According to Ayurveda, ‘Unhealthy Digestion‘ is the root cause of most diseases in our body. If the digestive system is properly cared for, many diseases can be prevented and diseases that are present inside the body have a better chance of healing. This is why Ayurveda places a lot of emphasis on the care of the digestive system. In doing so, Ayurveda addresses not only what food is best for an individual, but also how and when should one eat that food. I have compiled 9 important, effective and easy to follow daily rules from Ayurveda here. Have a look at these simple, effective, easy to follow Daily Ayurvedic Rules and Principles to Improve your Digestive Health and cure many issues like Constipation, Indigestion, Acid Reflux, Diarrhea, Gas, Bloating etc., Naturally!
Ayurvedic Rules / Principles to improve your Digestive Health:
- Drink Water Immediately After You Wake Up
- Eat At The Right Times Of The Day
- Don’t Eat When You Are Stressed-out, Upset or Angry
- Eat Freshly Cooked Food
- Chew Food Properly
- Rules Of Drinking Water
- Perform Vajrasana After Having Your Meal
- Chew on Ajwain (Carom Seeds) After Meals
- Take 100 Steps After Dinner
1. Drink Water Immediately After You Wake Up
This small habit of drinking water immediately after you wake up can solve many digestive issues. During sleep, our body repairs and replenishes itself and balances our hormones. A byproduct of this is the collection of toxins and waste products that need to be eliminated as soon as possible to keep them from building up inside the body. Drinking a glass of water first thing in the morning will stimulate your bowel movement. This will help in the removal of toxins and frees the body from the unwanted substances. By doing this you’ll feel light, refreshed and energized.
Ayurveda recommends placing water by your bedside at night preferably in a Copper vessel
For more information on this, read my previous blog here: Correct Way To Drink Water From Copper Vessels And Its Health Benefits
2. Eat At The Right Times Of The Day
Ayurveda divides 24 hours of the day into 6 four-hour zones influenced by the 3 Doshas (Vata, Pitta, and Kapha). 1 day-zone and 1 night-zone for each of the 3 doshas. Each four-hour time period is dominated by one dosha and thus influenced by the qualities of that dosha. Understanding this allows you to choose activities, food choices, etc. that will support the dominant energy inside and around you at that time.
The Doshas are dynamic energies that constantly change in response to our bodily actions, thoughts, emotions, the food we eat, the seasons and any other changes that influence our mind and body.
For more information on Doshas, read my previous blog here: Vata, Pitta And Kapha: The 3 Doshas That Determine Your Personality And Health [Part-1]
Breakfast: Ayurveda recommends that the breakfast should be an easily digestible meal that nourishes the body by giving it the fuel it needs, without overwhelming it. Ayurveda says that fruit in the morning is like gold. This is the best time of day to get the maximum nourishment from fruit. Never skip your breakfast. A good way to break the habit of skipping breakfast is to make and drink fresh fruit or vegetable juices or smoothies. Rehydrating the body with fresh, natural, and nourishing fluids will help you get a head start on a busy day.
Lunch: As per Ayurvedic dosha clock, lunch should be your biggest meal of the day. It should ideally be eaten between noon and 2 pm, which is when the Sun is at its peak and so is the Pitta dosha in our bodies. Pitta is the dosha of heat. Since digestion is related to the fire element it is the best time to digest the heavy meal. Eat later in the day, and your body will have more difficulty processing your meal.
Dinner: Ayurveda also recommends a light dinner. It should be taken at least 3 hours before going to the bed. This way your body can finish digesting your food long before bedtime. This will make you feel light and energetic in the morning. Late night heavy dinner increases the tendency of gaining weight and gives rise to sleeping disorders.
3. Don’t Eat When You Are Stressed-out, Upset or Angry
Our digestive system is also called as the second brain of our body. You might not know but our brain and digestive system have a close connection with each other. When we experience a situation that is stressful, signals from the brain can alter nerve function between the stomach and esophagus, resulting in heartburn.
Food should remain in our digestive system for a certain length of time. This allows our gut to absorb the nutrients it needs and at the same time, allows it to get rid of any waste. When we are stressed, digestion can literally shut down. This can lead to constipation. Constipation interrupts the detoxification process that naturally happens during normal digestion. This can lead to a whole host of problems including gas, bloating, stomach pain, and weight gain.
