There are some imbalances which can kill a human being, they don’t kill overnight, they can take many years and finally destroy our physical and mental health. Ama, Indigestion, Sugar and Stress are top for among those. Have you ever thought what is the ultimate source of disease or why we fall sick. Every system of health care has its own model, may it be Allopathic Medicine, Chiropractors, Homeopathy and Ayurveda. Ayurveda teaches us that each disease begins when we are living out of harmony with our environment, disease is disequilibrium of dhatus. Through unhealthy life practices, our bodies become weak. Through healthy practices, they can become strong once again. However it is not only the point that we should remain aware about Tridoshas or Factors responsible for imbalance of Vata, Pitta and Kapha but we must go to root cause which remains behind the Tridoshas. According to Sushruta Samhita definition of health is as under:
Sama Dosha Sama Agnischa Sama Dhatu Mala Kriyaaha | Prasanna Atma Indriya Manaha Swastha iti Abhidheeyate ||
The Abovementioned Phrase Means:
One is in perfect health when the Three doshas (Vata, Pitta and Kapha) Digestive Fire (Digestion, Assimilation and Metabolism) all the body tissues & components (Dhatus) (the entire physical body) all the excretory functions (the physiological functions of urination and defecation) are in perfect order with a pleasantly disposed and contented mind, senses and spirit.
From above, it is clear that it is not only unwholesome foods which are primary cause of diseases but also unwholesome thoughts, human body is not only the physical entity but has subtle aspect to it, indeed our physical body is the primary seat of consciousness. There are four main imbalances which lead us towards fatal diseases. With a willpower, some understanding, mindfulness and dietary regulation, they can be removed from our systems.
Indigestion can lead to many problems like Ulcers, GERD, Stomach Cancer, Gastrointestinal Infections, Thyroid Problem, Irritable bowel movement, pregnancy related problems, hyperacidity; and you can very well imagine if anyone of these problems occurs and that too occurs repeatedly then this will eventually lead to the degeneration of your body. If your body will not digest the food then it will digest your body.
Word Ama has been derived from Amla, which means acidic food, this is the toxic residue of food in your body. It develops from the undigested harmful material. This is harmful because it can block various channels in the body like: lymphatic system, blood vessels, intestines, genitor-urinary tract, gastrointestinal tract and many others. Main cause behind Ama is incomplete transformation processes in our body.
Digestion begins in the mouth with chewing and ends in the small intestine. Once the food is in our Gastrointestinal tract, it mixes with digestive juices which breaks down large molecules into smaller ones. Our body mainly absorbs Carbohydrates, Protein, Fats and Vitamins. Main symptoms of Ama are White matter on tongue, plaque on teeth, heartburn, gastritis and reflux, obesity, Fatigue, Heaviness, lethargy, loss of appetite, fever and pain in body, lacklustre skin, dark rings around eyes, constipation, sleep related problems, allergies etc.
There are several reasons which lead towards creation of Ama, it includes not only the sense & type of eating but also the stress level you are experiencing every day. Of many emotions Ayurveda specifically notes passion, anger, envy, vanity, grief, greed and fear as Ama creating states. Main contributing dietary factors are as under: 1 Habit of Overeating. 2 Eating heavy tamasic food 3 Highly acidic food 4 Eating raw and uncooked food 5 Food which creates allergy, inflammation or irritation in your Gastrointestinal Tract 6 Eating unhygienic food 7 Irregular eating habits Ama becomes more problematic when it converts into Sama. In sama, dhatu and mala also become permeated with ama. This make the case further more complicated and abnormal. You can easily solve the problem of Ama by learning the Art of Eating and It’s Great Health Benefits.
Indigestion is the real disease in physical body because ninety five per cent of diseases have root in the digestive system. It is in your digestive system where greatest toxins are produced. If your digestion is fine then you can live a healthy long life. Digestive system is as important as your heart, brain and kidneys. When food remains undigested, it results in toxins in your stomach. Modern science may conclude several reasons for cancer but ancient yogis have learnt that breast cancer, brain tumors, ovarian cysts, fibroids are nothing but one of the manifestations of poor digestion. When your digestive forces are not able to digest the food properly they go on secreting juices to break it down, in this way more gaseous toxins are created when finally mix with blood and drops the level of oxygen. Low level of oxygen in blood creates favorable conditions for cancerous cells to breed. People who are suffering with cancer also have habit of shallow breathing. Therefore deep breathing alone can do miracles, because when more oxygen is supplied to the blood it interferes with breeding of unhealthy cells.
