To Restore Your Natural Balance, Health and Energy

"Let food be thy medicine, and let thy medicine be food" -Hippocrates

Ayurveda is neither an academic subject nor a weird exotic theory. Ayurveda means “the science of life” and is a holistic approach to healing. It is based on ancient Eastern methods that help you attain health by re-establishing the body's natural balance and energy.

In this article, I will tell you how to benefit from Ayurveda in your busy everyday life. I will give you information about your doshas, some practical tips to know which of them needs balancing and how you can find and that balance.

Benefit from Ayurveda in your everyday life

Ayurveda is best understood as a way of life. But that does not prevent you from applying its basic principles to your everyday life, in order to benefit from them.

For instance, did you know that when you have a cold, avoiding dairy products and sweets helps you to recover faster? Or that when you are nervous -or anxious- eating salads is NOT the best idea? You might know however that when you are irritable -or angry- spicy foods are not recommendable.

It all depends on the state of your doshas. Doshas, or humors, are the three basic constitutional types pursuant to Ayurveda: Vata, Pitta and Kapha (collectively called the tridosha). The Vata energy is composed by air and ether. The Pitta energy is made up of fire and water. The Kapha energy is composed by Earth and Water.

Each of us has an Ayurvedic constitution, where one of the doshas predominates over the others. Some people are bi-doshic, meaning that two of their doshas are equally strong. Generally speaking, Ayurvedic body types are as follows:

Vata people are usually thin-framed, nervous, imaginative, artistic, sensitive, and creative. Pitta people are usually medium-framed, rational, sharp-minded, competitive and goal oriented people. Kapha people are usually more heavily framed and tend to be calm, caring, patient and compassionate.

When the natural balance in your doshas is deranged, ailments appear. So the way to health is to restore their natural balance. But how do you know which of your doshas is deranged?

How to know which of your doshas needs balancing

Ayurveda For You Comprehensive website on Ayurveda. Learn Ayurveda through ebooks, free email courses, free newsletter, Online certificate courses.We ship Ayurvedic medicines world wide.

Ayurvedic expert practitioners examine your radial pulse with their fingers (Nadi diagnosis) and are able to identify up to 95 per cent of all known diseases from your pulse alone. They also check your tongue, face, eyes, nails and lips. They look closely at your pathological symptoms and many factors involving your general lifestyle, behavior and diet, in order to make recommendations that will balance you. It is a very comprehensive and holistic way to diagnose.

And if you study and begin to understand Ayurveda, you realize that your own body can tell you many things. Because, as Dr. John Diamond says, “your body doesn’t lie”. If you are experiencing some ailments like depression, constipation, dizziness, restless mind, insomnia, sciatica, backache, rheumatoid arthritis, varicose veins, menstrual disorders, dry skin or even wrinkles, chances are that your Vata dosha has being deranged. Negative emotions like fear, anxiety, timidity, lack of confidence, apprehension or nervousness contribute to derange the Vata dosha.

But if you are experiencing some ailments like irritability, anger, bitter taste in the mouth, peptic ulcer, hypertension, migraine headache, liver disorder or hemorrhoids, chances are that your Pitta dosha has being deranged. Negative emotions like anger, hatred, intolerance, resentment, impatience, indignation or irritability contribute to derange the Pitta dosha.

On the other side, if you are feeling very lethargic or your are experiencing ailments like sore throat, bronchitis, emphysema, or sinus congestion, chances are that your Kapha dosha has been deranged. Lethargy and negative emotions like stubbornness, possessiveness, greed or jealousy contribute to derange the Kapha dosha.

A quick Tibetan test

Your body can also tell you in some simple ways. Just observe it. Tibetans, for instance, use a simple daily test to know when they have a tendency towards a derangement of Vata, Pitta or Kapha. They collect their urine in a clear transparent jar first thing in the morning. Then they check the urine’s appearance to determine if they have an excess of air (Vata), bile (Pitta) or phlegm (Kapha) in their bodies at that moment.

How can they tell? Simple. If the urine looks watery, almost transparent, there is an excess of air in their bodies (Vata). If the urine has a strong yellow or brownish appearance, fire (Pitta) is predominant in their bodies at that moment. If the urine looks very pale and foaming, there is a predominance of phlegm (Kapha) in their bodies.

How can you balance a Vata, Pitta or Kapha derangement?

