Intelligent Food
Author: Linda Sinden Date Posted:23 July 2018
Recently, when talking with a colleague I found myself thinking how lucky we are to have access to the simple and profound knowledge of Ayurveda to guide our food choices.
Ayurveda explains that the fresher and closest to nature the food is, the more intelligence it contains. Plants, like humans, need to protect themselves against disease creating pathogens. They produce special chemicals for that purpose. When consumed in the form of a whole food, we digest the intelligence, thus absorbing the plant’s ability to fight off ill-health.
- An organic orange has 30% more vitamin C than the average supermarket variety.
- Fresh, organic spinach has 1,500 mg of iron in comparison to a mere 19mg found in the non-organic, frozen form.
- When we eat a fresh apple or lettuce we are metabolising the intelligence of these foods.
- Amrit Kalash Nectar is a superfood that is high in Vitamin C. It enhances mind body coordination, provides powerful antioxidant support and helps to balance the heart and brain.
- Amrit Kalash Ambrosia is an all natural blend of 13 traditional herbs that are 1,000 times more effective than Vitamins C and E in scavenging free radicals and preventing damage to the body. It is especially good for the mind, brain and nervous system.
What to eat and when
Ayurveda guides us to choose foods suited to the season, our body-type of nature and when we are out of balance to favour foods that will help balance the dosha that is out of balance. It guides us to match the tastes and qualities within food to the tastes and qualities our body requires to provide perfect nutrition for us. An easy way to achieve this balance is to use the seasonal churna in your cooking or to sprinkle the tasty spices over your food at the table. Choose from the following:
- Vata Seasonal Churna for Autumn and Winter and when you have a Vata imbalance - See Vata Foods
- Pitta Seasonal Churna for Summer and when you have a Pitta imbalance - See Pitta Foods
- Kapha Seasonal Churna for Spring and when you have a Kapha imbalance - See Kapha Foods
In the eternal quest for the magical food that is low in fat, high in fibre, bursting with antioxidants, sugar free and tasty, food is becoming more complicated and on the whole, less intelligent.
- Food that is a leftover, canned or processed is lower in nutritional values and actually increases free radical damage, no matter how fresh and organic it was to begin with.
- Processed foods have been found to contain high levels of lipid peroxides, which produce free radicals that damage the cardiovascular system.
- When we eat food that has been grown with chemicals we are also digesting the pesticides, growth hormones etc. which loads the liver.
- Sugar is often replaced with aspartame and while it may not increase your calorie intake it has been found to impair memory functioning.
- Claims that food is 98% fat-free may sound to be very healthy but it also depends on the type of fat it contains. Mono-unsaturated fats such as olive oil and rapeseed oil are more easily utilised by the body, whereas polyunsaturated fats such as vegetable oil have been found to cause oxidation.
If you are feeling like you need a degree in nutrition just to feed yourself then Ayurveda can help you to get back to basics and eat simple, fresh, whole foods. For optimal health, fresh organic food is best.
After all, mother nature knows best.
Wishing you the bliss of balance!
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Linda Sinden has been a practising Maharishi Ayurveda Consultant since 1990 and is a regular contributor to our weekly Insights. She has a practice in Auckland, New Zealand and also provides phone or Skype sessions for those who need assistance, but don’t have a consultant in their vicinity. Email: lindasinden@orbislife.co.nz Skype: Linda.Sinden |
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