Ayurveda 6 Tastes

I came across one of Andrea Cox’s recent videos and she mentioned the Ayurveda tastes.  I wasn’t familiar with the term, so I did a little research.  *Please note, I am not a nutritionist nor a medical doctor.  This is just the research that I found and believe to be of interest. 

Ayurveda is an ancient system of holistic healthcare.  Ayurveda emerged from ancient India as far back as 5000 years ago.  Ayurvedic medicine focuses on all areas of health – including diet, lifestyle, exercise, detoxification, sleep and the mind.  According to Ayurveda, health is not a state defined by lab tests.  Instead health is a continuous and participatory process that embraces all aspects of life: physical, mental, emotional, behavioral, spiritual, familial, social, and universal.  The balance of all of these things is what equals vibrant health.

Ayurvedic nutrition is based around tastes.  According to Ayurveda, the sense of taste is a natural guidemap towards proper nutrition and it’s important to integrate all 6 tastes in each of our meals.  These 6 tastes are categorized in the following way:

• sweet (fruit, grains, natural sugars) – builds tissues and calms nerves

(source)

• sour (sour fruits, yogurt) – cleanses tissues, increases absorption of minerals

(source)

• salty (natural salts, sea veggies) – improves taste to food, lubricates tissues, stimulates digestion

(source)

• bitter (dark leafy greens, herbs and spices) – detoxifies and lightens tissues

(source)

• pungent (chili peppers, garlic) – stimulates digestion and metabolism

(source)

• astringent (legumes, raw fruits and veggies) – absorbs water, tightens tissues, dries fats

(source)

How Do I integrate all of these tastes into one meal?!

Including the 6 tastes in each meal isn’t as difficult as you may think! 

I’ve put together a sample meal that is both easy to make and delicious!  What is it you’re probably wondering?  A salad with the following:

• Grilled salmon (salty) cooked with lemon juice (sour) and garlic (pungent)
• Dark leafy greens (bitter)
• Tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots (astringent)
• Craisins or raisins (sweet)
• Olive oil and lemon juice vinaigrette (sour)

Talk to Me

• Have you ever heard of the 6 tastes?
• Are you interested in trying to increase your number of meals with these 6 tastes?
• Random – how often do you grocery shop?