Sweet taste is the most important of all six tastes and mostly it is eaten in the largest quantity. Ayurveda is less concerned about the quantity of sugar you eat and more about what type of sugar you take. If it is in the natural food including milk, ghee, rice, wheat, fruits, honey and natural juices etc. then it will be least harmful and more healthy to your body. Ayurveda gives great importance to Sweet taste as only it nourishes our body but also creates positive emotions and satisfaction. According to Ayurvedic insight sweet foods can also be divided into sattvic, Rajasic and Tamasic, for example- Honey is sattvic as it pacifies vata and kapha however may increase little pitta, whereas processed and synthetic sugars are rajasic and tamasic which may increase Pitta and Kapha.
Consumption of excess sugar, rajasic and tamasic sugar my cause enormous damage to our health, it can increase body fats, cause heart related diseases, weakens immune system, accelerates aging, sexual disorders, gum disease and tooth decay. Almost all the inflammatory diseases in our body are caused by sugar, it can be: asthma, allergies, hypersensitivity, prostate, bronchitis, oedema, arthritis, disease related to bowel. And everyone knows that if a person become diabetic then he is bound to suffer fatigue, weight loss or excess weight gain, blurred vision, excessive thirst and hunger and frequent discharge of urine at large quantity.
There are two pancreatic hormones which maintain the sugar balance in blood: insulin and glucagon. During digestion most of glucose is sent into your bloodstream, in response to this insulin is secreted from pancreas. Insulin gives message to all body cells to absorb glucose from bloodstream. Once the glucose is absorbed, it’s level goes down in the blood whereas excess glucose is stored as glycogen in liver and muscles. Glucagon works just opposite, after 4-6 hours of your eating when glucose level in your blood decreases, glucagon signals liver and muscles to change stored glycogen into glucose. In this way blood glucose level is again made available for body cells to utilize for energy. Excess sugar may lead to insulin resistance and making a person diabetic.
All artificial sweeteners are nothing but slow poisons, have you ever seen caramelized sugar or plain sugar candies, did you see how hard they are? That’s how hard sugar can get and make your arteries narrower, thereby requiring heart to pump harder to circulate blood. During olden times lifestyles were not so sedentary, people used to take natural sugar but still would burn excess carbohydrates to remain healthy. Stop taking synthetic sugars and start doing some light exercise, Keep fruit handy for when sugar cravings hit. Through fruits you will get fibers as well nutrients.
Stress impacts your brain health, mental well-being, sex life as well as physical health. According to a survey approximate 18% of all adults have some kind of mental illness and all of us without exception have anxiety and stress disorders. There are very few who are suffering due to real medical problems like brain lesion, genetic mutation, trauma or any other disease. Today our mind is so much fragmented and cause behind is our lifestyle; life itself is neither complex or simple it just is. Our race is much more engaged than any other race in previous history. We interact with a greater diversity of people from whole country or all over the world, we are in a constant struggle to meet and raise our life standards, today we have to be more specialized in education and working skills, economy is more efficient but highly dynamic and changeable and Innovations are happening faster and we have to cope up with the things.
As and when we become angry, our sympathetic nervous system becomes hyperactive. Our blood pressure and respiration rate rises and as a response our body works to gives strength & agility to limbs by pumping more blood into those. But this has adverse effect also, brain signals disrupt other normal functioning of body by affecting digestive system and endocrine system. Like the indigestion is real physical disease and base of all other ailments, stress is the real mental disease.
Stress can be the cause of Heart Disease, Asthma, Obesity, Diabetes, Headaches, Depression and Anxiety, Gastrointestinal Problems, Alzheimer's disease and brain lesions, Headache, fatigue, poor digestive system, anxiety, depression, Accelerated aging and even premature deaths. If stress, becomes your habit then you draw slow poison every time, however there are ways to come out of this. Body reacts to stress and you can cope with this. Now a pertinent question is that can you lead a life free of stress? Ofcourse yes! you are stressful because you are engaged with stress and you can be happy if you engage yourself with happiness. There are some very easy steps to counter stress like: 10 minutes break to walk during work, proper planning for success and do some leisure activities with family etc. In good olden days there was a community support structure. There was no isolation model in large families which is the main source of anxiety. With family you can carry out so many anti stress things like: light talks and relaxation, yoga, swimming, walking, Bicycle Riding, Movie Night, Cooking and Baking etc. Start loving the de-stressors like: playing musical instruments, painting, dancing, outings. Normally Distractions weaken you from inside, they affect your resolve and concentration, but you can distract your mind from stress and put it elsewhere. Moreover if you can learn meditation then this can lead to total mental detoxification.