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In Ayurveda, every food is put into one of the 6 taste categories: sweet, sour, salty, pungent, astringent, and bitter.
Each taste feeds our mind, body and spirit in its own unique way.
The six tastes are combinations of the five elements of nature. For instance, sweetness results from the combination of water and earth. Sour is composed of earth and fire; the salty taste is fire and water; the bitter taste is air and ether. The pungent taste is fire and air, while the astringent taste is air and earth.
In the United States, we have three major tastes: sweet, sour, and salty. We often have meals that are much too salty. Or we eat too many sweets after the meal, which leaves us unbalanced, and very soon we will be craving one of the tastes that were left out of the meal.
Nutritional imbalance is a primary cause of obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease. Balance and proper nourishment coming from nature are the keys to overall good health and well-being.
The primary reason that so many individuals experience excessive sweet cravings is due to the lack of a good source of healthy, nutritious whole grains in their diet. Whole grains provide many benefits:
Breakfast is an important meal of the day. For many of us, we either skip this meal or choose to eat foods that are dry (breakfast bars), light (dry cereal), or cold (cold milk with cereal). All of which increase the qualities of Vata.
Taking in whole, warm grains, like quinoa, steel-cut oats, and rice is the best way to start your day. They will sustain your energy throughout the day and boost your metabolism. Whole grains help your body burn more fat because they take extra effort to break down than processed grains and carbohydrates. Whole foods that are rich in fiber, like rice and oatmeal, are best. Processed carbohydrates like bagels, bread, and even processed packaged oatmeal spikes up your blood sugar and stress hormone levels which will leave you crashing later.
Best Grains for Kapha:
Best Grains for Pitta:
Best Grains for Vata:
Get your energy boost for the rest of the day with these power recipes and skip the calorie-laden convenience foods that leave you hungry before lunch! Any of these can be adapted with the doshic appropriate grains of your choice: stewed fruit with quinoa cereal, yummy oatmeal, rice cereal, warm cinnamon maple quinoa cereal.
Photo courtesy of Morguefile.com.
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