Wellness Secrets From The Past

Priyanka Elhence learns how Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine have natural superfoods at the core of their nutritional practices.

Improving lives through the medium of food isn’t something new. Promoting health and wellness through specific timehonoured herbs, spices, fruit and vegetables has been a defining pillar of two of the most revered systems of medicine.

Ayurveda regards even the most common of everyday herbs and spices as superfoods that help eliminate ill-health by creating balance for each unique constitution through nutrition. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) believes that organs play a vital role in boosting immunity, so nourishing diets should be planned carefully to help these organs perform at their peak potential, rather than burden them by eating the wrong foods.

HERE’S A CLOSER LOOK AT BOTH SYSTEMS

Simply put, Ayurveda is an ancient traditional system of Indian medicine that covers everything from gut health, diet, nutritional food and microbiome; to yoga and healthy lifestyles that promote mental and physical health. In Ayurveda, disease results when life balance is disturbed, and restoration of that balance expels disease. Rather than work on disease symptoms, this holistic healing system goes to the root cause of the imbalance.

Says Shailu Suresh, Ayurvedic lifestyle practitioner; director, Om Vedic Heritage Centre; founder-president, Ayurvedic Practitioners Association of Singapore, “Ayurveda originated from the ancient Indian Vedic culture more than 5,000 years ago. In Sanskrit, Ayuh means life and Veda means knowledge or science, hence Ayurveda means ‘Science of Life’. Ayurveda forms a holistic basis of understanding food as medicine and staying healthy.”

Suresh goes on to explain that a core concept in Ayurvedic nutrition is the six tastes: sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent; adding each of these six tastes in each meal means a balanced diet. Ayurvedic diets encourage eating minimally processed foods and practicing good eating habits such as eating fresh, seasonal and local produce; concentrating on mindful eating; eating when hungry after the previous meal has been digested; not overeating; and finally, eating a light dinner before 8pm when the digestive system is more active.

“Ayurveda has been leading the forefront of the wellness revolution for years as it revolves around three fundamental states - physical, mental and spiritual,” says Suresh. “Health is a balance of all these three states, along with our relationship with nature through the five-element theory of pancamahabhuta (space, air, fire, water, and earth).” These five elements are further grouped into three metabolic types or tridoshas - vata (a combination of space and air), pitta (fire), and kapha (water and earth).

“Typically, one of these three doshas determines our constitution or body-mind type. Just as each individual has a unique fingerprint, we all have a particular constitution and unique levels of energy too.” According to ancient Ayurvedic wisdom, wellness means staying in balance with the body’s constitution. “Simply put, imbalance means disorder, and health is order. Our prominent dosha or constitution helps determine our optimal diet to help maintain a balanced constitution and energy by nourishing our body properly,” adds Suresh.

She continues, “Ojas is the subtle essence of a healthy physical body; when ojas flows freely through the body, bala, or strength and immunity is created in the body. Toxins or ama are obstacles to the production and flow of ojas, primarily stemming from stress, fatigue, weak digestion and poor metabolism. Having a balanced and easily digestible diet based on your constitution helps prevent ama, since well digested food provides nourishment to the body. With strong digestion, ojas are more dominant than ama, hence the body’s energy can better fight off infections. My motto is ‘You are what you digest’, and a toxin-free body is the way to always staying healthy.”

Cumin seeds Turmeric powder

Essential kitchen ingredients by Shailu Suresh

• Turmeric • Asafoetida • Cumin seeds • Black pepper • Fresh ginger • Ghee (a teaspoon a day helps balance all 3 doshas) • Coconut oil (for cooking)

Cinnamon sticks

Shailu Suresh’s simple Ayurvedic recipes to boost immunity and a healthy digestive system

Consume the following on a daily basis:

• Cumin seeds aids digestion. Sip warm water boiled with cumin seeds throughout the day (¼ tsp per litre of water).

• Boil ¼ cup fresh cow’s milk with ¼ tsp of black pepper powder and 1/8 tsp turmeric powder for a daily bedtime drink.