Turn off the TV, don’t discuss intense issues at the dinner table, and avoid eating while driving in the car. By learning how to manage stress and release emotional turbulence, we can help our digestive tract to work naturally and efficiently.
For more information on this, read my previous blog here Cook Consciously To Make Every Meal A Healing Medicine For You
4. Eat Freshly Cooked Food
Always try to eat warm freshly cooked meals. This allows your digestive enzymes to work efficiently. Also, try to avoid anything coming out straight from the fridge (very cold), so that it doesn’t affect your digestive power (Agni).
5. Chew Food Properly
When we chew our food for a longer period of time, food breaks down into smaller particles and saliva mixes with the food properly. This is important to predigest the food in the oral cavity (saliva plays the role of breaking down starch and sugar inside the oral cavity).
Because of slow and proper chewing of the food, taste buds are able to send a signal to our brain about what type of food we are eating and prepare our stomach and other organs in the digestive tract to properly digest that type of food.
These signals help to secrete the right amount and the right type of digestive juices in our stomach to ease the digestive process of a particular food we are eating.
The more you chew, more nutrients from the food will be absorbed by your body. It also helps in maintaining healthy body weight. Many of your digestive issues will be solved with this eating habit. You will feel light and energetic after having your meals. You will also feel more satisfied and blissful, which will make you think clearly about all other aspects of your life. No more mood swings for you!
For more information on this, read my previous blog here: Why Chew Your Food 32 Times: Benefits And Science Behind It
6. Rules Of Drinking Water
Ayurveda says no drinking large amount water immediately after having your meal. One should only drink water required to clean oral cavity and esophagus (passage from the oral cavity to stomach) which can be 1 to 2 sips. This will make sure that your digestive fire (Agni) performs optimally. Drinking too much water after a meal slows down the digestion process. Wait for at least half an hour to drink water after any meal.
Always drink room temperature or lukewarm water for better digestion. Drinking cold water very often slows down the digestive process.
Most of us have the habit of gulping down the water. According to Ayurveda, this is not the correct way of drinking water. One should always drink water sip by sip. When we drink water one sip at a time, more saliva gets mixed with the water which makes water alkaline and when it reaches the stomach – which is acidic in nature – it creates a Neutral atmosphere inside the stomach which is an ideal state for our stomach which eases and aides the entire digestive process.
For more information on this, read my previous blog here: Water And Saliva: A No Exercise Weight Loss Technique
7. Perform Vajrasana After Having Your Meal
Vajrasana is the only asana that you can do after having your meal. Word Vajrasana is also called as thunderbolt pose or diamond pose. Vajrasana alters the blood flow in the lower pelvic region. The blood flow to the legs is reduced and the blood flow to the digestive organs is increased. This increases the efficiency of the digestive system and helps those with weak digestion to digest a meal easily. Regular practice strengthens the digestive system and keeps acidity, indigestion, bloating, constipation at bay.
For more information on this, read my previous blog here: Vajrasana: A Unique Yoga Pose (To Be Done After Meals)
8. Chew on Ajwain (Carom Seeds) After Meals
Ajwain or Carom Seeds have many Ayurvedic benefits and are an instant and effective remedy for all digestive problems like acidity, bloating, indigestion, stomach ache, flatulence, etc. Not only that, chewing some carom seeds after a heavy meal makes digestion of food very easy and gives instant relief from heaviness in the stomach.
At noon, pitta dosha is high in our body. Ajwain balances Pitta Dosha. So it is best to chew on ajwain after having lunch/noon time.
Benefits of carom seeds can be attributed to biochemicals like Thymol, Para-cymene, α- pinene, β-pinene, γ-terpinene. All of these volatile oils are responsible for its medicinal properties.
For more information on this, read my previous blog here: Chew on Ajwain To Cure Acidity, Bloating, Indigestion, Gases, Etc. Instantly!
9. Take 100 Steps After Dinner
After having dinner one should take a short and relaxing walk. Taking 100 steps is a perfect number to take a short and relaxing walk after dinner. This leads to better digestion and balances the blood sugar level which spikes up after having a meal.
Ayurveda does not recommend brisk walk after dinner. Also one should not do any tiring heavy exercises immediately after having their meal. As in doing so, the blood will flow away from your stomach, to other parts of your body. This will lead to the poor digestion of the food.
Follow these simple Ayurvedic rules and keep your digestive health at its best. Naturally!
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