Tomatoes: Ayurveda hates them… or does it?

Ayurveda says ‘no tomatoes’, right? Well, it doesn’t actually.  Here are the facts.  There is nothing written about tomatoes in Ayurvedic literature Tomatoes, solanum lycopersicum, came to India with the Portuguese several hundred years ago but Indians didn’t really use them in cooking until the 20th century. Therefore, tomatoes weren’t Read more…

Fasting – what does Ayurveda say?

Everyone is talking about fasting. There is so much (sometimes conflicting) information out there about fasting, what does Ayurveda have to say about it?  And how can fasting be personalised to our individual constitutions? Find all the answers to these questions here. Ayurveda has a LOT to say about fasting Read more…

Yoghurt

Manage your channel blockers

Some things are easy to digest and some things are difficult.  And then there are some which are very difficult (abhishyandi). Knowledge of these makes a huge difference to how well you digest, absorb and assimilate nutrients and thus how healthy you are.  Foods that are heavy to digest are Read more…

Avoid these combinations (and ignore the myths)

Anyone vaguely interested in Ayurveda will know that digestion is key to health. Modern medical practitioners are also now realising this, with a widening range of health issues being attributed to an faulty gut microbiome (which is a major player in digestion).  We know that it is not just what Read more…

You’re not what you eat, you’re what you digest

Not all woods burn the same in a fire, do they?  The same can be said about foods we put in our ‘digestive fire’.  Some burn (or digest) easily, some are more difficult.  This important aspect of food often gets overlooked.  What you’re eating may on paper be very nutritious Read more…

Spices

Add spices, add flavour, improve nutrition

You can put the most nutritious food into your mouth but to get the goodness out of it, it needs to be well digested.   There is one simple way to make sure this happens; add herbs and spices to your food. Plus, bonus, they make the food taste amazing. Herbs Read more…

sugar cravings

4 causes of sugar cravings and how to banish them

Sugar cravings can be very powerful and you don’t need me to tell you that sugar isn’t great or that we are having too much of it.  Most of us are aware it causes weight gain and diabetes if we eat too much.  What is less obvious is that it Read more…

Smoothies

Smoothies and juices – choose wisely

Like it or not, juicing and blending is taking us by storm.  Seen as quick and easy way to dose up with essential vitamins, minerals and cancer-fighting antioxidants, smoothies and juices have become a much larger part of our diet. How they help… Over the years, plants have been bred Read more…

Pantry essentials

Whether you are looking to eat healthily or are diving head-first into a prescribed Ayurvedic diet to fix a problem, here are some top pantry essentials. I’m going to assume you have your own policy on organic v. non-organic and I’ll leave that to you.  If you don’t do anything Read more…

Pulses – the best kept protein secret

Here are 10 things you may not know about pulses. Pulses (or legumes): fuel your body with protein are cheap are good for the environment – protein from crops to stomach are low-fat, full of fibre, vitamins and minerals (including iron) count as 1 of your 5 a day are Read more…