Dr. Priya Barai ( Gold Medalist )

Inflammation or soojan in the body can make it difficult for you to follow your daily routine. According to Ayurveda, this is caused by an imbalance of the pitta dosha. As the pitta dosha increases, the heat in the body also increases leading to inflammation and other issues. To reduce the pitta dosha, one must consume foods that are not hot or warm in nature and increase the consumption of foods that have a cooling effect.

7 amazing foods that can really help:

1. Turmeric: Turmeric contains an important anti-inflammatory compound known as curcumin. This can help reduce inflammation associated with arthritis, arteriosclerosis, asthma, and cancer. It also reduces the effects of inflammatory oxidants such as nitric oxide. Turmeric can be used to flavor foods or steeped into a tea.
2. Flax: Nuts such as flax and pumpkin seeds are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids. They also help cool the body. Some other nuts and seeds that you could include in your diet are almonds that have been soaked in water overnight and peeled, sunflower seeds, coconut and popcorn without salt. Avoid nuts such as brazilian nuts, chia seeds, cashew nuts, walnuts and sesame seeds as they can increase body temperature.
3. Garlic: Garlic is a wonder food that is very important in a pitta pacifying diet. Along with other nutrients, garlic contains allicin that has strong anti-inflammatory properties. Consuming garlic on a regular basis can also help protect a person against heart diseases by reducing inflammation in the veins and arteries.
4. Ginger: According to Ayurveda, ginger is considered as an universal medicine. This herb has anti-inflammatory properties that help reduce inflammation. It also aids in digestion and promotes healthy blood circulation. The best way to consume ginger to fight inflammation is to steep it in a tea.
5. Whole grains: To reduce the pitta dosha, you should include plenty of dry, sweet whole grains in your diet. This includes barley, oats, quinoa, wheat and rice. These foods are good sources of fiber and proteins. They also have a low glycemic index and help maintain body temperature.
6. Leafy vegetables: Vegetables that reduce the pitta dosha are usually sweet and astringent. These vegetables are best eaten raw at mid-day when the digestive system is functioning at its peak. Lettuce, kale, leeks, collard greens and wheat grass are some of the vegetables that you must include in your diet. On the other hand, avoid spicy vegetables like green chillies, onions, and radishes.
7. Tomatoes: Tomatoes contain lycopene that helps reduce inflammation in the lungs. This vegetable can be consumed raw or juiced but when cooked, the lycopene amount increases. However, avoid raw tomatoes as they can irritate the digestive system.

The Ayurvedic Garbha Sanskar offers a list of guidelines for would-be parents
The aim of any parent is to bear and nurture a healthy, capable child who can face the pressures of our increasingly complex lifestyles. An Ayurvedic solution to this situation has slowly gained momentum - a process called Garbha Sanskar.

Garbha Sanskar is both a medical practice and a 'culture'. Just like a person brought up in a musician's house imbibes a musical culture, the child is conditioned within the womb. The practice has been developed over four decades of research and medical practice. Tambe says, "If women are provided with expert guidance during pregnancy and the early years of their children, it will have an immense impact on society."

What it Involves-

Traditional diet planning, the use of herbal preparations, yoga, music, behavioural suggestions, and medicines are all used in harmony. The idea is to enhance every aspect of the mother's life. Ideally, preparations should start at least a year before conception. Garbha Sanskar covers pregnancy, childbirth and guides parents until the child is two years old. Parents who have followed these instructions say their babies are able to hold their heads up, turn on their side and begin speaking earlier than other babies. They sleep soundly for several hours and have far fewer health concerns than their peers. In some cases, they show extra-ordinary development.

What Ayurveda Says?

When the sun is out, it means your digestion is functioning at its optimum. Always aim to eat your meals between sunrise and sunset (not before or after). Our jatara agni is at is strongest when the sun is at its highest in the sky-

1. Eat light, sattvic and pure foods for breakfast; fresh squeezed juice, fresh fruit etc.
2. Have positivity when you are eating and digesting your food.

Negative emotions cause us to overeat or under-eat-

An understanding of the negative emotions (in relation to our major energy centres (chakras)) that disturb our Being and cause us to overeat or under-eat.

Modern day illnesses such as anxiety, depression, stress are all related to food.

Health During Pregnancy-

A beautiful dhyana (meditation), asana (body postures) and pranayama (breathing techniques) practice that addresses (cleanses and energizes) the three major chakras (energy centres) that are responsible for all over our health during pregnancy.

