Natural Health
Ayurveda
Kapha is formed from water and earth. Kapha types tend to be heavily built, slow moving and physically strong, and are usually stable, patient but inclined to be possessive. Sweet, sour, salty foods increase kapha. People of this type should avoid dairy foods and eat more hot and spicy foods, apples, pears, leaf vegetables, beans and lentils.
How does it work?
An Ayurvedic doctor will assess your doshic constitution (tridosha) by checking the pulse at three points on the wrist, and ask searching questions about your personal and family history and lifestyle, from bowel habits to relationships. Your tongue is examined and you may be asked for a urine sample. Treatment will target the whole person rather than the symptoms of a specific disease. Dietary advice to restore any imbalance will take into account your age, condition, doshic type and season of the year, and suggest optimum times for meals. Herbal and mineral remedies and steam baths may be prescribed.
If the doctor considers a patient is suitable, he or she may suggest a rigorous physical and mental detoxification programme known as panchakarma, which involves enemas, laxatives, therapeutic vomiting and washing out the nasal passages. Ayurvedic massage is carried out by two masseurs working together with herbal oils to stimulate 'marma' points that will encourage the flow of prana. A rejuvenating regime includes yoga, meditation, chanting and sunbathing.
What is it good for?
As a medical system in its own right, Ayurveda would claim to treat any condition. It seems to be particularly helpful for digestive problems, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, eczema and other skin conditions, anxiety, insomnia, viral infections and wound healing.
What to watch out for
Check your practitioner's qualifications. Fully qualified Ayurvedic physicians complete a five-year degree course at Indian or Sri Lankan universities, and hold the title BAMS (Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery) or DAMS (Doctor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery).
Some practitioners are qualified to give dietary and lifestyle advice, but only Ayurvedic doctors should prescribe and monitor herbal remedies and detoxification regimes. You should avoid enemas and other purgative treatments if you are pregnant, elderly or have heart disease, and young children should not have enemas.
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