It is paradoxical how nutrition is neglected in the modern healthcare system, and how our fast-paced modern society relies on fast food, microwave ovens, quick fix medicines, and standing up. 

In Ayurveda , an ancient Indian science of life, for health and longevity, food plays a primary role and is therefore considered medicine.

Food as medicine: the Ayurvedic approach to nutrition

Dating back over 5000 years, Ayurveda is still a highly respected form of healthcare in India today. According to this holistic system, each has its own constitution or prakriti: an individual combination of physical, mental and emotional characteristics determined by many factors existing at the time of conception and birth. Trauma, emotional and physical stress, seasonal and climatic changes, and wrong food combinations, can lead to imbalances and possibly disease. In this case it would be important to know how appropriate factors and right habits can have an effect to eliminate or reduce the causes of the imbalance. In this sense, the path to health is always individual. There is no one approach that is right for everyone, be it diet, lifestyle,

According to the Sankhya philosophy , creation is expressed through the five elements: ether or space, air, fire, water and earth. These elements manifest in the body, as the three principles governing the three humors called doshas: Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Each person possesses all three of these doshas to varying degrees, although one and sometimes two tend to be predominant. When in balance, the doshas promote normal body functions and maintain overall health. When they are out of balance, they create physical, mental and emotional disturbances.

Vata is the subtle energy associated with movement and is made up of air and ether. By nature it is dry, light, mobile and cold. When aggravated, it can cause flatulence, constipation, tremors, spasms, asthma, rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, as well as many neurological problems.

Pitta represents the elements of fire and water of the body. It has oily characteristics and is mostly hot. Pitta Disorders include hyperacidity, ulcers, skin rashes, chronic fatigue, colitis, gout, and numerous inflammatory disorders.

Kapha is made up of earth and water, and is heavy, cold, wet and has a static quality. Unbalanced kapha can cause obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes, edema, asthma, cancer, and a variety of problems.

The aggravation of doshas can affect digestion and can create toxins (ama): undigested food. The formation of ama in the tissues and channels of the body accumulates, slowly but surely it affects the flow of prana (life energy), immunity (ojas) and cellular metabolism (Tejas), resulting in disease.

From an Ayurvedic point of view, one of the main keys to maintaining optimal health and supporting the healing process is to help the body eliminate toxins and restore constitutional balance. To achieve this, Ayurveda emphasizes the importance of proper nutrition through proper food choices, food combinations and cooking styles, and also the consumption of herbs, all based on the specific needs of the person and dosha imbalance.

Ayurvedic nutrition is a broad topic that takes into account the individual constitution, the medicinal value of culinary spices, the theory of rasa (or six flavors, all of which should be present for a meal to be balanced), and more. In Ayurveda, food is considered medicine. Likewise, herbs are also used for their nutritional and nourishing qualities, or to counteract dosha imbalances and the formation of toxins due to poor digestion.

Nutrition according to the doshas

For good nutrition, it would be optimal to consume organic, fresh and when possible locally produced food. In Ayurveda food, drinks and spices are classified according to their taste (sweet, salty, sour, bitter, spicy and astringent), the energetic effect they have on the dosha, and their post-digestive effect on the tissues. This is why when choosing food, it is important to understand our original constitution in order to eat foods that have the opposite qualities to those that are already predominant in our constitution. Furthermore, understanding the current state of the doshas is also crucial in making the right choices about food.

Vata types tend to be lean, with irregular digestion they often have a tendency to constipation and intestinal gas. Therefore, these people are advised to eat warm, nutritious, and especially cooked food, avoiding the intake of dry, cold, frozen and raw food. In addition, they should avoid pinto beans, black beans and chickpeas as they are difficult to digest and tend to increase intestinal gas. Vata is balanced by the tasting of sweet, sour and salty food.

Pitta types tend to have strong appetites and good digestion, but have a tendency to hyperacidity and inflammatory disorders. So they should avoid eating fatty, spicy, salty and fermented food, as well as sour fruits. Pitta is balanced by the bitter, sweet and astringent taste.