• Boil ¼ tsp liquorice powder, 1-2 cloves, 2-3 crushed black pepper, ¼ inch cinnamon stick, ½ inch grated ginger, 1-2 cardamoms and 5-6 tulsi (holy basil) leaves, in 500ml of water until it reduces to 150ml. Consume this within a day over 2-4 doses.

Adds Talya Lutzker, certified Ayurvedic practitioner and founder of Ayurveda Every Day With Talya, “According to Ayurvedic medicine, food can and should be seen as treatment for what ails you. Food is transformed into vital life-force energy and with just a bit of planning, you can transform most meals into an immune-boosting reality.” Lutzker counts common Ayurvedic superfoods to include ghee, turmeric, coriander, ginger, tulsi, kombu and herbs like ashwagandha, shatavari and astragalus root.

She continues, “Immunity is intricately linked to digestion. You can't nurture great digestion or immunity without optimal nutrition that heals and nourishes the gut. What you digest is what matters, so your nutrition should be geared to what your body needs right now. Make it a practice to continuously check in with how you feel and base your daily nutrition on what you feel. What you metabolise is what feeds your immune system first and foremost, so ensure you're giving it lots of energising nutrition regularly.” In fact, Lutzker’s favourite Ayurvedic wellness mantra is, ‘In this moment, what do I need?’

Kombu seaweed

HOW TO READ AN AYURVEDIC RECIPE

Under each recipe, the doshic (elemental equivalent of the dish) is stated:

• V stands for Vata - the elements of Air & Ether • P stands for Pitta - the elements of Fire & Water • K stands for Kapha - the elements of Earth & Water • After V, P or K means that the recipe helps calm or decrease the dosha it follows. • After V, P or K means that the recipe aggravates or increases the dosha it follows. • After V, P or K means that the recipe has a neutral effect on the dosha it follow.

Immuni-Tea Superfood Broth VPK

The nutrient density of this broth will ground, nourish, and cleanse your body, providing healing for the respiratory system, gut, lymph and blood. Optional: add one tsp ghee or coconut oil, juice of ½ lemon, and a dash of cayenne pepper.

Yield: About 8 cups Prep Time: 2 hours

• 10 cups water • 1 tbsp whole cumin seed • 1 tbsp whole coriander seed • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar • ½ tsp good quality mineral-rich salt • 12 shiitake mushrooms, roughly chopped • 4 slices dried astragalus root • 8 cloves garlic, unpeeled and roughly chopped • 1 large carrot, roughly chopped • 1 large beet, roughly chopped • 1 parsnip, roughly chopped • 1 turnip, roughly chopped • 1 red onion, unpeeled and chopped • 2 stalks celery, diced • 2 whole burdock root, roughly chopped • 3-inch piece fresh ginger root, chopped • 1-inch piece fresh turmeric root, chopped, optional • 2 strips kombu seaweed miso paste to taste

Ginger turmeric tea 1. Put all ingredients in a medium-sized stock pot and bring to a slow boil over medium heat. 2. Reduce the heat to simmer. Simmer for one hour, covered. 3. Remove from heat and steep for 30 minutes. 4. Strain and stir in the miso paste until it dissolves.

Fresh Ginger Turmeric Tea VK-P

Yield: Two 8-ounce servings Prep time: 15 minutes

• 2 cups water • 2 inches fresh ginger, peeled and grated • 2 inches fresh turmeric root, peeled and grated (or ½ tsp ground turmeric) • 1 to 2 tsp raw honey or maple syrup

1. Bring the water, grated ginger and grated turmeric root to boil in a medium saucepan. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. 2. Remove from heat, strain and sweeten to taste.

(COPYRIGHT @AYURVEDA EVERY DAY WTH TALYA, 2020). TALYA’S AYURVEDIC RECIPES HOW TO READ AN AYURVEDIC RECIPE AND

Popular Ayurvedic superfoods

Dig into these Ayurvedic herbs and spices to maintain overall health, enhance immunity, improve digestion and encourage detoxification.