Our thoughts are energy, mantras are chanted during pregnancy affects your baby blissfully.

Some guidelines for childcare-

1. Until the child is two years old, it needs regular oil massages to help growth
2. While he or she can start eating other food after it is six months old, it must be breastfed until it is a year old
3. Do not place the baby's bed under direct light
4. Avoid loud and disturbing noises, introduce new foods gradually, and allow the baby to start eating by itself at a certain age even if it creates a mess

Psoriasis can be defined as a skin condition which is caused due to auto-immune disorders within the body. This is a condition where the skin on the body develops raised and dry areas which are reddish in colour while also being bordered by silvery scales. 

Treatment of psoriasis in Ayurveda
Ayurveda has a different slant to conventional medicine with regards to the treatment of psoriasis. According to ayurveda, it is the impurities in the blood which cause the immune system to react adversely and cause this condition. Ayurveda concentrates on treating the underlying problems through the combination of changes in diet, home remedies and certain medications to treat this disorder. Some of them are mentioned below:

Changes in diet which will help purify the symptoms - Some advice that is usually given to patients to clean up their diet and include certain other items are as follows:

1. Avoid spicy food and try to eat food which can be easily broken down within the digestive system
2. Inclusion of more fruits and fruit juices in your diet
3. Also include vegetables and also have a mix of boiled vegetables daily.
4. It is better to avoid animal products such as animal fats, eggs, canned and processed foods from your diet.
5. Regular consumption of butter milk and curd are known to be very good in blood purification and thus should be consumed in large quantities. 

Some ayurvedic tips and ingredients which can help treat psoriasis 
Other tips that can be implemented as skin applications to treat psoriasis are as follows: 

1. Use avocado oil to rub on the affected areas as it is known to be an effective treatment when applied long term.
2. Ensure that the skin is always moisturized by applying a soft, cream or gel.
3. Periodic baths in sea water if possible is also good for lessening the symptoms of psoriasis.
4. Aloe vera cream applied specifically on the patches is known to also lessen them overtime.

Few other tips to follow

1. Get into deep breathing and meditation to ensure that your body and mind are relaxed as this is very important during the healing process
2. Expose the affected areas of your skin to mild sunlight for about half an hour daily as it is known to improve symptoms.

If placed side by side, you may confuse a cucumber with a zucchini and vice versa. Given that both have a dark green skin, are long and cylindrical , you wouldn’t be the only one to be confused. However, try using one in place of the other and you’ll realize your mistake in a second. Let’s take a look at some of the differences between these two vegetables.

1. Fruit or Vegetable: Though they may look similar, cucumbers and zucchini do not belong to the same family. Cucumbers belong to the gourd family while zucchini belongs to the Cucurbita family. Technically speaking, cucumbers are considered to be a fruit by many people. However, you wouldn’t really put a cucumber in a fruit salad.
2. Know just by touching it: When you touch a cucumber, it is relatively softer as compared to a zucchini. A cucumber will also feel cool and waxy while a zucchini is more likely to feel rough and dry. Cucumbers may feel a little bumpy to touch while zucchinis are typically smoother.
3. How does it taste: Cucumbers are generally eaten raw while zucchinis are cooked. However, cucumbers can also be cooked and zucchini may be eaten raw or pickled. Tastewise, cucumbers have a fresh taste and are juicy due to high water content. On the other hand, zucchinis have a heartier flavor and may even tend to be slightly bitter. When cooked, zucchini holds its shape better than cucumbers that wilt easily. However, zucchini softens when cooked while cucumbers will maintain a slight crunch. It is also important to note that zucchini flowers are edible while cucumber flowers are not.
4. Calories: Cucumbers have a slightly lower calorific value as compared to zucchini. Zucchini is richer in vitamin B and vitamin C as compared to cucumbers. Both vegetables have relatively equal amounts of calcium but zucchini is richer than cucumbers in potassium and iron. Zucchini also has a higher amount of protein and fiber.
5. The best way to eat it: Cucumbers are ideally eaten raw or pickled. A cold cucumber can be quite refreshing on a hot summer day. Cucumbers typically find themselves in salads or sandwiches. They can also be used to flavor water. On the other hand, zucchinis taste better when baked or stir-fried. Apart from being chopped and used as vegetables, zucchini is often made into the shape of noodles that are popularly known as zoodles. Zucchini can also be shredded and baked in loaves of bread and muffins.

