In Ayurveda, a proper diet plan has to be followed to manage the physical health and mental state. So, you continue reading the blog, you can learn more about the Vata diet that actually aids in balancing the three doshas.
Vata Diet Explained
Vata pacifying foodstuffs always aid to balance a dominant dosha. Another aspect of the aggravated state could be due to the Pitta or Kapha dosha. In such a situation, the individual might observe the symptoms of the Pitta as well as the Kapha dosha.
A depleted state is also observed only when the Kapha dosha is dominant. Though the condition might not last for a long time, it’s essential to consume foodstuffs that would enhance the properties of Vata. In such a scenario, the person should try light and dry food items till he is able to restore his overall health.
So, while the person follows a diet plan, the food items help to retain moisture, nourish the tissues, and maintain warmth. This also helps for improving digestion and eliminating toxins from the body.
Read Also: Addressing Vata-Related Joint Pain With Ayurveda
Vata Diet Food Choices
When it comes to selecting foodstuffs, the individual should always go something that’s oily, moist and loaded with essential nutrients. This would surely help to neutralize the qualities and reduce the effects due to excess Vata.
So, let check out the choices that you could certainly include in the Vata dosha diet.
Grains: It’s always better to eat cooked oatmeal, rice, bulgar wheat, quinoa, spelt, and bread made from whole grains. However, you should refrain from eating millets, raw oats, buckwheat, rye and corn.
Legumes: You should include green moong beans, tofu, red lentils, and yellow colored moong beans. But, on the other hand, you should resist the temptation for eating chickpeas, black gram, gram dal, kidney beans and soybeans.
Fruits: There’s no harm in eating sweet, ripe and juicy fruits. If you wish to consume dried fruits, then they should be boiled or soaked in water for a long duration.
Moreover, you can eat apples and pears only if they are juicy and sweet in taste. On the other hand, you should refrain from eating hot spices, chili peppers, and cayenne.
Vegetables: Asparagus, carrots, beets, sweet potatoes, yellow squash, cucumbers, green peas, and parsley can be consumed. But, whenever you are preparing recipes, you should always cook small quantity of the vegetable. Moving ahead, you should avoid eating radish, leafy vegetables, dried peas, artichokes, onions, broccoli, sprouts, potatoes and celery.
Oils: It’s best to use organic olive oil and ghee. In case you prefer using ghee, then it should be sautéed with Vata stabilizing spices.
Sweeteners: It’s always a good idea to use raw honey, raw sugar cane, date sugar, and jaggery. Way beyond, it’s advisable not to use processed or white sugar.
Seeds: You can eat almonds, cashew, walnuts, pistachios, sunflower, sesame, and pumpkin. But, before consuming anything, you have to soak the nuts in water so that they become easier to digest. Moreover, it’s better to exclude peanuts from the Ayurveda Vata diet even when you have the desire to eat them.
Dairy Products: Soy and powdered milk should always be excluded. Apart from cheese, you needn’t bother much if you’re enjoying any other dairy product.
Vegetarian: You can eat beef, dark chicken, eggs, fish, shrimps, dark turkey, pork and buffalo meat. But, if you come across white meat of chicken, lamb, white turkey and rabbit, then you should keep yourself away from such food items.
Vata Pacifying Diet Rules
#Rules 1 – Whenever you need to follow a Vata diet, you should always think about something sweet, sour and salty.
#Rules 2 –While you are preparing a meal, then you should use oil more than the usual quantity. Ghee, sesame oil, and almond oil are some of the healthy options you could go for.
#Rules 3 –Never forget to season the meals with spices. You can think about fresh ginger, ajwain, brown mustard seeds, sesame seeds, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
#Rules 4 –Though it’s perfectly fine to have milk, it’s better to heat it for some time and drink it later. For enhancing the taste, you can either add chopped almonds or soaked dry fruits. On the contrary, dairy products like ice creams should be completely avoided.
#Rules 5 – Maintain a consistent schedule when you are on the diet. You can have your breakfast at around 7 am in the morning while lunch at 1 pm in the afternoon. When it’s time for dinner, you can set aside the time between 6 and 7 pm.
#Rules 6 – It’s better to have a light breakfast and a sumptuous lunch at noon. Moreover, you shouldn’t skip meals even if your stomach is full.
#Rules 7 – Avoid drinking coffee or caffeine rich beverages. Though these tend to boost the energy level, the drink can affect the nervous system to a great extent.
#Rules 8 – Avoid eating food that’s prepared a day earlier. This might not help to pacify the dosha as the food would become stale.
#Rules 9 – It’s better to have snacks when there’s plenty of time between your meals. However, you should overeat but munch on something till you are able to satiate your hunger.
Suggested Meals
When you come up with the Ayurveda diet plan for Vata, you should take care of what you would be eating for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Breakfast – you can have something delicious that would help to boost the energy level. In case you seeking to nourish your body, then enjoy having cereals with warm milk. Besides, you can also have tortilla roll with vegetables fried on ghee. A semolina pudding would also be an option to help you stay energetic all day long.
Lunch – As you think about having lunch, you should go for boiled or sauteed vegetables. In case you don’t prefer eating cooked lentils, then you could have whole grain pasta or noodles. Soups can always be taken when it’s winter season. Split moong dal with rice is another healthy option you can try.
Dinner – When you gather with your family members for dinner, you can have appetizers like a soup with spices. Everything that you can eat for lunch is fine for dinner. However, you should have a light meal two hours before you fall asleep.
Finally, you shouldn’t skip breakfast if you have to rush to your office early. Instead of keeping your stomach empty, you can enjoy juicy fruits or a handful of soaked dried fruits.