• Ashwagandha roots

A powerful adaptogen (plant extract that increases the body's ability to resist the damaging effects of stress and illness, and restores the body to normal function). The roots promote energy, stamina, sleep, intellect and cognitive development, while increasing strength and rejuvenating the body. Add to soups, stews, broths (one or two sticks per pot).

• Ghee

Ideal as a cooking medium, it is also incredibly helpful to add ghee directly to your food. Ghee helps the body absorb vital nutrition from herbs and spices, and helps herbal superfoods get to where they most need to go to nourish the body.

• Turmeric

Renowned for its active compound curcumin, this yellow spice is revered for its antiinflammatory and antioxidant properties, helping the body digest proteins and purifying the blood.

• Tulsi

Also known as holy basil, this sacred herb is famous for its anti-inflammatory,

Coriander seeds

antipyretic and analgesic effects. This antimicrobial balances the kapha dosha, and is typically used to relieve excess sputum production or dampness in the lungs.

• Black pepper

A warming and detoxifying spice, black pepper promotes healthy circulation and contributes the pungent taste. It is excellent for pacifying kapha, helps pacify vata and increases pitta.

• Coriander seed

Another detoxifying spice, coriander is the overall digestive regulating spice in Ayurveda, as strong digestion means strong immunity. This cooling, tridoshic spice contributes the sweet and astringent tastes, believed to help heal all types of digestive issues.

• Garlic

Contributing to five tastes - sweet, sour, pungent, bitter and astringent – this incredible immunity-boosting superfood treats disorders due to vata imbalance.

• Ginger

Fresh ginger root is also an adaptogen. Good for agni (digestion), anti-inflammatory and expectorating, this super rhizome is used so widely in Ayurveda, it’s known as universal medicine. Ginger encourages a healthy appetite, promotes circulation and calms indigestion (see Lutzker’s recipe for fresh ginger turmeric tea).

Garlic

Gee

TCM for boosting immunity

Like Ayurveda, TCM is another ancient system of medicine, revered for its immunity-boosting properties. Says physician Anita Pee of Eu Yan Sang TCM Clinic @ Clementi, “TCM is one of the world’s oldest forms of medicine, dating back to more than 2,000 years ago. It is shaped by Chinese history, philosophy and medical knowledge, to form a wellness and healing system that includes therapies such as herbal medication, acupuncture, cupping, etc.”

One important aspect of TCM is proper diet and nutrition, as food is considered to be more than just sustenance for the body since it has medicinal properties as well. Like herbs, food items are categorised according to whether they are warming or cooling, and then according to their tastes and effects.

“By eating foods suitable for one’s body constitution and health condition, one can nourish the body and maintain good health,” she says. Pee adds that having a strong immune system means having a strong Qi (vital energy) that can defend the body from external pathogens.

Wolfberries Ginseng

Adds Tay Jia Yin, TCM Physician, Raffles Chinese Medicine, “Western nutrition analyses food in terms of its chemical composition, calories, carbohydrates and vitamins it contains. TCM however, focuses on the energetic properties of food, as every food has a nature, flavour and organ system associated with it. The nature (warming or cooling) describes the effect of the food on the temperature of the body, while flavour (sour, bitter, sweet, salty or pungent) describes the taste.

Chinese dietary therapy utilises these properties as a guide to a well-balanced meal. Diet is prescribed not only according to illnesses, but also in consideration to a person’s body type.” According to her, the term ‘superfood’ is a contemporary term.

“From the TCM viewpoint, one particular food could be good for one person but not so good for another. There is no one-sizefits-all label since the food nature as well as its flavours have to be taken into consideration. Besides, different foods have different properties that can help the body at various times.”

TCM practitioners agree that certain ingredients stand out with special attributes and are often consumed to maintain health:

• Astragalus

Known for its ability to strengthen the immune system and help the body fight off infections, astragalus also has anti-ageing properties and is an adaptogen which increases the body’s ability to handle stress.

• Cordyceps

Boosts lung Qi and nourishes kidney essence, is especially useful for strengthening respiratory health and for general weakness in the body.

• Ginseng

A powerful herb that strongly boosts Qi in the body and strengthens spleen and lung functions. However, ginseng should not be used in heaty or excess yang conditions such as high blood pressure, constipation, or headaches.