The bean-shaped organ kidneys in our body is one of the most important parts that helps in eliminating waste products from the body and also for maintaining the hormonal balance. But due to various reasons such as stress or wrong diet, often the kidneys may face irregular working disorder.

Of course, there are a number of medicines today and also medical treatments to cure various kidney diseases. But if you are not pretty sure of taking such treatments and wish to have something much secure, then trying the home remedies can be the best thing. Ayurveda has a list of remedies that help in curing such kidney issues.

Things To Avoid

1. Reducing Salt Intake: When the condition of the kidney is not feasible, consuming salt over it can make the situation even worse. If you are urinating, again and again, this means that your body already have an excess amount of potassium and the kidney failure is may be due to an abnormal balance of hormones in the body fluid. Hence, it is the best thing to take a low salt diet. Consuming frozen food items may also add extra salt to the body and hence an ideal practice is to go for fresh fruits, vegetables and meat items.
2. Lowering Protein Intake: Now, this is a tricky thing and you need to cross check this. There are many times when kidney problems take place due to the high amount of protein intake while some other times it takes place due to lack of protein in the body. So, lowering the protein intake can be done to cross check whether the condition is improving or not.

Remedies To Follow

1. Herbal Tea: Among various natural remedies that can be started to cure kidney ailments, one of the best one is to include herbal tea in the diet. There are a number of herbal tea options that can be included in your daily diets such as dandelion tea, blueberry tea and marshmallow tea, but the one that is said to affect the most is the green tea. Green tea is said to be high in antioxidant properties and hence they are great in curing kidney ailments.
2. Aloe Vera Juice: This one plant helps in curing a number of issues both externally as well as internally. Whether it is skin issue or intestine issue, aloe vera juice can be of great help. Aloe Vera has an anti-oxidant property and hence it is great in treating kidney infection and then curing the diseases of the kidney completely.
3. Water: This can be the simplest way to treat any kind of kidney problem. If you are in the initial stage of any kidney ailment, then the best way is to treat it with water. Drink at least about 6-8 glasses of water each day that will allow you to urinate more and hence the problem may get cured.
4. Yoga: Pranayam, suryanamaskar and meditation should be followed everyday. 

There are different medicines and also herbs available to treat kidney dysfunction. But these above mentioned can be the easiest methods of all. In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

When the immune system of the body reacts against the tissues of its own body, it is called an autoimmune disorder. To put it more dramatically, the body becomes its own enemy. The immune system of your body keeps fighting disease causing germs and bacteria, but in rare cases, the immune system might malfunction and fight its own body causing different disorders. These disorders may be caused due to genetic issues or due to mutations. According to ayurveda, autoimmune disorders are a result of constant unhealthy lifestyle and diet. Ayurveda works at the root cause of the disease where it starts treating the malfunctioning immune system. Here is how ayurveda treats autoimmune disorders:

1. Toxin removal: Ayurveda starts working on removing the toxins from the body. According to ayurveda, toxins or ama in the body interfere with the proper functioning of the immune system, which often leads to autoimmune diseases. Usually shunthi, haritaki, pippali, maricha, hingu and saindhav lavan are used to detoxify the body.
2. Metabolism correction: Not only will ayurveda detoxify the body, but it will also correct the metabolism which gets messed up when afflicted with an autoimmune disorder. Neem, guggulu, guduchi, vasa, patola patra and ghrita are used to correct the metabolism.
3. Increase in ojus production: Ojus is the component which helps in the nourishment of the immune system. It is generally received from the food you eat. Due to dysfunctional immune system causing the impairment of metabolism, production of ojas decreases to almost nil. Hence ayurveda increases its production. Guduchi, haridra, manjishtha, amalaki, nirgundi, yashtimadhu and pippali are used to increase ojha production.
4. Immune system correction: Lastly, ayurveda works at correcting the immune system. If the immune system is not corrected, then the above treatment procedure will just be useless. Ghrita, haritaki, bahera, amalaki, ela and dadim are used generally to calm the immune system and rejuvenate it. They help correct the immune system for normal functioning.

Autoimmune disorders may not be easily treated, but that doesn't mean you cannot expect it to cure or witness a miracle. You just need some faith and confidence alongside proper treatment and you are ready to roll. 

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!