Ayurvedic Nutrition

Proponents of Ayurveda claim it is the oldest healing system. Its existence has been documented for 5,000 years, and its origins go back farther. Ayurveda is a holistic method of health that focuses on mental, physical and social aspects of your health. While not all-encompassing, nutrition is a large part of this health system. Ayurveda uses nutrition to not only prevent disease but also to treat it. Ayurveda is a wide system of health, so work with an Ayurvedic expert to learn the proper methods, and speak to your doctor before using Ayurveda to treat an illness.

Focus

Ayurveda embodies a different focus than many forms of nutrition and overall health. The word "ayurveda" puts a focus on life, whereas many other natural healing methods contain the word "pathy," which emphasizes disease. Likewise, modern Western medicine has a heavy concentration on treating disease, instead of a holistic view of a healthy life.

Principles

Nutrition is a large part of the Ayurvedic health system. Ayurveda follows the belief that foods provide energy and create a healthy body and mind. Four principles based on Ayurveda claim that people are drawn to and need different foods, food is extremely important in disease prevention, the taste of food is nutritionally important, and the digestion of food has just as much impact as the food itself.

Types

Ayurveda groups people into different categories. If you have a vata constitution, categorized by creativity and distractability, you should eat sour, salty and sweet foods. Sweet foods refer to foods that are naturally sweet -- not processed sugars. Pittas, who are passionate and work-driven, consume bitter, sweet and astringent foods. Kaphas, marked by stability and a slow pace, enjoy bitter, astringent and spicy foods. These foods are thought to help each type be the healthiest physically, mentally and spiritually. Also, the diet you crave might not be best for your constitution. And although you might fit into one group, you are also a combination of all three.

Whole Foods

Ayurvedic nutrition includes fresh and natural whole foods. This follows a belief that processing food changes it and causes it to lose energy. Also, natural food does not have additives that go against Ayurvedic beliefs. Modern followers of Ayurveda understand that this goal can be difficult to achieve with the modern prevalence of processed food, but they recommend consuming natural food as much as possible.