Ayurvedic Principles of Food Consumption

1. अध्यशन​ (Adhyashana)

- Adhyashana means eating meals over meals. Before the previous meal is even digested, overloading the system with more work.

- There should be a gap of at least 2.5 hours to 3 hours between each meal.

- You may sip on water in between but absolutely no food. Not even tea, coffee or any other beverage like fruit juice, smoothie, cola, pop etc.

- Our digestive system is just like us. An overload of work, files on top files, tasks mounting up on your desk only stresses you out. The result, headache, poor concentration, stress, blood pressure, and what not! Similarly, our digestive system gets stressed and affects metabolism, adrenals, thyroid. Then comes poor assimilation of food, constipation, and slowly our system collapses.

2. अत्यशन​ (Atyashana)

- Atyashana means eating large portions at once.

- Hectic work life and busy schedules leave us with very little to no time for ourselves. We eat when we can and not when we are supposed to. Most of us, if remember, our grandparents always had a habit of eating at the same time every day. Be it breakfast, lunch, afternoon snacks or dinner. Helped them live longer and healthier lives.

- People usually skip breakfast because a) no time or b) do not feel hungry or c) feel sick to the stomach in the morning (not morning sickness). This is Pitta. What you ate last night was not admissible to your body. Either the meal was heavy, was eaten late or was not compatible with your body type.

- After skipping the breakfast, we are angry hungry by lunch and stuff ourselves with whatever we find- most of the time it's office cafeteria food or lunch with colleagues/ clients etc. Sandwich, soup, fried rice, noodles, street food etc are the common lunch options.

- Big portions again disturb the system. There was absolutely no work for our stomach for over 12 hours. And now we slammed it with all this food. Stomach was in sleeping mode and is woken up with all this excess work. He's not ready for it yet! This is going to cause indigestion, feeling tired, sleepy as most of your energy is after digesting the mountain of food you just swallowed.

-Therefore, it is important to start our day with a fruit or some nuts (instead of lemon water/apple cider vinegar- it is acidic and our stomach is acidic in the morning as the stomach juices which are acids are sitting ready with no food to process yet. Acid on top of acid could give us heartburn, sickness, lack of appetite etc. Slowly start building up the meals. Have a good breakfast, a light snack or a refreshing beverage before lunch; and a nutrient-dense lunch. It will help you stay focused, alert, and active throughout the day.

3. विषमाशन (Untimely eating)

- Like I mentioned above, busy lives and hectic jobs often cost us our health.

"Man sacrifices health to make money. Then sacrifices money to recuperate his health." - The Dalai Lama

- It is important to eat at proper times to avoid overeating. Eating at regular intervals will actually make your metabolism efficient. None of the energy bars, protein shakes, or diets will work if food is not eaten at proper times.

- Ideally, breakfast should be consumed in an hour after getting up. Around 9-10 am.

A snack like some dates, fruit bars, coconut bars (preferably homemade) before lunch at 11.30-11.45 am. Lunch at 1 pm, latest at 1.30 pm. Have an afternoon snack (if hungry) like a laddoo, handful peanuts or jaggery-ghee-peanuts, or a piece of cheese or fruit, or yoghurt, or veggies and healthy dip at around 4.00 pm. You may choose to have an early dinner at 6.30 pm or have another small, light snack at 6 pm. And finally dinner at 8.30 pm. No later than 9.00 pm.

- Now, this is just a guideline. Sometimes dinner gets delayed when we go out or when there is an event we attend. At such time, have a heavier 6.30 pm snack like poha, upma, dosa, or paratha. This way you will have a light social dinner. Again, this is just a guideline.

- Your stomach is the best dietitian. Connect with your body, and it will tell you when it needs food. Do not ignore these hunger calls as it will cost you your health.

4. अल्पाशन​ (Eating too little)

- Starving yourself is not going to help you lose weight. In fact, losing weight should be the last thing on your list. Always concentrate on feeling happy and fit. And any sensible person would say, starving is not the way to go.

- Maybe your nutritionist asked you to eat half cup rice, but you are still hungry and you know your body needs it, go for it.

- Like our five fingers, none of the days is alike. Some days you run around a lot, making you want more food. Some days, it is humid, so you need more fluids. While sometimes you just do not feel like moving. All this is normal acceptable human behaviour. Therefore, eat accordingly.

- Similarly, do not eat less because you are running late or you have to be at a meeting. You can never concentrate on an empty stomach. No good sleep either. So what is the point of eating less? If anything, it will make you tired, drained out, dull, dry skin and hair, sunken eyes, brittle nails.. just make you look unhealthy.

5. विरुद्धाशन​ (Eating wrong food combinations)

- Ayurveda specifies various food that are not compatible with each other and should not be consumed together in one meal. It is recommended to keep them 2 or more meals apart.

- Here are a few examples:

1. Milk + Fish

2. Milk + Meat

3. Milk + Sour fruits

4. Melon + Grains

- Not just these food combinations, but eating irrespective of the weather, area, season or climate will also cause problems

1.देशविरुद्ध​ ( Eating against the geological specs)

>अनूप​ Anoop ( cold regions: avoid dairy)

> जांगल Jangal ( dry regions: avoid beans, frozen fruits, vegetables )

> साधरण Sadharan (Sadharan loosely translates to normal, meaning average humidity and temperatures around 25 degC, like Hawaii: avoid fatty, oily, greasy food)

2.कालविरुद्ध​ (Eating against seasons)

> Summertime, eat fresh salads, lots of water, lemonade

> Fall, avoid beans, dry roasted meats, dry veggies or salads

> Winter/ Springtime, avoid dairy- milk, cheese, yoghurt (ghee is okay)

3. दोशविरूद्ध​ ( Eating against your dosha)

> Kapha person eating a lot of dairy in every meal will congest lungs, allergies, fever,, cough

> Pitta person eating hot spicy foods like peppers, chillies, garlic will suffer from heartburn, acid reflux, indigestion

> Vata person eating kidney beans, chickpeas, salads for every meal will get constipation, gas, bloated tummy.

Start with implementing at least three of the above principles and build up from there, week after week. You shall notice the difference. Let us know you experience, and feel free to ask any questions in the comment section below. Take care, and stay healthy.