DIGESTIVE HEALTH
Ayurveda is the ancient Indian system of medicine. As a child growing up in a Hindu household, Ayurveda is taught at the very practical level of day-to-day consumption: how to eat for best health, what foods to avoid in what circumstances and why, the imperative that our diet has to shift our emotional spiritual and physical wellbeing. Our digestive system is at the heart of all of this. Think of Ayurveda, not as a system of strict and immovable regulations, but as a functional and flexible model that requires us to be active participants in our daily food choices - focussing us on our sensory body, our connection to our geography, the influence of the season, and an understanding of our own ever-changing constitutional framework.
AYURVEDA & DIGESTIVE HEALTH:
A daily taste of bitter and / or pungent spice is a necessary ingestion that will help to support the deep gut and the digestive system in a daily capacity over the term of a lifetime.
Use softer, warming spices with digestive properties and anti-inflammatory benefits when gut issues percolate: fennel seed being the former, and true cinnamon accounting for the latter.
Ayurveda views a good life as one that stands for the prolongation of wellness (as opposed to the prevention of illness). Working with the digestive system keeps overall health in better order, daily.
Using spice to stimulate digestion is as important as consuming spice that facilitates the digestive process: salts are a powerful tool for waking the palate and securing the connection between the gut and the mouth at the commencement of consumption, ensuring a more moderated and coordinated digestive effort for the whole body.
Learning to use spice means working to understand that Ayurveda considers “taste” to be - not so much flavour - but an emotional tone in a meal that addresses the body on its three levels: the physical, the metaphysical and the emotional. To learn more about this perspective of health, contact me for private classes or free literature.