Ayurveda originated in India more than 5,000 years ago and is the oldest continuously practiced health-care system in the world. Drawn from an understanding of nature’s rhythms and laws, Ayurveda is built around the five elements of ether, air, fire, water, and earth.
The Ayurvedic worldview is based on the archetypical elements of ether (space), air, fire, water, and earth. Ether and earth are static in nature while air, fire, and water are dynamic and ever changing. These elements have inherent energies that govern their functions. We are all made up of all of these energies, but each individual has slightly different proportions of the individual elements, making everyone unique in their own constitutional makeup.
Ayurvedic medicine concentrates on prevention and understanding one’s own makeup and focuses on how the outer world and environments affect one’s daily life. The goal of Ayurveda is to teach people how to attain optimal health through a deeper understanding of themselves and their own particular nature in relationship to the world around them. It is a system based on natural healing through strengthening the body, mind, and spirit and allowing the body’s own natural healing mechanisms to work to their fullest potential.
Tips for Improving Digestion
• Eat in a calm and settled environment.
• Never eat and run—allow a few minutes after eating to relax or take a gentle walk.
• Sip warm water throughout your meal.
• Eat freshly cooked or prepared meals.
• Chew your food well and be mindful of its smells, tastes, and textures.
• Focus on eating, not on conversation, TV, reading, etc.
• Leave ⅓ of your stomach empty using your hands as your guide—cupping both hands together is a guide to the amount of food to ingest with an equal amount of liquid leaving an equal amount empty.
• Avoid ice-cold food or drink.
• Eat only when you feel hungry.
• Eat at a moderate pace.
• Allow a few hours be
Ayurveda is a system of traditional medicine native to India,[1] and practiced in other parts of the world as a form of alternative medicine.[2] In Sanskrit, the word Ayurveda comprises the words āyus, meaning 'life' and veda, meaning 'science'.[1] Evolving throughout its history, Ayurveda remains an influential system of medicine in South Asia.[3] The earliest literature of Ayurveda appeared during the Vedic period in India.[2] The Sushruta Samhita and the Charaka Samhita were influential works on traditional medicine during this era. Ayurvedic practitioners also identified a number of medicinal preparations and surgical procedures for curing various ailments and diseases.
Ayurveda is considered to be a form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) within the western world, where several of its methods—such as herbs, massage, and Yoga as exercise or alternative medicine—are applied on their own as a form of CAM treatment
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