A fleeting glimpse of Ayurveda: The Science of Life and Health

Although meat is mandated in Ayurveda for debilitated patients, for warriors (Kshatriyas) and for those who overexert themselves, it is very heavy for digestion, putrefies faster than other foods and produces Ama (internal toxins) quickly. Unless you exercise strenuously, regular meat eating will increase fat rather than flesh.It promotes speed rather than endurance, which is not good for Vata-affected individuals. Meat overheats the mind and warms the body, but even in cold climates, it should not be used to excess. Today's meat is also of poor quality, full of antibiotics and other drugs, taken from feedlot animals who never exercise so that all their Ama remains in their tissues.

There are eight possible constitutional types:
V, P, K, VP, PK, VK, VPK, and Balanced.

The small numbers of VPK individuals who have all three energies imbalanced are rarely healthy and must live a very disciplined life to remain disease free. Also, the small numbers of individuals who are almost perfectly balanced are usually healthy since they must be severely stressed before an imbalance develops. We will concentrate on the other six types, the great majority of people. For convenience, Vata has been abbreviated to V, Pitta to P and Kapha to K.

If you are overweight and suffer from all or most of the following symptoms, you urgently need to reduce your poundage (under professional competent guidance):

Pendulous belly, breasts and buttocks; Puffing and panting for breath even on mild exertion; Profuse perspiration even when it is not hot; Excess thirst, especially at night; Intense food craving; Prolonged but unsatisfying sleep; unpleasant body odour; Inflammation where skin folds rub against one another; Generalised body ache; Loss of sexual appetite; Lack of zeal or enthusiasm for living.