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Different flours and their effects on constitution

TURMERIC -Haridra(Sanskrit)

Actions: stimulant, carminative, alterative, vulnerary, antibacterial

TURMERIC is an excellent natural antibiotic, while at the same time it strengths digestion and helps improve intestinal flora. As such it is a good antibacterial for those chronically weak or ill. It is not only purifies the blood, but also warms it and stimulates formation of new blood tissue.

Turmeric gives the energy of the divine mother and grants prosperity. It is effective for cleansing the chakras, purifying channels of subtle body. It promotes proper metabolism in the body, correcting both excesses and deficiencies. It aids in the digestion of protein.

Externally, it can be used with honey for sprains, strains, bruise or itch. It is tonic to the skin, for which purposes it can be taken internally as a milk decoction.

SESAME SEEDS-(Sanskrit) Tila

Actions: nutritive tonic, rejuvenative, demulcent, emollient, laxative

SESAME SEEDS are a rejuvenative tonic for vata constitution and for the bones and teeth. The black seeds are best, as they contain higher amount of solar energy.

Sesame oil can be used in the same way as the seeds. It is similar in properties to olive oil. With equal parts if lime water, it can be applied externally for burns, boils and ulcers. Prepared with small amounts of camphor, cardamom and cinnamon, it can be applied to the head for migraines or vertigo. The powdered seeds can also be used externally as a paste.

Milk products

There are many references on the ayurvedic classics to the virtues of milk and its nourishing and therapeutic properties. These were recorded literally thousands of years ago, before the advent of pasteurization, homogenization, ultra-pasteurization, radiation, bovine growth hormone, dioxin, sulfa drugs, and pesticides, none of which are recommended in an Ayurvedic diet. Many of the wide-spread dairy intolerances may be intolerances to what is in the milk and what has been done to it, as much as to the milk itself. Dairy products are recommended if one can obtain them - fresh pure raw milk or buttermilk or yogurt - on the day that they have been produced. If one cannot obtain the products on the day of production, it is best to avoid them altogether or to use them only occasionally. If one is able to obtain fresh milk, bring it to a boil immediately before use. Slices of fresh root ginger placed in the boiling milk increase digestive fire and enhance elimination. Let the milk boil for a good 20 to 30seconds. The milk needs to be used within 3-4 days. Pasteurization originally came into being as a way to eliminate disease organisms, particularly bacteria. Conscientious boiling at home can also eliminate these, and makes a product easier on the digestive tract. If a recipe calls for cold milk, raw milk can be boiled and cooled prior to preparation.

Processed hard and soft cheeses, commercial yogurt, ultra-pasteurized cream, cream cheese, sour cream and so forth may be tasty, but sadly they are generally not helpful for health on any regular basis. Fresh yogurt can be made at home with boiled raw milk, and yogurt cheese (paneer) or homemade ricotta can also be used on occasions. These tend to be more sour and heavier than milk, and so are recommended for occasional rather than regular use.

GINGER--(Sanskrit) Sunthi, nagara (dry), adraka (fresh)

Actions: stimulant, diaphoretic, expectorant, carminative, ant emetic, analgesic

GINGER is the best and most sattvic of the spices. Ginger relives Kapha when it taken with honey, with rock candy it relives pitta; with rock salt it relives vata.

Dry ginger is hotter and drier than fresh. It is better stimulant and expectorant for reducing kapha and increasing Agni. Fresh ginger is a better diaphoretic, better for colds, cough, vomiting and for deranged Vata.

The uses of ginger in digestive and respiratory diseases are well known. It is also good in arthritic conditions and it is tonic to the heart. It relives gas and cramps in the abdomen, including menstrual cramps due to cold. Externally, it makes a good paste for pain and headaches.

Eggs - are hot, heavy, and rajasic. Eating many of them bring out your warrior more than your inner mediator. They are a good source of inexpensive balanced protein. The yolk of the egg is the hottest, heaviest part of this food. Consequently, warm pita needs to take it easy on foods rich in egg yolk. An occasional egg white, more cooling, dry and light, can often tolerated by pitta. Food with egg yolk is also hard on kapha. Vata and kapha can usually handle 2-3 eggs per week without difficulty.

