Ayurveda & 3 Dosha Types for Your Body
Pitta, Kapha, Vata Doshas and Your Health.
What is Ayurveda
3 important characteristics that make Ayurveda different from modern medicine
- Ayurveda practices holistic principles primarily focused on personalized health. Here, every individual is unique and there is no diet or lifestyle routine that works for everyone.
- In Ayurveda, prevention is fundamental, and hence, this system focuses on providing specific advice and guidance on how to maintain physical and emotional health.
- Here, diet and lifestyle routines are considered the most important medicine. It is because when you come to an Ayurvedic doctor with a complaint, you are more likely to leave with a recipe than with a prescription for pills.
How does Ayurveda work?
Characteristics Of Each Mind/Body Type
According to Ayurveda, each person is born with a combination of those three Doshas, which determines your character, likes, dislikes and personality. A brief description of each of the three Doshas is mentioned below:
Vata Predominant Types
It is the energy that manages the physiological functions such as physical motion, blood circulation and breathing. This type is mainly predominant in the nervous system. People belonging to this category are generally creative, quick learners, fun-loving with mood swings. They usually have certain discomfort in cold climates and have dry skin and hair. When there is imbalance, people mostly have anxiety, stress and fear.
A nutritive diet that consists of fruits, rice, nuts and dairy products should be followed together with low intensity exercise, yoga, swimming and walking. It is considered the most difficult Dosha to control and hence is mostly found in imbalance.
Pitta Predominant Types
This type of dosha is the energy which governs the metabolic functions such as digestion, nutrition and assimilation in the body. Pitta Dosha predominant people are characterized as self-confident and ambitious, sharp, perfectionist, passionate and competitive people with a healthy physical structure.
While Vata predominant people have certain discomfort in cold climates, Pitta predominant people have problems in hot sunny weather. They are also prone to sunburn, skin inflammation, rashes, acidity, ulcers, and heartburn. Imbalance in Pitta may lead to emotional implications, for example getting irritated and angry while ulcers and acidity are the physical implications. A balanced diet of fresh fruits and vegetables having a lot of water content in them will help in keeping the Pitta Dosha in check. Avoiding alcohol and smoking is better for them as these aggravate the heat in the body. Pitta Dosha predominant people are usually advised to choose foods that have a cooling and soothing effect.
Kapha Predominant Types
It is the energy which manages growth in the body. Kapha Dosha predominant people are also characterized with emotional qualities like easygoing, relaxed, affectionate, sympathetic, slow but steady; faithful as well as reliable. They are generally physically strong and sturdy with a good immune system while they have a weak digestive system. Imbalance in this dosha leads to cold, sinusitis, asthma, allergic conditions and other respiratory problems. Kapha Dosha predominant people are advised to remain away from processed/fast /packaged foods and also heavy oily food. To get avoid putting on weight, they should include numerous physical activities and exercises. However, Kapha Dosha is known to be the most stable and unchanging among all the 3 Doshas.
How do I determine my type?
Recomendation
Sources
https://examine.com/supplements/ayurveda/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4230501/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4204288/https://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/ayurvedic-treatments#1