Kapha types have a tendency to weight gain, obesity and slow digestion, sleepiness, and congestion ailments. These people are advised to eat a low carbohydrate diet and avoid dairy products, cold foods and drinks, poor quality oils and sweets. Kapha diminishes with pungent, bitter and astringent taste.

Before talking about the use of spices in Ayurvedic cuisine, it is important to clarify that Indian cuisine cannot necessarily be Ayurvedic; in fact the food in Indian restaurants is often too spicy and soaked in oils. What truly makes an Ayurvedic food is the fact that it is selected cooked according to the specific needs of the person, or that it is balanced for the Tridoshas.

Spices in Ayurvedic cuisine

Many of the spices used in Ayurvedic cooking such as turmeric , ginger, cumin, fenugreek , coriander and cardamom, are also medicinal herbs used in Ayurvedic herbal medicine. Cooking with these spices every day can improve digestion, absorption and assimilation of food, improve appetite and elimination, nourish internal organs and prevent dosha imbalance. The spices provide a harmonious blend of the six flavors. Taste is medicine and is the first form of nourishment. A meal that contains a balanced blend of six flavors, in addition to being more appealing to the tongue, is also more digestible on a deep cellular level.

Modern research validates the benefits of many of the herbs and spices used in Ayurvedic cooking. Turmeric for example is highly effective in treating diabetes, skin diseases, infections and inflammatory diseases. Cumin , coriander, fennel , nutmeg, and cardamom are extremely helpful in treating a wide variety of digestive ailments. Ginger, on the other hand, is recommended in the treatment of congestion, respiratory tract , fevers and colds. There are literally thousands of medicinal uses for these spices. Even today in much of India the wisest doctors are often mothers and grandmothers who know the uses of their “kitchen pharmacy.”

The combination of foods in Ayurveda

Another fundamental aspect of Ayurvedic nutrition is the correct combination of foods. In Ayurveda not all foods are compatible. When certain foods are eaten raw or cooked together, they can disrupt the normal function of the digestive fire and promote the accumulation of ama (toxins) in the body. Several factors, such as the taste, quality, energy of some foods, and even their digestibility, are influenced by the combination of the food itself. Heavy foods like whole grains, dairy products, meats and starches don’t combine well with light foods like fruit, which digest faster. Another example, when sour fruit and acidic foods are combined with milk, which is sweet, this causes the milk to clot and this combination becomes heavy in the intestine.

Ayurveda encourages us to take responsibility for our health as much as possible by making the appropriate changes in diet and lifestyle. What we eat and how we live each day can be our strongest ally in restoring and maintaining health. All other therapeutic measures will be strongly supported by this daily effort.

Together with a balanced diet, which incorporates other healthy habits and a daily routine, it can prevent the imbalance at its root. A lifestyle that complements normal eating and sleeping habits will bring discipline and help maintain the harmony of the doshas, ​​thus promoting general good health. An Ayurvedic practitioner can provide dietary and lifestyle guidelines, as well as herbal nutrition, more specific to the individual’s constitution, dosha imbalance.

Ayurveda sees food and spices as medicinal substances and good digestion as one of the main factors for optimal health. This is why he places great importance on a suitable combination and concept of shad rasa , or the six flavors. These six flavors: sweet, sour, salty, spicy, bitter and astringent, should be present in balanced proportions in the diet. Their understanding and relationship to our individual constitution can help us make better choices to promote and maintain health.

According to Ayurveda, we are born with a unique constitution, which is an individual combination of the three doshas, ​​or principles that govern the function of our body on a physical, mental and emotional level. These three energies are Vata, Pitta and Kapha. The disease is caused by an imbalance in any of the doshas and the presence of Ama, or toxic food by-products (food that has not been fully digested).

According to Ayurveda, the best preventive and supportive medicine for the natural healing process is a diet and lifestyle specific to the constitutional needs of the individual and in line with the seasons and cycles of nature.