Kapha Pacifying Diet

Is your kapha out of balance?
Here's what you can do to pacify your kapha.

Favor the Following Foods -

General - lighter diet.  Dry, warm foods and warm drinks.  Pungent, bitter, astringent tastes.

Grains - old grains, barley, millet, corn, buckwheat, rye, oats, wheat, quinoa, cous cous.

Beans/Daal - all except tofu

Vegetables - green leafy vegetables, asparagus, artichoke, potato, carrot cabbage, beet root (small amounts), cauliflower, broccoli, celery, peas, pepper, sprouts, white pumpkin, zucchini, okra (only dry fried, non-slimy preparation), green papaya, tomato, tender eggplant, tender radish.

Dairy - lassi and buttermilk, low fat milk, small mounts of ghee and while milk

Sweeteners - honey

Oils - mustard, corn, sesame, all in small amounts

Nuts & seeds - sunflower and pumpkin

Spices & condiments - all except salt; especially pungent and sharp spices (pepper, ginger, cumin, etc.), lemon juice in small amounts

Fruits - pomegranate, apple, pear, papaya, jambu, grapes, persimmon, cranberry, raisins, figs, dates (best with honey), peaches, guava.

Avoid or reduce the following foods -

General - large quantities of food, especially at night.  Unctuous, cold, heavy food; sweet, sour and salty tastes

Grains - new grains, especially wheat and rice

Beans - tofu (soy beans)

Vegetables - sweet potatoes, tapioca, other tubers

Dairy - yogurt, cream, butter, whole milk, and ghee in large quantities

Sweeteners - sugar cane products

Nuts - all nuts

Spices & condiments - Salt

Fruits - avocado, banana, pineapple, orange, melon, plum, prunes, mango, coconut, apricot

Vata Pacifying Diet

Is your vata of balance?
Here's what you can do to pacify Vata.

Favor the following foods -  

General - sufficient quantity, unctuous food, warm food and drinks.  Sweet, sour and salty tastes.

Grains - wheat products, rice (whole rice is best), cooked oat flakes in small amounts.

Beans/Daal - yellow mung beans (green skin removed)

Vegetables - white pumpkin, zucchini, okra (lady fingers), artichokes, asparagus, tender eggplant, carrot, beet root, sweet potatoes with fat, tomato, cucumber, tender radish, celery, green papaya spinach in small amounts.

Dairy - All dairy products, cheese should be soft and fresh.

Oils - All

Nuts & Seeds - All except peanuts, seeds in small amounts.

Spices & condiments - cumin, ginger, mustard seeds, fenugreek, hinge (asafoetida), cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, anise, fennel, black pepper (small amounts), salt, lemon juice, tamarind.  All others in small amounts.

Fruits - ripe, sweet and juicy fruits.  Dried fruit is better soaked.  Sweet grapes, pomegranate (sweet and sour), mango, papaya, sweet pineapple, banana, avocado, sweet and juicy apples and pears, sweet oranges, melons, plums, cherries, raisins, dates, prunes, figs, kiwi fruit, peach, apricot.

Avoid or reduce the following foods -

General - light and dry foods.  Cold foods and drinks.  Pungent, bitter and astringent tastes.

Grains - barley, corn, millet, rye, buckwheat, raw oats.

Beans - all except yellow mung beans and red lentils

Vegetables - large quantity of green leafy vegetables, orange pumpkin and squash, peas, potato, sprouts, mature eggplants, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, celery.

Fruits - unripe, dry sour fruits.  guava, jambu, cashew, cranberries, persimmon (dried), chicory.

Don't Eat THIS with THAT

Apples and pears before or after a meal.  A tall glass of milk along with your scrambled eggs.  What are we doing wrong here?  What most of us don't know and do is that we eat anything and everything which isn't coherent and then creates imbalance within the body which later causes discomfort and difficulty in digestion.  Below is a list of Don't Eat This With That! 

Don’t Eat:	With:
Milk	Bananas, fish, meat, melons, curd, sour fruits, yeast bread, cherries, yogurt
Melons	Grains, starch, fried foods, dairy products
Starches	Eggs, tea, dairy products, bananas, dates, persimmons, most fruits
Radishes	Milk, bananas, raisins
Nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant)	Yogurt, milk, melon, cucumber
Yogurt	Milk, fruits, melons
Hot drinks	Meat, fish, mangoes, starch, cheese
Eggs	Meat, milk, yogurt, melons, cheese, fish, bananas
Fruit	With any other foods
Corn	Dates, raisins, bananas
Lemon	Yogurt, milk, cucumbers, tomatoes