Ayurveda offers many ways to heal and restore your natural balance and energy. A targeted diet to “pacify” your specific deranged dosha is one of them. These are the general principles:

To pacify Vata: Realize that Vata is cold and dry. So have hot drinks like ginger tea, or chamomile tea. Center your diet around broths, cheese (warm, not cold) –as long as you are not lactose intolerant- , carrots, onions and spinach –cooked, not raw- , garlic and spices.Avoid cold foods such as salads (because raw salads increase the air in your body) and ice cream. Generally speaking, avoid cold foods, raw foods and dry foods. Eat warm, oily, moist foods instead. Have also regular meal times. Regularity is important too.

To pacify Pitta: Realize that Pitta is hot. So balance it with cold light foods such as cool water, salads, yoghurt and cooling herbs. Avoid meat and alcohol. Also avoid sour, salty, fried and spicy foods. Boring diet? Not necessarily, since Pitta people can enjoy oatmeal or pancakes for breakfast, salads for lunch and rice dishes and pasta for dinner.

To balance Kapha: Realize that Kapha is heavy, cold and humid. So balance it with dry, light foods, spices, vegetables and salads. Avoid sweet and salty foods. Also avoid dairy foods (because they are heavy and produce mucus in your body), fried foods (because they are oily) and frozen foods. Wheat is not good for Kapha. But you can enjoy muesli (without wheat) for breakfast and drink apple juice instead of cold milk. You can also enjoy salads (but with very little oil-based dressing) for lunch and dishes with basmati rice (other types of rice are heavy) or millet, or baked apples with clove and cinnamon for dinner.

What about life styles, daily routines and leisure?

Generally speaking, Vata people need to introduce regularity to their lives. Routine is good to pacify Vata. Yoga, meditation or gentle –not exhausting- exercises are good for Vata. Pitta people, on the other hand, tend to be very organized and are sometimes too achievement-oriented, so relaxing things and activities that do not involve competition (like a relaxing walk, or water and winter sports) are good to pacify an excess of Pitta. Kapha people tend to dislike exercise, but can derive benefit from it once they are motivated. They can also benefit from activity vacations that sparkle new interests. Reviewing and changing their routine often is beneficial for Kapha people.

Any other Ayurvedic treatments?

Sri Lanka Ayurveda Traditional Ayurveda retreats & SPA's

As previously said, Ayurveda expert practitioners resort to many ways to heal and restore your natural balance and energy. A targeted diet for your dosha is just one of them. They use pre-detoxification techniques like massage with oils specific for your dosha (or snehana karma), sweat therapies (or swedana karma), yoga, internal detoxification (or panchakarma), herbal natural remedies, sound therapy (or manthra karma) and even rejuvenation therapies (or rasayana).

Ayurveda is not only about therapy. It also teaches you how to contact your own awareness, how to bring it into balance, and how to extend that balance to the body. Ayurveda is a natural holistic approach for your body, mind and spirit.

Enjoy.

By Javier Ramon Brito

Souce: www.personal-growth-can-be-fun.com

Private participation sought in promoting ayurveda

Food Processing Industries Minister Subodh Kant Sahay Monday called for increased participation from the private sector in the growth and development of ayurveda as an alternative system of medicine.

Speaking at the Botanicals in Integrated Health Care Convention 2010 here, Sahay said: 'We need to fortify the resources for the development of ayurveda and for that purpose private participation is important. Along with the government initiatives private players need to play an active role'.

The three-day international convention, which began Sunday, focuses on bringing ayurveda into mainstream medical practices for its high degree of efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

The convention is being attended by representatives of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries along with 300 delegates from various fields like conservation, herbal drug industry, marketing, research and development.

Satyanand Nath Jana received the Motivation Award for Cultivation of Medicinal Plants in Memory of Jagadish Chandra Bose. He has been cultivating various rare species of medicinal plants for the past 25 years.

Source: Sify

Ayurveda should be declared a national medicine system

With around 50 years of experience as a physician, teacher and preacher of Ayurveda, Dr Pandurang H Kulkarni founded the Ayurveda Academy in Pune, way back in 1991. As dean of the faculty of Ayurvedic medicine at the University of Pune (UoP), he was the first to start a structured academic course in Ayurveda in Adelaide, Australia. Kulkarni has authored many books and is chief editor of Deerghayu International, a quarterly journal dedicated to Ayurveda. DNA finds out more...

Why is the Ayurvedic system of medicine considered an alternative discipline?
Today, the Ayurvedic system of medicine is the most popular alternative discipline; alternative because it is still unfamiliar to majority of the people.

Ayurveda is the first scientific system of medicine in the world. Most of what is exercised today in this field was researched, practised and placed in written form over 2,000 years ago in India as part of the Vedas — the holy scriptures of Vedic practices.

