How often do you eat a meal and then find yourself wanting more food, even though you’re not hungry anymore?
You crave something sweet or salty although your stomach can’t fit another thing in it.
While there are definitely emotional components to cravings that I cover in depth in my free guide,Craving Freedom: 5 Ways To Conquer Your Cravings And Finally Feel Free, there is something to be said about satisfying your tastebuds as well.
Ayurveda is a 5000 year old system of holistic medicine which originated in India and utilizes the laws of nature to help bring the mind, body and spirit back into balance. There’s something to be said about a healing system that has truly stood the test of time and a huge reason that I decided to begin my training in Ayurveda.
According to Ayurveda, we often experience cravings when one of two things are present:
- Our bodies have a lot of ama (toxins) which stop our cells from receiving proper nourishment from our food.
- Our meals aren’t balanced in the 6 tastes: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent and astringent
Next week I’ll be talking a bit more about ama and how to reduce it from the body. For now, let’s talk about the six tastes….
Ayurveda believes that all six tastes should be eaten in all meals to feel satisfied and also ensure that you’re eating a well-rounded diet. Taste is not only an incredibly important aspect of enjoying your meal, but also life in general.
Rasa, the Sanskrit word for taste, has many different meanings including experience, plasma (blood plasma) and essence.
“Ayurveda sees rasa, or taste, as a tremendously powerful therapeutic tool that determines not only how we experience our food, but ultimately, the overall flavor of our existence.In many ways, taste is a living representation of experience: that of the substances we take in, and our own, as we taste them… Ayurveda teaches us to fully acknowledge, appreciate – even relish – the variety of flavors we encounter throughout each day. Only then can we truly harness taste’s potential to affect positive change in our minds and bodies.” – Banyan Botanicals
On the physiological level, each of the six tastes can be combined through food, spices and herbs to affect to help correct imbalances in the body and promote healing.
When it comes to the six tastes, don’t get overwhelmed thinking of how many different vegetables, herbs or spices you need to reach that quota. It’s not that you have to get all six tastes in all the time, but it’s good to take note of what tastes are predominant in the foods you eat and what tastes you are craving to begin to see where your cravings may be coming from.
A FEW WAYS TO SATISFY YOUR TASTEBUDS THROUGH THE SIX TASTES ARE:
- Use spices to season your meals such as cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, cumin, coriander, fennel and turmeric
- Use a squeeze of lemon of lime to add some zing and life to salads, soups, curries and stews
- Add variety to your meals:
- Fruits, whole grains and certain vegetables such as carrots, onions and sweet potatoes, honey, maple syrup and dates are sweeter in flavor
- Citrus such as lemons, limes and oranges and pickled foods are sour
- Leafy greens such as kale and swiss chard, broccoli and brussel sprouds are bitter
- Beans, lentils and pomegranate have more astringent or “drying” properties
- Peppers, ginger, garlic, cayenne pepper and black pepper are spicy
- And of course salt is salty!
- Eat slow and take the time to actually taste your food and engage all of your senses! Putting in all the hard work to create a delicious, well balanced meal is pointless if you eat it so fast you don’t appreciate the flavors.
The piece was originally featured on http://www.tinapaymaster.com/
Tina Paymaster is a Certified Health & Lifestyle Coach and EFT Practitioner who helps her
clients break through their self-defeating beliefs and behaviors and guides them in creating
the lasting health, happiness and confidence they desire. Tina combines nutritional guidance, energy work, Western psychological principle and Eastern
philosophies, to help her clients improve the health of their mind, body and soul. Tina’s mission is to inspire people around the world to rise above their fears, reclaim their
health and happiness, create their own path in life, stop settling and start living! Tina currently works with private clients around the country and is available for speaking events and workshops. You can contact her at tina.paymaster
Leave a Reply