Another fundamental recommendation of Ayurveda
to maintain the balance and the natural order of
the being, is correct nutrition. Food permits us
to maintain the Dosha balance and consequently
our health.
Therefore, digestion is very importantbecause
it allows us to absorb the food and to use its
properties. What’s also important is the method
of ingesting a meal: in other words is not only
what you eat, but how you eat it.
Eat according to
one’s capacity, neither too much nor too
little;
Eat only when
one feels hungry;
Don’t eat before
having digested the previous meal;
Avoid cold food
and drinks;
Eat in a quiet
environment; avoid distractions (TV, reading,
etc.);
Don’t eat when
having strong emotions;
Avoid preserved,
tinned or frozen foods;
Make lunch the
main meal;
Don’t eat heavy
foods in the evening;
Don’t mix
incompatible foods together;
Ayurveda considers that the different nutritional
components can be combined in a meal without problems,
but with due proportions and provided that the digestive
and metabolic systems is efficient. The foods are
studied according to their properties related to flavour
and this provides a general idea about its nutritional
value. Ayurveda distinguishes six main flavours or Rasa:
•
Sweet
•
Sour
•
Salty
•
Spicy
•
Bitter
•
Astringent
Every one of these six flavours has the
following characteristics and effects: sweet flavour
induces the tissue’s growth; sour improves the
circulation; salty flavour is a laxative and an
antispasmodic; spicy flavours stimulate the digestion;
bitter boosts the metabolism and detoxifies; astringent
flavours are antiseptic and anti-diarrhoeic.
Here
are some examples of foods for every Flavour:
Spicy:
Pepper, hot pepper, ginger, garlic, radishes.
Bitter:
Chicory, spinach, long leaf vegetables, rhubarb,
coffee.
Astringent:
Legumes, lentils, barley, unripe bananas and
persimmons, turmeric.
A balanced diet should contain all six flavours in the
right proportions, as the excess of every one of these
flavours has negative consequences: for example the
excess of sweet flavour can cause obesity and fatigue;
spicy flavour, burning and haemorrhages; bitter flavour,
weight loss.
In an ideal diet, the sweet flavour and therefore
cereals (rice, wheat) should prevail . The other
flavours should be present but in gradually smaller
quantities, including spicy (e.g. spices), bitter (e.g.
long leaves vegetables), and astringent (e.g. legumes).
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