This ancient wisdom of healing, using naturally available herbs and plants, was based on human investigation. It is noted in the four Vedas of Rig, Sama, Yajur and Atharva.

The Atharva Veda is what gave a real start to Ayurveda because it is here that its practice is mentioned in more detail, including its anatomy and physiology.

From the logical analysis of recurrent phenomena of healing, the basic principles of Ayurveda were deduced. This was followed by many more trials to correct the errors.

Why are we lagging behind in propagating Ayurveda at the global level?
Ayurveda is India’s medicine science and I have time and again proposed to the government of India to declare it a national medicine system. If China can declare Chinese medicine as its national system, why can’t India?

In 1963, I took the first such initiative in Maharashtra to start a PhD research programme in Ayurveda, thinking that theses for Phd can be a distinctive contribution to the knowledge of Ayurveda. At that time, only Gujarat Ayurveda University in Jamnagar and Banaras Hindu University had started similar programmes.

Though a department of Ayurveda was started at the UoP in 1999, it was closed in 2009 due to bureaucracy.

How can we promote and popularise Ayurveda all over the world?
Our aim for Ayurveda must be to get recognition in the world. In the last two decades, research work in Ayurveda has started in the true sense with a disciplined methodology.

Research on modern lines is essential to promote Ayurveda.

There has been active research all over the world on various plants and their healing qualities. The government of India has also taken an initiative to collect data on the research work carried out in the country and has documented it through abstract publishing.

The government is doing this at the regional level as well and we have research centres all over the country now.

For example, around 10 years ago, we successfully screened and published results on Ayurvedic plant preparations that have anti-cancer and antioxidant properties at the zoology department of Shivaji University in Kolhapur.

Will a comparative study of Ayurveda and modern medicine help?
Though integrating modern and Ayurveda medicines is a far-sighted dream, we need medical scholars from both disciplines to do a comparative study. Today, while teaching Ayurveda, we also include modern medicinal procedures so that practitioners can understand and interpret modern medical reports.

It is now possible to do Doctor of Medicine (MD) in Ayurveda choosing 20 different specialisations.

What is lacking in the present system of rendering Ayurvedic education?
The number of students who aspire to graduate in the Ayurvedic medicine system has increased and the number of Ayurvedic institutes has also gone up tremendously in the country.

However, the infrastructure is lacking. We need Ayurvedic hospitals where patients can come for treatment and practising students can apply their knowledge. We need more manufacturing units for students to see the various processes and how the end product is made.

If there are no patients, students will not be able to gain experience.

Source: DNA

Workshops to enable techies achieve better health score cards

Concerned over the growing health issues faced by IT professionals here, the government has proposed to conduct health workshop, training modules and treatment sessions to help them achieve a better health score card, according to G N Sreekantaiah, Director of the Department of Ayush, Government of Karnataka.

"The Department through a tie up with private Ayurvedic players, proposes to conduct workshops, training sessions and treatment sessions for techies", Sreekantaiah who is also Chairman, 4th World Ayurveda Congress Events Organising Committee, told PTI on the sidelines of the event here today. "Many of the IT professionals suffer from eye problems owing to long hours spent before the computer. They also complaint of lack of concentration, stress and insomnia. Some of the professionals also suffer from reproductive ailments and complaint of infertility", he said. Many of the health problems arose from their lifestyle. Many of these fall in the age profile of 25 to 45. "In fact some of the diseases often afflicting those 55 plus, were found among techies as early as 40-45", he said. "There was need to preserve the health of the IT professionals who contribute to the GDP of the country", he said by initiating them into the preventive and curative system of ancient Indian health systems. The Department of Ayush (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) plans to set up awareness classes for these professionals by focussing on holistic lifestyle and treatment. "These workshops and training would include, yoga, meditation, training, and choice of Ayurvedic treatment to address their various ailments", he said. "We are open to the idea of conducting these programmes on the campus itself or at a chosen venue", he said. The programmes would be conducted through a private-public partnership model with the department initially tying up with four leading Ayurvedic companies for the same. According to Dr Mruthyunjaya, Managing Director, Sahthayu Ayurveda, one of the partners in the proposed programme, "around 80 per cent of our clietns are from the IT industry. Many of them come in with complaints of obesity and related complications, erectile dysfunction, infertility and polycystic ovaries syndrome", "Many of these were in the 30-40 age profile", he said. Speaking on the inititatives taken up by IT firm Infosys, its co-founder Shibulal, said the campus has been designed to provide a good ambience. "There is excellent health care and medical facility, there is a swimming pool, cycling, lot of place to walk, to relax. We understand the work is a little taxing, but now they work for reasonable hours, the long hours is an old story", he said. Some set of professionals were also allowed flexibility in work schedules, he said. "We hold a lot of activities, yoga, dance floor, lot of activities in the office which they can take part in. There are lot of awareness programmes we conduct. People can come and attend those awarenes programmes" , he said. "IT industy is not the only exception when it comes to pressure at work. Like others the professionals they need to take preventive, eat healthy, at the end of the day you need to have a lot of personal discipline", he said. source: deccanherald.com