CORIANDER-(Sanskrit) dhanya

Actions: stimulant, carminative, diuretic, alternative, diaphoretic,

CORIANDER seeds are good household remedy for many pitta disorders, particularly those of the digestive tract or urinary system. It is an effective digestive agent for pitta conditions in which most spices are contradicted or used with caution. The fresh juice of the herb is effective internally for allergies, hay fever and skin rashes; one tsp three times a day, but can also be used externally for itch and inflammation. Similar in properties is cumin, which is an antidote for hot, pungent food. It increases digestion and absorption, and is good for diarrhea and dysentery. Cumin, coriander and fennel are related plants with similar properties. The three is often used together for digestive disorders, mainly owing to high pitta.

AJWAN wild celery seeds (Sanskrit) Ajmoda

Actions: stimulant, carminative, expectorant, alternative, antispasmodic, diuretic, lithotriptic

AJWAN or wild celery seed is a strong digestive, respiratory and nerve stimulant. For those suffering from high vata, poor appetite, intestinal gas and sinus congestion, it may be taken as a powder. It also promotes kidney function and energizes the nerves. Ajwan is a powerful decongestant for both the respiratory and digestive tracts. It also cleans deep seated Ama and revives obstructed and stagnant metabolic functioning. As such it helps improve aspiration and catalyze the ascending energies of the psyche

ABOUT SWEETENERS

Raw honey and maple syrup are popular Ayurvedic sweeteners, and are sattvic in nature. Both are appropriate in an ayurvedic diet. However the two have somewhat different dynamics, and so are used to calm different doshas. Raw honey is both heating and drying, and so in small amounts is excellent sweetener for kapha. Its heat makes it aggravating to pitta if used on a regular basis. Honey's sweetness and warming qualities outweigh its dryness for vata, making it a fine sweetener for vata as well. It is important to remember not to heat honey if you use it. Heated honey can create Ama a kind of toxic waste. Stirring honey into a liquid, like a cup of tea, is just fine. Maple syrup is sweet, cool and moist. It is a good sweetener for calming pitta as well as vata. Its qualities increase kapha, and so it is best used sparingly by people with predominant kapha dosha.

FENNEL SEEDS-(Sanskrit) sanuf

Actions: indigestion, low Agni, stimulant, antispasmodic, diuretic

FENNEL SEEDS are one of the best herbs for digestion, strengthens agni without aggravating pitta, stopping cramp and dispelling flatulence. They can be roasted after meals, one teaspoon, by themselves or rock salt.

They work to stop the griping of purgatives and can also help promote menstruation and to promote milk flow for nursing mothers

Ghee

The cow's milk and her butter, clarified as ghee are absolutely essential for health and well being. They must be pure to do this. Many westerners are concerned that the use of ghee will increase their cholesterol or add unnecessary amounts of fat to their diet. Used in the context of an ayurvedic lifestyle, this is a quite unlikely to occurred. If used incorrectly it may indeed not be the healthiest ingredient in a meal.

A brief explanation: Ghee, unlike butter, helps to stimulate the healthy flow of fluids throughout the body. Whilst butter congests, ghee removes blockages. No other substance stimulates the flow of bodily fluids as ghee does. Whilst cold- pressed olive oil is used to stimulate the flow of bile from the liver and gall bladder and thereby relives congestion, ghee performs this function throughout the body.

Ghee also strengthens ojas, our vital energy cushion, which is at the root of our wellbeing and immunity. Through ojas, ghee also nourishes the fire of our minds. In this way, intelligence, energy, confidence, understanding, and memory are enhanced.

As mentioned it is important to understand that ghee is healthy and should best be used within the context of an Ayurvedic dietary program. The fortunate and wise person will do panchakarma once or twice per year, at the change of seasons or whenever it is recommended in conjunction with a healthy lifestyle, relaxed inner and outer balance. To us as westerners this whole lifestyle is new to us. Adding a little ghee to our rice, kichadi, or steamed vegetables, or hot fresh milk, is likely to help us.. Adding ghee to our frozen food entrée is unlikely to do so. Making rich deserts daily with ghee is also unlikely to have the desired effect. We must use it with common sense and prudence, within its context. As always, this is up to us.

