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| Article: Strong Bones: The Ayurvedic Perspective - by Jean Clark | ||
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Strong Bones: The Ayurvedic Perspective Keeping your bones healthy should be a top health concern, especially for women over 45. One out of two women over 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture in their lifetime--and that's something to think about. Certainly drinking milk is a good start, since milk is high in absorbable calcium, but there are many other factors involved in bone density. "Eating foods to nourish your fat and muscle tissue is just as important as eating foods to nourish your bones," says Vaidya Mishra, Director of Research and Development at Maharishi Ayurveda Products International. Sound confusing? Not if you look at the ayurvedic explanation of how bones are formed. How Bones Are Formed Bone is one of the seven body tissues, called seven dhatus, that are formed in a chain of metabolic interactions. "The majority of the muscle tissue, for instance, is transformed into Stoolma, which remains muscle," explains Vaidya Mishra. "But a small percentage becomes Shukshma, a more refined material, and these molecules form the raw material to create the next dhatu in the chain, which in this case is the fat tissue. After fat the next dhatu is bone." So when you're talking about healthy bone tissue, you must consider the health of the raw material that makes up bone tissue--the muscle and fat tissue. "There are four factors in creating healthy bone tissue," says Vaidya Mishra. "The first is to make sure the Shukshma, or raw material, is free of ama. Ama in the muscle or fat tissue creates weak bones." Ama-Free Bone Material Symptoms of ama in muscle tissues include mild muscular aches and pains, stiffness, and slow recovery from exercise or physical labor. Weight gain and a heavy feeling point to ama in the fat tissue. The ayurvedic solution for both situations is to eat foods that do not create ama, yet nourish the muscle and fat tissue, such as light, easily digestible proteins, good quality fats such as extra virgin olive oil and ghee to cleanse the fat tissue, and spices such as turmeric and coriander to cleanse the muscle tissue. Grains such as quinoa, oats, barley, amaranth are packed with nutrients but low on ama. Avoid eating leftovers, foods that aren't suitable for your body type, and processed, canned, frozen or packaged foods of any kind. Avoid bad fats such as transfats, hydrogenated vegetable oils and all cooking oils unless they are cold-processed. Amla Berry is an excellent food supplement for people with mild muscle fatigue, aches and pains and other ama-related muscle problems. "Quantity is also a factor," says Vaidya Mishra. "A fat-free diet isn't going to create enough raw material for healthy bones." Nourishing the Bone Tissue It's also important to support the bone tissue itself. "Eat calcium-rich foods such as milk, lassi, and paneerr; sesame seeds; coconut; and cooked greens like spinach, kale and chard," says Vaidya Mishra. Vaidya Mishra also recommends Herbal Calcium Absorb to cleanse the channels and aid in absorption of calcium. It helps absorb calcium from food, but also aids absorption from supplements. Enhancing Digestion To balance digestive strength, be sure to eat three regular meals a day. Eat at the same time every day, so your digestion can learn to prepare for the meal. Eat your main meal at noon because the digestion is stronger at that time. The evening meal should be light, since digestion slows down then. Regular exercise is also important for strengthening the dhatu agnis (and weight bearing exercise stimulates bone growth). Walking in the early morning sun is ideal, because this mild exposure is not damaging to the skin but still supplies Vitamin D (a necessary cofactor for calcium absorption). To strengthen the dhatu agnis, Vaidya Mishra recommends cooking with the following spice mixture and drinking spice water throughout the day: Spice Mixture Mix equal parts turmeric, ground cumin, ground coriander, ground fennel and black pepper. Store in a jar. Melt a teaspoon of ghee in a frying pan, add 1/2 teaspoon of the spice mixture, and enough steamed vegetables for one person. Multiply this recipe by the number of people you are serving. You can also add it to vegetables, grains, or soups. Spice Water Boil two quarts of water on the stove. Add spices and steep for ten minutes. Strain the spices and place the water in a thermos jar and sip it throughout the day. 2 leaves basil 1/2 t. fennel seed 1/4 t. marshmallow root 1 piece of clove 2 peppercorns Cleansing the Channels If the channels that carry raw material to the bone tissue are blocked with ama, then the bone tissue will not form properly. "The best way to cleanse the fat channels is to include ghee in your diet," says Vaidya Mishra. "The ghee can permeate the fat medium, and the spice mixture sautéed in ghee adds a cleansing element." Drinking spice water also cleanses the channels of muscle, fat and bone. Avoid vegetables from the popular nightshade family (tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant and sweet peppers) as these block the channels of the body. They also disturb the absorption of calcium and other nutrients by making the muscle tissue more acidic. Finally, following a Vata pacifying diet in the Vata stage of life can help enhance digestion and reduce ama, thereby making for strong healthy bones. Note - This ayurvedic information is education, and is not intended to replace standard medical care or advice. |
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Jean Clark has spent the last 15 years studying the ancient
science of ayurveda, and is currently Public Relations Manager for Maharishi
Ayurveda Products International in Colorado Springs. |
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