Ayurveda therapy for shoulder pain

A frozen shoulder can be caused due to heart or lung problems and also diabetes, especially in people aged over 40 years. It is more common in women, says Dr K Sudha Asokan.

According to ayurveda , a frozen shoulder is known as Ababahuka . It is pure vata roga. Vitiated vata dosha absorbs the fluid (kapha ) of the joint causing Ababahuka .

Sign and symptoms
Stiff , painful shoulder with progressive limitation of movement begins gradually and worsen over time . Pain often worst at night and when lying on affected side. Patient has difficulty with normal daily tasks Usually occurs on one side. It can spread to the other shoulder . Happens mostly to people in their 40s, 50s and 60 s. More common in women .

Causes
May be due to synovitis , rupture of capsule or a lesion in muscle complex round the joint , specially in the supraspinatus . There may be history of trauma , arm immobilized in a specific position for long .
Heart or lung problems can be linked to shoulder pain . Cardiac surgery could lead to frozen shoulder . Diabetes is a common associated condition .

Ayurveda treatment

If frozen shoulder caused by secondary group , Panchkarma and Kerala therapy are very effective . Ayurveda treatment aims to bring vitiated vata in equilibrium . Most popular Kerala therapy is pizhichil (squeezing of medicated oil with the help of cotton cloth all over the body along with massage ).
Elakizhi : Special herbal pack massage with pizhichil gives strength to the muscle and improves the shoulder mobility .

Nasyam : Popular panch karma therapy for all urdhvajatrugata roga .
Duration : 7,14,21 days therapy course depending on the severity of symptoms along with oral medicines for 3-4 months .

Other Treatment
A careful clinical examination is necessary as many diseases are often present with musculoskeletal symptoms .
Physiotherapy .
Anti-inflammatory drugs .
Injection of steroid into the joint in order to reduce inflammation .
Nerve block a short term pain relief option .
Surgery if the above fails .

Source: Times of India

Bringing Ayurveda into healthcare system

BANGALORE: On Sunday, international delegates and representatives from more than 23 countries took a pledge at the 4th World Ayurveda Congress to support, promote and contribute towards the growth and sustenance of Ayurveda.

Representative countries included USA, Canada, UK, Germany, Brazil, Australia, Italy, Greece, Nigeria, Kenya, Malaysia and Singapore.

Secretary General, Vijnana Bharati, India, A Jayakumar said the vision was to make Ayurveda an integral part of the healthcare system, not only in India but across the world.

“Ayurveda, representing various organisations and institutions, will work towards helping Ayurveda attain its rightful place in the world as a scientific form of health and overall wellbeing,” he said.

“Just like renewable energy has been taken seriously by countries the world over, there needs to be a conscious effort on our part to make ayurveda a global movement,” he said.

Relating from his experience, Dr Antoni Morandi from Italy, said when he switched from neurology to ayurveda “I at once had a feeling of being all alone”.

“The fire — Agni of transformation kept me going,” he said. “I want all of us to be connected and this pledge will serve as a glue to keep us linked and will instill strength and vigor in our mission to spread ayurveda.”

Safe stamp

Yet another figure from Germany, Dr Mark Rosenberg said ayurveda needed quality, measurement in and outside India so that people feel safe while opting for ayurveda for cure. “I feel that there was a need to focus on establishing a structure to ayurveda rather than the tourism aspect,” he said.

Ayurveda Practitioners Seek Uniform Regulations

Delegates representing 23 countries at the 4th World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo near here took a pledge to promote and contribute to the growth and sustenance of the Ayurvedic traditional system of medicine.

The delegates sought standard government regulations for the system, saying it is gaining popularity at the global level.

They said people in many countries are consuming Ayurvedic medicine and food supplements.

The delegates felt that though practitioners abroad depended on research done by Indian doctors on Ayurveda, researchers in the field have received very little encouragement from the government.

