A Simple Way to Cure Indigestion

Eat only when you feel hungry. In other words eat only when you have a good appetite. Do not eat when you don't feel so. Do not eat in a haste.

Enjoy the food you eat and be conscious of the act of eating. It relaxes you at once. At the same time it helps the stomach to generate the necessary juices to digest the food.

If you eat using your hands, always clean them before eating. It is said that when you use your hands to eat, the body gets the feel of the food and it in turn helps secrete the fluids in the stomach to aid digestion.

Now for the nitty gritties. Mix powder of pulses, or pepper and cumin powder, oraingaya powder and sesame oil to the first portion of your food (assuming you eat rice). This serving gets digested very quickly. It won't burden the stomach as well. After this a serving of hot rice mixed with rasam will supplement the treatment.

Kernels of fully grown mango seeds are collected and allowed to dry. Add a few curry leaves and a few pepper corns to the kernels (1-2 seeds) and grind them to a fine paste using water. This paste is mixed in buttermilk. Add a pinch of salt to taste. This is then added to rice and taken. Tender mango leaves can be used in place of mango kernels. This brings about good appetite and helps sensitize the taste buds. You will regain the taste and you will start enjoying the food.

Take vilvadhi lehyam 5 gm morning and evening on empty stomach. Also 30 ml of jeerakarishtam after food both morning and evening help in improving digestion.

Ginger, Honey and Obesity

Ginger is known from time immemorial for its action on the digestive system. It activates the taste buds and restores the sense of taste. It plays a pivotal role in digesting heavy foods while maintaining the equilibrium of the doshas. It helps maintain the necessary heat which enables smooth functioning of the entire body. It aids blood circulation and removes lethargy.

Ginger tastes hot but becomes sweetish on digestion. It restores voice by clearing phlegm from the throat. It also removes phlegm in chest and helps in curing indigestion. In case of fevers due to these, honey and ginger juice is mixed and given internally.

When pitta increases beyond its normal levels in the intestines it results in giddiness and tiredness. In such cases, ginger, coriander seeds and cumin seeds are ground to a fine paste using a few drops of water and taken with honey or sugar.

Remove the outer skin of fresh ginger and dry it in sunlight for 10 minutes. Take 200 gm of such dried ginger and slice them into small pieces. This is then soaked in 200 gm of honey and stored in a bottle. Stir it regularly. Also place the honey and ginger combination in sunlight for 10 – 15 minutes twice a week. Ginger thus preserved lasts longer. This preparation is a good remedy for loss of appetite, lethargy, body heat, giddiness due to excessive pittha etc. Half a teaspoon of this sliced ginger and honey a day is the recommended quantity. Regular intake up to restoration of appetite is recommended.

Honey plays an important role in reducing beer belly or pot belly. Ginger prevents indigestion that may be caused due to honey. This combination of honey and ginger thus helps in combating obesity also.

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Medicinal Properties of Fenugreek

Fenugreek has been used as a home remedy to treat a number of ailments ranging from stomach ache, arresting hair fall, increase virility, general tonic etc.

Fenugreek of late has drawn the attention of the medical world for its anti-diabetic properties. It is available in capsule form in many health food stores.

It can

1. Pacify heat.
2. Stop diarrhea.
3. Soften skin
4. Cure cough.
5. Cure mouth ulcers.

The list goes on and on. My other blog on Siddha Home Remedies lists some of the home remedies that can be made using fenugreek to cure many ailments.

A Simple Ayurvedic Home Remedy for Bloated Stomach

Ayurveda emphasizes the importance of diet and lifestyle to lead a disease free life. By diet it means intake of fresh as well as cooked vegetables and fruits and avoidance of non-vegetarian food. By lifestyle it means observance of certain basics like exercise, yoga etc.

Even intake of vegetarian food is to be in moderation, Ayurveda insists. If not, it leads to indigestion, bloated stomach, improper assimilation of food etc.

One simple ayurvedic home remedy for simple bloated stomach, indigestion etc is given below.
Take 20 drops of lemon, 20 drops of grated ginger juice and 7 drops of honey. Mix them together and keep it ready. Now take a spoonful of cumin seeds and chew them thoroughly. Swallow down the chewed cumin seeds and immediately drink the lemon, ginger honey mix. This will clear the bloated stomach and indigestion due to overeating in minutes.

Ayurvedic Home Remedies: Medicinal Uses of Oils

Oil massage once a week helps in relieving body pain, joint pains etc. Just a couple of decades back people in Tamil Nadu used to religiously follow this regimen to keep themselves free of joint pains and body pains. Now with the hectic lifestyle people are not able to set aside the time needed for a relaxing weekly oil massage. It has reached a stage where application of oil to the body or hair is viewed as a hassle and conveniently bypassed.
Oil prepared with herbs like nocchi, basil, cumin seeds, vadha narayana keerai, kuppaimeni etc is very effective in relieving body pain. Regular massage with this medicated oil strengthens the muscles and removes stagnant toxins. Kuppaimeni is a well known herb for its action on skin conditions like eczema, blackheads etc. For relief form body pain and joint pain, massage this oil on the affected area and then follow it with warm water fomentation.

