Ayurveda Solution for Obesity

Until recently, Obesity was not even considered a serious physical problem and it was quite a common practice to tease and body shame anyone with some extra pound in his or her body. However, situation has changed and obesity is now considered a serious health issue and has been medically proved to be the cause for a number of chronic diseases like heart attack, diabetes, blood pressure etc. and people are running around seeking a solution to this life threatening problem.

Being an adverse situation both in terms of body and mind, it has already been confirmed that obesity was a serious problem and unfortunately, most of them overlooked the process of rectifying the reasons behind this detrimental condition. The holistic nature of Ayurveda has gained it the credit for being the effective solution even in dealing with obesity and that too without any side effects.

Ayurveda would define obesity as a situation-based illness and also as a multi derogatory illness. According to Ayurveda over eating, over consumption of sweet and refined foods, sleeping during day time, lethargy, lack of exercise and sex and genetic disorder can lead to obesity.

Obesity is also seen as the result of certain cyclic metabolisms caused by the increased degeneration of cells and subsequent corrupted metabolism. As a result of this, the body burns more fire that leads to increased appetite and subsequently, the person tends to consume more food. As this cycle continue over a period of time, patient become addicted to overeating and become obese.

Ayurveda Solutions

The primary solution Ayurveda puts forward towards tackling obesity is fasting. According to Ayurveda, abstaining from eating over a period of time helps the fire in the stomach to burn freely and it burns the fat and unwanted cells in the body in lieu of food. However, fasting over a longer period of time is not advisable. Intermittent fasting helps in the natural eradication of obesity. Fasting on Monday after the weekend leisure is the most preferable one in this category.

Panchakarma

Another important method adopted by Ayurveda to deal with obesity is Panchakarma that expels the unwanted toxic elements in the body and eases the metabolism. Enema, vomit provoking, depletion etc. are certain methods involved in Panchakarma to expel the toxins from the body. It is important that this must be practiced under the guidance of an authentic Ayurveda practitioner.

Massaging

Massaging is another solution that Ayurveda adopts towards dealing with obesity. This includes Uddwarthana process which includes massaging the entire body starting from the legs and ending with the head by applying some herbal ointments. Podikizhi is another massaging technique that also used to reduce obesity.

Mindful eating and exercises

Mindful eating and exercises also help in the effective treatment of obesity as it eases the stress and pressure caused by the over-consumption of food. Frequent checking of weight would also be of help in being aware of one’s own condition and in taking steps towards monitoring the weight.

Speaking of Exercise, obese people are advised to take 60 minutes of cardio exercises daily and this includes cycling, swimming, jogging, dancing etc. Kapal Basti and Bastika pranayamas helps in reducing the body fat and other yoga postures would also be of help.

Food and Life style

It is imperative for the patient to follow a strict diet and to follow a healthy lifestyle to overcome obesity. Life style here refers to the day to day work. Ayurveda recommends that the patient wake up before dawn and pursue pranayamas and yoga asanas. It is always better to use ghee rather than oil while cooking. Breakfast would be healthier if it includes oats meal, whole rice, rice, corn, green gram, barley etc. Instead of tea, lukewarm water mixed with honey and lemon or skimmed milk could be consumed with breakfast. It is advisable to have an herbal tea during or before the lunch. Easy digestive snacks, ghee, jeera etc. could be used for lunch.

Vegetable soup, dal, barley, corn, rice etc. could be consumed for dinner and it should be taken as early as possible. By skipping one meal a day and substituting it with vegetable soup and herbal tea, an obese patient can significantly reduce his weight. Ayurveda recommends thriphala instead of tea or coffee.

When comes to fruits, it is advisable to avoid high sweet fruits and choose fruits like gooseberry, blackberry, pomegranate etc. Consumption of Sweet potato, Jamun, tomato and cucumber etc. should be controlled. Herbal tea made of Tulsi, lime, chamomile, ginger and cinnamon is extremely effective in reducing weight.

Always drink lukewarm water and for better results, add cinnamon, ginger or cloves so that it further improves its medicinal value.