Weight Gain - Ayurveda Balancing Vata

To gain weight, eat more sweet sour and salty foods to balance (decrease) Vata, and eat less Bitter Pungent and astringent foods

- Eat Sweet Sour and Salty Rasa foods. Reduce but don't eliminate Pungent Astringent and Bitter foods. Salt intake should not be excessive
- Vata is cold and dry Dosha; therefore, the foods should be soupy at warm temperature.

- Avoid cold beverages such as Soda. Sweetened warm milk, and hot tea latte are preferred beverages

Rasa Table - Grains
Freshly made warm Whole-grain wheat breads are preferred. Cooked brown rice and Basmati rice are acceptable. Barley (Jaun) Buckwheat (Kuttu) Millet (Bajra Jowar) Corn should be reduced
Rasa Table - Dal Beans
Whole black bean soup (Mah Dal) is preferred. Thin soupy preparations such as Sambhar are good.

Rasa Table - Dairy products
Any and all dairy products are good. Sweetened warm milk with ground Almonds and Cashews are good

Rasa Table - Fruits
Sweet Sour fruits are good. Dates coconut and cantaloupes are preferred. Apricots Cherries Oranges Fresh-figs Mangoes Papaya Guava Papaya Pineapple Plums are good.
Avoid un-ripe or high astringent fruits. Apples un-ripe bananas apples pears cranberries pomegranates may be eaten in moderation.

Rasa Table - Vegetables
Cooked Beets, Carrots, Onions, Sweet potatoes, Butternut squash, Pumpkins are preferred. Eat green leafy vegetables in limited moderate quantities.

Rasa Table - Meats
Seafood and sweet water fish are preferred over other meats

Rasa Table - Spices
Pungent, Astringent and Bitter should be reduced but not eliminated. Sweet (Jaggery Sugar) and souring agents (Tamarind, Amchoor, or Lime juice) should be incorporated. Minimize use of chili peppers. Garam Masala spices (Cinnamon Cloves Cardamom) are good.

Rasa Table - Cooking oils fats
Ayurveda recommends using Ghee. It should be used in very small amount. In United States, you may use Canola oil as it has virtually no saturated fats. Un-refined Mustard oil is the best alternative.

Rasa Table - Nuts and Seeds
Almonds Cashews and Coconut are good. Salted oily nuts are preferred over dry roasted nuts
Rasa Table - Herbs and Base Vegetables
Most of the fresh herbs and vegetables are ground and sautéed in Ghee. Fresh Cilantro and Peppermint is added as a garnish. All these items are pungent and should be reduced.
Rasa Table - Sweeteners
Sugar cane Jaggery is preferred sweetener

Google Group | Disclaimer | What do you think!