• Goji Berry

Also known as wolfberries, goji berries have been used as an herbal remedy for over 3,000 years. They nourish the kidney essence that underpins human vitality and are typically consumed to improve eyesight. It also strengthens the liver and kidneys and replenishes vital essence in the body.

• Jujube dates

A warming food, the jujube date helps to strengthen the spleen and stomach Qi, and nourish the blood.

• Ling Zhi

Known for its immune-boosting effects and anti-aging properties.

• Walnuts

Eating walnuts can sharpen the mind and boost concentration and memory. In addition to helping the brain, walnuts support the kidney Qi and aid digestion by lubricating the intestine.

Tonic formulas also help to augment or replenish the body substances when they are deficient or weak, says Tay. In general, herbal tonics help to strengthen the body, aid in sleep and digestion or boost the immune system.

Astragalus

Jujube dates

They could involve individual tonic herbs or a combination of small formulas. In some cases, tonics are made into wines by using alcoholic extraction to obtain the active ingredients of herbs and allow them to keep for a longer period of time. In TCM, wine is considered a ‘guiding’ drug, which enhances and reinforces other drugs, while improving blood circulation at the same time. “It is important to first address the underlying deficiency before applying the appropriate tonic in order to obtain the maximum benefit,” she says.

Chinese Angelica root

Naturally clear blockages and promote smooth flow of Qi and blood through these special tonic ingredients, says physician Anita Pee of Eu Yan Sang TCM Clinic @ Clementi:

• Codonopsis root (Dang Shen)

Mild yet superb Qi and blood tonic which helps to maintain good Qi and blood circulation.

• Chinese Angelica root (Dang Gui)

Replenishes and invigorates blood to promote better blood circulation.

• Notoginseng (San Qi)

Invigorates blood and removes blood stasis, also alleviates pain and swelling from traumatic injuries.

When asked what foods she would recommend consuming, Tay says, “In TCM, the role of food and medicine overlap. For example, watermelon is food, but its hydrating properties could also serve as a medicating effect during hot days. However, there are also some foods that are considered more ‘medicine’ than ‘food’, such as ginseng, for example. When it comes to such ‘medicine’, a person should consult a practitioner since eating it could make your body worse, as all of us have different constitutions that interact differently with different foods.”

She concludes by saying, “From a TCM perspective, a good balanced diet is where foods are consumed in appropriate combinations according to their natures and flavours. It is best to consume fresh foods that are free from chemicals, preservatives, and over-processing. It is also important not to eat too much (ideally up to 70 per cent of your capacity), and have food that is moderate in temperature, to avoid straining the digestive organs. When a person continually eats only one type of food, it creates an imbalance in their body, thus affecting health. One of the key principles in TCM is to keep the body ‘neutral’. The idea is to eat the right food at the right time, in moderation.”

Codonopsis root (Dang Shen)

Under-rated TCM ingredients that physician Anita Pee of Eu Yan Sang TCM Clinic @ Clementi says deserve their time in the spotlight include:

• Chinese yam (Huai Shan)

Boosts Qi and Yin in the body and strengthens lung, spleen and kidney. This mild yet nourishing herb and food is great for promoting a healthy digestive system and is suitable for all ages to consume.

• Hawthorn berry

Improves appetite and aids digestion, particularly after consuming oily foods. It has shown effects in reducing blood lipids and promoting heart health. However, this herb is not suitable for people with acid reflux.

• White fungus

Nourishes lung Yin and increases fluids in the body. It is useful for treating dry coughs or dryness in the mouth and throat and improves skin complexion.

White fungus Hawthorn berry

• Red dates

Invigorates spleen and stomach and strengthens the digestive system. Also nourishes blood which promotes healthy, rosy complexion, and useful for blood-deficiency conditions such as dizziness and scanty periods.

• Black sesame

Strengthens the liver and kidney and replenishes blood and essence in the body. It has anti-aging properties and is useful for treating hair loss and grey hair. It is also useful for constipation due to yin and blood deficiency.

Black sesame