Dr Anonio Morandi, an Ayurveda practitioner from Italy, said that though India has a lot of potential in guiding the world about Ayurveda, there was no governmental support.

K. Satish Nair, a delegate from Malaysia, said the Ayurvedic medical system must be in unison with current and traditional medical law.

"There should be a good fusion of medicine in order to give mankind a good choice," said the managing director of Biourah (M) Sdn Bhd.

Source: bernama.com

Dr Geetha Krishna: Ayurveda will be as popular as yoga in the West ‎

Ayurveda is one branch of medicine that has a lot of scope in countries outside India. Practices such as yoga have a huge following in the West, and soon Ayurveda too will make its mark felt, feels Dr Geetha Krishna, organising secretary, World Ayurveda Congress & Expo, in conversation with DNA. Arogya Expo will be held from December 9 to 13 in Bangalore.

What is the purpose of the Ayurveda Congress?
The theme of this year’s programme is ‘Ayurveda for All’. Despite having a great legacy of healthcare and treatment in our country, people are not too keen on this method of treatment. So we will be showcasing its potential, stressing the fact that it is a recognised medical practice. We have over 1,250 scientific papers which will be presented during the congress.

Is there anything happening that could interest the common man?
Yes, we will be having an Ayurveda Expo where the best of ayurvedic products and practices will be showcased,by leading companies.

How was the response last year? What are your expectations this time?
The earlier three editions of the congress which were held in Kochi, Pune and Jaipur saw a great response. This year, over 4,000 participants including 300 delegates from 34 countries will be there.

How will the ayurveda medical industry benefit?
There will be a training session on good manufacturing practices. Sessions will be conducted by the National Sanitation Foundation, a US-based non-profit organisation, which will provide standards in development, product certification, public health and safety. Fifty selected companies in ayurvedic medicine manufacturing in India are shortlisted for this session. They will be trained on the production of ayurvedic medicines in accordance with international standards.

What are the other highlights of the congress?
The interaction between traditional healers and certified practitioners, for one. We have many traditional practitioners who are aware of ancient and hereditary healing techniques and treatment methods. The congress will be a forum for them to exchange notes.

What are the prospects for ayurveda medicine abroad?
Ayurveda medicine has a lot of takers abroad. The number of foreign delegates who will be coming for the congress indicates the interest. There are over 300 delegates from Europe and the Americas.

Though yoga, which is part of ayurveda, is popular in the West, Ayurveda itself has not reached that level of acceptance in the West. The government could promote ayurveda abroad.

World Ayurveda Congress in Bangalore from December 9

The 4th edition of the World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo, will be held at Palace Grounds, from 9 to 13 December 2010. The focal theme for this edition of WAC is ‘Ayurveda for all’ and it will bring together stakeholders from India and abroad.




The importance of Ayurveda has become a gradual realization for people not only in our country but also globally. The popularization of this ancient Indian medicine form is required to make known its significance. This is primarily what the Department of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) is hoping to do by organizing the Fourth World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo starting from the 9th of December till the 13th held in the Palace Grounds, Bangalore.

World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo is an effort to consolidate the momentum of this forum and provide a robust boost to the growing global popularity of Ayurveda and associated fields. With nearly half a million visitors and about 5000 delegates expected to be in attendance this year, the Congress is reinforcing its identity as a global summit that brings together diverse stakeholders of Ayurveda on to a common, meaningful, and popular platform. In the associated expo, Arogya 2010, the spotlight this year will be on traditional and tribal knowledge in health-care systems from India’s rural and tribal communities, with special focus on north-eastern states.

The focal theme of the 4th World Ayurveda Congress is ‘Ayurveda for all’. The academic sessions of the Congress are structured in such a way that the plenary sessions will take on the evolution of various concepts and the parallel sessions emerging from the plenary topics. The plenaries will be addressed by the most eminent scientists, academicians, policy makers or Ayurveda practitioners. The 4th WAC will also showcase as to how Ayurveda can provide safe, cost-efficient, and effective health care for all.

On account of this the Secretary of the Department of AYUSH, S Jalaja, said the department was striving to popularize Ayurveda. “More colleges are being set up and preparations are on to upgrade the syllabus, create basic infrastructure and teaching staff to ensure quality education,” she said. She also added that the main intention of the congress was to standardize and integrate health and tourism and also to create a global market for Ayurveda. The global meet is expected to attract delegates from 34 countries and several state governments, institutions, NGOs, practitioners, drug manufacturers and cultivators. Those expected to address the summit, include Ghulam Nabi Azad and Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa.