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June 2009 Edition

 

Learn about green cures from Dr GG Gangadharan, one of India’s leading Ayurveda practitioners.

Hot summer, cool food

SUMMER season is called Grishma ritu in Ayurveda. Poetically speaking, in this season, the sun's rays are like the flowers of Atasi (Linseed), that is, light blue and very hot. The earth seems to burn with heat. Still, the breeze from the south west is a bit comfortable. Now that summer is in full swing, it is so hot and exhausting. Energy levels are drained out. Not only humans but animals and plants suffer from the effects of the scorching sun. Trees have no shade under them as the ripened leaves wither off. The leaves, bark and entwining creepers are all dry. Water in the rivers, lakes, ponds etc reduce and many reservoirs dry out due to the strong heat. The sun's rays being very hot withdraws the strength of the earth during this season.

So choose the right kind of foods, according to the climate. Mother Nature provides us with ample foods that are specific to a season and are healthy.In this way, you can adapt your body to seasonal changes.

Eating light is the mantra for summer. This helps the heart and digestive system to remain healthy and function well. The heat of the summer seeps into our system and saps our strength leaving us dehydrated. Ayurveda provides us with a diet and regimen which helps to avoid dehydration and maintains liveliness. During this season one should avoid exercise, basking in the sun, food with pungent, sour and salt taste, food which is hot and those things which produce heat. Alcohol should be avoided. If taken it should be in a very minimal quantity that too with a large amount of water, otherwise it will produce edema, laxity of the joints, burning sensation and delusion.

Water is the best option to quench thirst and keep the body cool. High humidity levels will not allow sweat to evaporate quickly. This prevents the body from releasing heat in an efficient manner. Water helps hydrate the body. So drink water even if you are not thirsty.

Do not drink very chilled liquids as they don't really help to cool you down in summer. Chilled liquids make you cool for some time but drinking cold liquids actually leads to a slight constriction of blood vessels in the skin and thus decreases heat loss and hence is not advisable for cooling down.

Syrups, thin gruels prepared with corn flour and sugar which are very sweet in taste and smell, kept in fresh mud pots, are the ideal drinks. The food that we consume should be sweet, cold and liquid. Meat of animals and birds living in desert-like regions are alright. Rice, milk, ghee, grapes, tender coconut, can be eaten. One can use fresh fruit juices, lemon juice and thin buttermilk to replenish the fluids that are lost due to sweat.

Include a lot of fruits and vegetables in the form of salads and juices preferably without sugar in your diet. Use tulsi seeds in your drinks as this has a cooling effect.

Eat light, nutritious and non-fatty meals. Reduce intake of heaty vegetables and fruits like spinach, radish, hot peppers, onions, garlic, beetroot and pineapple. Minimise the intake of dried fruits. Cut down intake of fried foods like vadas, samosas, chips, bhajies, etc. Fat has a thermal effect.

Avoid caffeinated or carbonated beverages and those high in sugar. All these drinks contain preservatives, colours and sugars. Avoid sugary foods especially honey and molasses and stick to natural sugars available from fruits and veggies. They are acidic in nature and act as diuretics. Such foods cause loss of fluids through urine. Excessive intake of soft drinks increase phosphorous levels in the blood and in turn displace calcium from bones making them porous and brittle. It also causes plaque on teeth, kidney stones, arthritis and problems related to bones.

A floral head dress of garlands prepared from the petals of lotus and lily are good. Wear light coloured cotton clothes and cover the exposed areas. Use fragrances like sandal, lavender and rose that are cooling.

Try to stay in cooler places like beautiful lakes, wells, rivers and forests which are cool and spread pleasant fragrances.

Ideally, sleep in places equipped with water coolers during the day and at night in an open area with sweet smelling flowers all around.

Pitta pacifying lifestyle and diet is recommended in summer as Pitta will be aggravated in this season. One can go for Pitta pacifying treatment like Ksheeradhara, takradhara (buttermilk), Jaladhara and mud bath during summer.

PATHYA - FOOD TO EAT

• Grains: New rice, red rice, shashti rice
  
• Vegetables: Bottle gourd, bhindi, snake gourd
  
• Legumes: Tur dal, moong dal, masur dal
• Meat: Goat, duck, deer, rabbit
  
• Tubers : Potato, tapioca, suran, kamalkanda
• Fruits: Orange, sweet lime, mango, banana, cucumber, sugarcane, custard apple, grape
• Milk Products: Cream, milk, butter, thin buttermilk, piyusha
• Water: Rose water, matka water (water from earthen pot)

APATHYA - FOOD TO AVOID

• Grains - White millet, ragi, and barley
  
• Vegetables - Brinjal, drumstick, bitter gourd, fenugreek, red pumpkin
  
• Legumes: Hyacinth bean, pea, and sweet pea.
  
• Meat: Dry meat, roasted meat, and fish
  
• Tuber: Turnip, garlic, onion
• Fruits: Black plum, jack fruit, hog plum, wood apple
• Milk Products: Thick buttermilk, kadhi, lassi (salty)
  
• Other things: Mustard, asafoetida, lavang, mint, sesame, chilies
• Water: Hot water

Contact Dr GG at gg@civilsocietyonline.com

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