Medicinal Benefits of Castor Oil

Castor oil is used for lighting up temple lamps in Tamil Nadu. It is also used as a medicine. Castor oil is given to pregnant women and children for easy elimination and to avoid constipation. There is a saying in Tamil which stresses the importance of oil. 'Vaithiyanukku koduppathai vaaniyanukku kodu'. If you spend money on oils, you can save money treating diseases and ailments. This stresses the role of oil in preventing various ailments.Ayurvedic texts stress the importance of ‘Virechana’ a bowel cleansing process once in six months. Castor oil is used a purgative for this purpose. Castor oil is also used in treating stomach pain, abdomen pain, body heat etc. Castor oil is applied liberally in the naval area around the belly button for this purpose. This is said to bring down the body heat as well as relieve stomach pain etc.
In case of inflammation of the eye due to body heat, redness etc, castor oil is mixed with mother's milk and instilled into the eyes. This rapidly cures the redness of eyes. Castor oil is also used in treating dysentery due to 'body heat'. 'Sweet flag' is burnt in castor oil lamp and the ash obtained in mixed in honey and given to the person suffering from dysentery.
Constipation is considered to be the root cause of most of the diseases that afflict modern man. Fast food is one of the prime cause for constipation. Constipation leads to formation of hemorrhoids or piles.
Castor oil is used extensively in treating constipation. It expels accumulation of gas in stomach. It drives out intestinal worms and pacifies vata. It relieves mental tension and cools the body and mind.
My next entry will detail more on medicinal uses of castor oil.

Ayurvedic Home Remedies: Medicinal Uses of Castor Oil

Couple of decades back castor oil was extensively used for treating ailments afflicting people of all ages from newborns to old folks. A drop or two of castor oil was applied on the fontanel of the newborn. Castor oil was applied over the eyes before bathing the newborn. The child was fed milk mixed with castor oil once in two or three days. Up to the age of 12, children were given castor oil once in a month with coffee as part of stomach cleansing. In case of boils that occur during the summer season, castor oil is mixed in hot rice and made into a poultice and applied on the affected areas.

In case of anxiety coupled with palpitation and burning sensation on top of head due to excessive thinking etc, a teaspoon of castor oil can be allowed to soak on the top of head. This is said to relieve mental tension, anxiety and burning sensation on the crown of the head.

When small children suffer from unexpected stomach pain due to indigestion or body heat, instill two to three drops of castor oil into the belly button and gently massage the area in a circular motion two or three times. This brings the pain under control very quickly.

One forgotten use of castor oil is its application on sprained areas followed by hot water fomentation. This quickly heals sprains.

Castor oil and turmeric powder is mixed thoroughly to form a paste which is applied on cracked heels or foot fissures. This is done before going to bed.

In case of choked throat one simple remedy is to prepare a paste of castor oil and slaked lime and apply a thin layer externally on the throat area before going to bed. This quickly clears choked throat.

In case of gas in stomach a take a glass of milk after adding a teaspoon of castor oil to it. Another alternative is to chew and gulp down a spoonful of cumin seeds followed by intake of a mixture of 20 drops of lemon juice, 20 drops of ginger juice and 8 drops of honey. This is another time tested remedy for gas.

Flowers as Ayurvedic Home Remedies

Ayurveda uses flowers to cure certain diseases. Flowers play an important role in our lives. Flowers of various hues and colours soothe your mood and relax your mind. The fragrance of certain flowers cools you down. Certain flowers can cure diseases when eaten. Following are some flowers used for treating diseases.

Rose
Even though many colours of roses are available the original roses are the best ones suited medicinally. This alone has the enchanting fragrance. Rosewater prepared from rose flowers is used as eyedrops to keep away all eye related infections. Kulkund made from rose cures ulcers of the stomach. The powder of dried rose petals acts as excellent laxatives.

Jasmine
Jasmine falls under the category of herbs which cure diseases just by inhaling them. For example, most of the mental disorders decrease in severity on inhaling jasmine flowers. It calms your mind.

Sunflower
Oil obtained from the seeds of sunflower can be applied on acne. This promotes healing without suppuration. When applied on swollen joints it is found to reduce inflammation. Sunflower oil is used in preparing various dishes.

Shoe flower
The red five petaled shoe flower has excellent medicinal value.

5-10 petals of the shoe flower are chewed. Drink a glass of water. This is found to cure ulcers of stomach. Also white discharge or leukorrhea can be treated this way.

The petals of 4-5 flowers are ground into a paste and mixed in buttermilk. Drinking this buttermilk cleanses your blood. It also strengthens your heart.

For hair fall, premature graying, and baldness etc a preparation made of shoe flower has proved to be beneficial. This is how you prepare it. Put petals of 50 shoe flowers in linseed oil and put this oil in a bottle. Wrap it with a thin white cloth and place it in sunlight for 10 days. Stir the oil once morning and evening. Filter the shoe flower out from linseed oil and mix coconut oil of equal quantity. This should be applied everyday on the scalp to prevent hair fall.

Plantain flower

Known for its excellent diuretic property dishes made of plantain flower are good in curing most of the stomach problems. They are also good at curing hemorrhoids. Some excellent dishes can be found here.

Neem flower
Gather neem flowers during the flowering season, clean and dry them. Powder the flowers and store them. This powder can be used in preparing rasam etc, to cure pitha and vadha related diseases. It also protects the liver.