Cleansing Excess Pitta from the Body
According to Ayurveda, health is our natural, balanced state. Ayurveda defines the many substances and influences, both internal and external, that are beneficial and detrimental to our bodies.
Avoiding every substance or situation that is unhealthy is nearly impossible in today's world. However, the wisdom of Ayurveda can boost your understanding of health and support choices that lead to a balanced state of being. Ayurveda offers knowledge to increase awareness of the factors that may cause imbalance in our bodies and our lives. It also provides ways to create and maintain balance by regulating the systems of the body through diet, lifestyle, herbs, yoga, and meditation.
The Ayurvedic scope of health is holistic, encompassing a balanced body, mind, and spirit. For instance, the thoughts and emotions we experience in our relationships can be equally as influential on our state of health as the foods and other substances that we ingest.
It can be as challenging for a Pitta individual to digest a hurtful criticism from a spouse, for example, as it is to digest a plate of greasy French fries. When pitta flares, the body may express this imbalance as an itchy, red rash, excess heat, impatience, or even an emotional explosion of anger.
What Is Pitta Dosha?
Of the three doshas in Ayurveda, pitta is the hottest, oiliest, and sharpest. If you're feeling overheated in any way, there could be an excess of the pitta dosha occurring within your body. If you're wondering whether your pitta is out of balance, please take the dosha quiz, which can help you determine your Ayurvedic body type, which dosha is acting up, and what steps you can take for optimal health.
According to Ayurvedic wisdom, routine detoxification can be invaluable for maintaining good health during seasonal changes. Summer is the season where pitta dosha accumulates in the body, particularly if an individual's constitution is pitta-predominant. The increase in excess heat can become reactive, settle in the tissues, and manifest as an imbalance if it is not properly eliminated.
Ayurveda offers solutions to help the body dispose of natural toxins, or ama, before they have a chance to take hold and cause disorder. Ama is a heavy, sticky, undigested residue that can weaken digestion and disturb proper tissue formation. Ama is formed when we eat foods that are difficult to digest or of poor quality, or when we are unable to process experiences or emotions.
Toxins can also come in the form of bacteria, viruses, drugs, heavy metals, pesticides, chemicals, and other environmental pollutants.
When there is an excess of pitta dosha and a health imbalance arises, ama often accompanies it.
Signs of Excess Pitta
Excess pitta can manifest in the body as:
An uncomfortable feeling of heat in the body
Acid reflux, gastric or peptic ulcers, heartburn
Acute inflammation in body or joints
Indigestion, constipation, or diarrhea
Discomfort or nausea upon missing meals
Anger, irritability, frustration
Bad breath and body odor
Excessive sweating
Impatience, criticism, judgment, intolerance
Extreme perfectionist tendencies
A person's complexion may also be an indication of whether or not there is a toxic overload in the body. Excess pitta in the blood can result in breakouts on the skin such as hives, acne, and red rashes. Cleansing the body, particularly the liver and blood, through diet and herbs can result in clear, radiant skin and more balanced pitta dosha.
Causes of Excess Pitta
There are many causes that contribute to an excessive amount of pitta in the body, including:
Eating a pitta-provoking diet
Exposure to chemicals
Too much sun exposure, sunburn
Emotional stress
As with any imbalance, Ayurvedic treatment involves first removing the cause and then applying the therapeutic remedies necessary to bring the body back into balance. Ayurveda offers simple and gentle dietary, herbal, and lifestyle guidelines to assist the body in releasing built up toxins and clearing excess pitta dosha from the system. The remedies to balance pitta are both cooling and reducing.
Diet to Reduce Pitta
The stomach and small intestine are two common sites for pitta dosha to accumulate. Ayurveda uses a pitta-pacifying diet as the first line of action when addressing excess pitta. When it comes to reducing pitta, choose foods that will be cooling and cleansing to the body.
Simple dietary guidelines to help your body detox:
Choose sweet, juicy fruits like melons, plums, and peaches.
Include vegetables that are bitter and astringent such as collards, kale, and asparagus.
Add digestive spices to your food such as cumin, coriander, fennel and turmeric.
Limit hot, spicy, fermented, salty, oily, fried foods.
Reduce or eliminate alcohol and caffeine. These substances are both sharp and hot, provoking to pitta dosha.
Drink plenty of cool, fresh water. Staying well hydrated helps the body to flush away toxins.