Absolute Beauty by Pratima Raichur

Author:Pratima Raichur
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins

A NEW LOOK AT THE BASIC FOOD GROUPS

Every food group contains good choices and bad choices for every dosha. The descriptions below highlight a few choices within each category in terms of their elemental makeup, but they are by no means complete.

Vegetables. If you know what to look for, you will find that the constitution of natural foods is often evident. Think of a garden. The roots of all vegetation grow downward into the soil, absorbing minerals and holding moisture to nourish the plant. Closest to the earth—indeed, buried in it—they are naturally rich in earth and water. Therefore, tubers and other subterranean vegetables, including carrots, potatoes, beets, and onions, and ones that grow near the ground, such as cucumbers and zucchini, generally balance Vata types, who need grounding, moist elements to counter their naturally light, dry, dispersing natures.

Now consider leaves. They grow upward and furthest from the ground. Structured with a web of hollow veins to take in oxygen, they are naturally astringent and light. Consequently, leafy greens, along with most small-seeded hollow vegetables (peppers excluded), make a poor food choice for airy Vatas, but a good one for Kaphas, who need to lighten up.

The stem or stalk, the middle portion of the plant, draws water up from the roots, and oxygen down from the leaves, to nourish the whole plant, making it both diuretic and cool in quality. Thus, celery, broccoli, and asparagus are good for the fire and water in Pitta, and acceptable for the water in Kapha, but not so good for cool, dry Vata.

In general, vegetables tend to be sattvic—purifying—and nutritive. Along with fruits, they are best eaten in their season and should account for 20 to 30 percent of the daily diet for Vata and Pitta types, and 40 to 50 percent for Kapha types. All vegetables when uncooked tend to be somewhat astringent and therefore cool and drying. Thus, everyone should favor cooked vegetables in the wintertime, and Vata types should eat them year round.

Fruits. In botanical terms, fruit is the developed ovary of a plant—it carries the seeds of life, protecting and nourishing them. Fruit pulp is rich in water and air, so it is cool, light, purifying, harmonizing, and sattvic in nature. Dense but juicy sweet or sour fruits like berries, cherries, plums, oranges, grapefruits, and bananas, when ripe, are better for Vata, while cooler, sweeter fruits like sweet grapes, melons, and mangos are good for Pitta. However, Kapha types should stick to dried fruits, apples, pears, and other compact, astringent fruits to avoid edema (water retention) due to the high water content of most fruit. Sour fruits are better in the morning to liquefy Kapha, and energy-giving sweet fruits are better in the afternoon. To ensure proper digestion, do not eat fruit in combination with other foods. If you drink fruit juice and have dry or oily skin, dilute it with water and “heat it up” with pungent spices such as cardamom, clove, cinnamon, or nutmeg.

Seed foods. Dense, mineral-rich grains, beans, and nut kernels are all types of seeds.

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