Ayurvedic Nutrition

In Maharishi Ayurveda (Sanskrit–Ayus “life,” and Veda “knowledge” or “science,” hence “the science of life” or “the knowledge of life span”), a balanced diet does not revolve around fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. Nor are calories, vitamins, and minerals given direct attention. These nutrients are known to us intellectually, not through direct experience. You cannot detect vitamin C in your orange juice, much less the difference between it and vitamin A.

When your taste buds greet a bite of food, an enormous amount of useful information is delivered to the doshas (three operating principles situated in the interconnectedness between mind and body). Working solely with this information, Ayurveda allows us to eat a balanced diet naturally, guided by our own instincts, without turning nutrition into an intellectual headache.

When food talks to your doshas, it says many things, because the different gunas (qualities)–heavy and light, dry and oily, hot and cold–are present in it. But the primary information is contained in its taste.

Ayurveda recognizes six tastes, or rasas: Sweet, salty, sour, bitter, pungent and astringent. All spicy food is pungent. Astringent is the taste that puckers your mouth. In Ayurveda a balanced diet must contain all six rasas at every meal.

It is not necessary to overload a meal with each taste. Just a hint of herbs and spices will add pungent and bitter to a meal. Nor is it good to let the same tastes dominate day after day. The basic rule is simply to give the body all six rasas each day so it can respond to feed completely.

Adapted fromPerfect Health: The Complete Mind/Body Guide, by Deepak Chopra, M.D. (Harmony Books, 1990).

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
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Robert O.

2:13PM PDT on May 19, 2012

Thank you!

send a green star

Carl M.

5:16PM PDT on Apr 28, 2012

I have been enlightened.
thank you :)

Mandi A.

7:14PM PDT on Apr 27, 2012

Interesting. Thank you.

Tracy G.

9:14PM PST on Feb 7, 2012

Thanks!

Libby C.

3:06AM PST on Jan 27, 2012

Great to see these tyoes of useful articles which are good to copy to FB to share! Thanks!

Ellen H.

12:46AM PST on Jan 27, 2012

Yes, Ayurveda and natural supplements work great. I am not affiliating any, but I do not live on traditional medicine. In fact, my fiance was suffering from high Triglyceride, now he is well-managed without having any harmful statin drugs. He is having Himalaya products and those work really great.

Amy T.

3:01PM PST on Jan 25, 2012

have you had experiences with ayurveda that you think might benefit others? Please share your experience at www.alternativemedicineconnection.com. Any if you are a practitioners please enter yourself in our directory and ask you clients to post their experiences.

Deepti P.

9:09PM PST on Nov 24, 2011

thanks...

Joe S.

10:19AM PST on Nov 20, 2011

Thanks for the information.

Yudhish A.

10:13PM PDT on Nov 2, 2011

Good stuff....great!