their own health effects. Gold especially is told to have immunity enhancing benefits.  Hence, it is administered to children in the form of

Swarna Bindu Prashana  – a generalized immunity boosting schedule and

Swarna Vacha – to improve immunity, memory and speech.

Tradition practiced

Why Kings were using silver and gold plates –

Charaka says – Na Sajjate Hemapange Visham Padmadale Ambuvat | Charaka Samhita Sutrasthana 23rd Chapter, 240th Verse.

Meaning, if a person is habituated to Hema – gold (by intake of Gold Bhasma or by using golden vessels for cooking, eating etc), the person’s body becomes resistant to poisons. This is like a lotus leaf being resistant to water drops!

In olden periods, Kings used to have meals on golden and silver plates for immunity benefiting effects. Even the foods were cooked in golden and silver vessels. They were doing so to thwart the threat of food poisoning.

Gold is prime. Silver has similar qualities to gold but is lesser.

Present scenario

Non stick pans have been identified as cause for thyroid disorders (1) and (2). A study by the University of Exeter and the Peninsula Medical School has clearly demonstrated links between thyroid disease with exposure to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) or per-fluorinated compounds (PFCs). These are present in non stick pans.

So, non stick pans can cause harmful effects, then definitely traditional metallic vessels and leaf plates should have positive effects on health.

Ayurveda suggestive

A brief account of the same is given below-

Reference: Bhojana Kutoohala text book by Raghunath Suri

Golden vessels/plates – Balances all three Doshas, good for eyes, complexion enhancer and rejuvenating.

Silver vessels/plates – Good for eyes, Tridosha balancing, memory enhancing.

Bronze vessels/plates –

Intellect promoting, appetizer,

promotes qualities of blood and Pitta (rakta-pitta prasadaka),

Increases Pitta and Vata Dosha.

Balances Kapha Dosha.

dry-hot and wormicide.

Iron and glass vessels/plates – Anti inflammatory, tonic, good in anemia, jaundice etc.

Earthen and stone vessels/plates – Auspicious, healthy and wholesome

Wooden vessels/plates – Appetizer, increases Kapha. Balances Vata and Pitta.

Sphatika (Quartz) vessels/plates – Cold, prosperous, coolant to the body, balances Pitta Dosha.

In addition to this various leaves are also advised to make into plates and such leaves too contribute healthy benefits. In general wider leaves are used as plates. In specific cases even the smaller leaves are used by clipping them in between (each other).

Usually leaf plates are explained to be appetizers, carminatives, anti poisonous, prosperous etc. Probably it is the reason why in several temples, Dharmashalas and temples, this is used as serving plates.

Leaves as meal plates – Benefits:

Eco friendly, easy to dispose. After eating, cut into small pieces and put it under plant. It turns into manure. (read: Easy natural compost for herbal garden)

Easy to clean. Takes only a handful of water quantity to clean one big leaf.

Very big plates – especially banana and Palash leaves. Easily accommodates a wide variety of delicacies.

Water proof. Holds Sambhar, rasam etc liquid foods very easily.

Adds a nice earthy aroma to the dishes served.

Leaf meals, benefits

Banana leaf meal benefits –

Hridya (cardiac tonic, pleasureful),

Ruchya (appetizer),

Vrishya (aphrodisiac),

Agnideepana (carminative),

Vishaghna (anti poisonous),

Balances Pitta and Vata Dosha

Shramahara (relieves exhaustion and fatigue),

not good for anemia!

Read related – Plantain, Banana Uses, Research, Remedies, Side Effects

Banana leaf contains many polyphenols such as epigallocatechin gallate (EPCG), polyphenol oxidase, which act as anti oxidants. This helps in improving immunity of the body to fight many lifestyle disorders. (research)

Palasha (Butea monosperma) leaf –

Balances Vata and Kapha Dosha

Ruchya (appetizer), Brimhana (nutritive). Useful in Gulma (gaseous tumors), Udara (abdominal disorders), Peenasa (rhinitis ) etc.

Hastikarni (Lea macrophylla) leaf –

Kshareeya (alkaline), Katu (pungent),

Jantughna (wormicide), Kaphahara,

Jwarhara (anti pyretic), Sheeta jwarahara (acts against cold associated fever)

Arka patra (Calotropis gigantea) leaf – Ruksha (dry),

Krimighna (wormicide), Pittakara, Kaphavatahara, Netrya (good for eye), Laghu (light), Deepana (carminative), Pachana (digestive).

Useful in Gulma (gaseous tumor), Shoola (abdominal pain),

Shwasa (breathlessness) etc.

Read related: Calotropis gigantea – Arka Uses

Eranda patra (Castor ) leaf –

Balances Vata Dosha,

Krimighna (wormicide),

Pittavardhaka

Ksheeri vriksha patra (Latex yielding tree leaf) –

Dahashamaka (coolant),

Raktapittashamaka – useful in bleeding disorders

Recommended in Trishna (thirst), Pandu (anemia),

Shotha (oedema), Shwasa (breathlessness),

Somaroga (leucorrhoea) etc.

Ketaki (Pandanus odorata. ) leaf –

Granthinashaka (good to dissolve the cysts),

Manohara (pleasure enhancing), Ruchya (appetizer), Chakshushya (good for eyes), Laghu (light)

Read related: Kewda Flower, Fruit (Screw Pine) Uses

Nalini-Kumuda-Raktotpala-Utpala patra (leaves of varieties of lotus) –

Good for the individuals who are tired due to work (shramahara);

Aphrodisiac (vrishya),

Energizer (balya) and pacifier of Pitta dosha.

When we are using dangerous, harmful and costlier plastics, is it not the right time to take shift towards such disposable, biodegradable and cost effective leaf plates in our usual practice. Also we can strengthen one sector of people by creating job opportunity.

This will add value to the less used leaves. Forest department, tourism and agriculture departments if take initiation in this regard best performance can be shown in near future.

This is article is by Dr M S Krishnamurthy MD (Ayu)PhD

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