FENUGREEK-(Sanskrit) Methi

Actions: stimulant, tonic, expectorant, rejuvenative, aphrodisiac, diuretic

FENUGREEK is a good herbal food for convalescence and debility, particularly that of the nerves, respiratory and reproductive systems. As gruel it will increase milk flow and promotes hair growth. Fenugreek sprouts are a medicinal vegetable for indigestion, hypo- function of the liver and seminal debility.

FLEX SEED-(Sanskrit) Uma

Actions: laxative, demulcent, emollient, expectorant, nutritive tonic

FLEX SEED are a good tonic for vats, for the colon and the lungs. They strengthen lung tissue and promote the healing of the lung membranes. They contain natural protein and calcium. As a expectorant and emollient, they combine well with honey. As a lung tonic they work with licorice.

Externally they make a good poultice for ulcerated and inflamed surfaces, they help dilate the local blood vessels and relax the tissue.

ABOUT GARLIC AND ONIONS

Those tasty creatures, how much is too much? While garlic and onions are used liberally in commercial Indian cooking, they are more sparsely consumed in Ayurvedic fare. Garlic is considered rajasic or sometimes tamasic. Onions are tamasic, and both aggravate Pitta. However the benefits can not be discarded and Ayurvedic diets accept that onions and garlic have healing properties

A reasonable rule of thumb for someone of Pitta constitution on a sattvic diet, who wants to have a little of these, would be to eat about one good sized onion per week and one two cloves of garlic. Kapha on a sattvic regime might have a similar amount of onion and four or more cloves of garlic without a problem. Vata might have a little less onion, cooked, depending on how it agrees with them, and perhaps two or three cloves of garlic, if they want them. Heating garlic in oil enhances its medicinal properties. Garlic can be a helpful remunerative, especially for Vata.

It is also good to use leeks instead of onions, when they are available. They have a milder, sweeter taste and so disrupt Pitta less than regular onions. Shallots are similar in their dynamics to leeks.

Daily activities can also influence how much of these one chooses. If one is involved in quiet, light or contemplative work, one may find oneself using less than if you are engaged in competitive work or strenuous physical activities such as construction, sports or waiting tables.

CUMIN SEED-( Sanskrit) jeera

Actions: indigestion, low Agni, stimulant, antispasmodic

CUMIN SEED are very good for digestion and stomach ulcer. Cumin seed powder can be used in daily food aid to digestion. Cumin seed can be used for digestive weakness where hot spices might overheat or over stimulate.

Roasted cumin seed can be taken for irritable bowels and high pitta.

ABOUT SALT

A little salt sparks digestive fire, Agni, in a good way. Small amounts of salt are used in some Ayurvedic medicinal herb combinations for digestion. Rock salt is most respected in Ayurveda for its ability to enhance Agni, and is most often used in herbal formulations for this purpose. It can often be found in Indian groceries.

Too much salt can ignite ulcers, blood pressure and other high-Pitta conditions. Canned foods frequently contain copious amounts of salt, as do fast foods and other foods prepared in restaurants. This excess can contain as little as 10% of the salt of their canned counterparts.

If you find yourself using a heavy hand with the salt shaker, you could be zinc deficient. Zinc is needed for taste acuity. When one can not taste as well, one often uses more and more salt or other spices to compensate. A nutritionist can be helpful here for evaluating zinc status, as it is a mineral one can have too much of, as well as too little of.

ABOUT MUSHROOMS - In traditional ayurvedic cooking, mushrooms are not highly regarded, because they usually grow on decaying matter. For this reason they are categorized as a tamasic food. They would also be avoided in a strict mold-free or anti-Candida diet because they are a fungus. In parts of the world, in particular China and Japan, mushrooms are used therapeutically. Shiitaake mushrooms are especially valued as a strengthener and a toner for the immune system. Mushrooms are a rich source of the amino acid methionine, which provides an excellent complement to methionine-short brans or tofu. They enhance the total protein value of legume dishes. Mushrooms in general are low in calories, and rich in methionine and zinc.

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