Best Ayurvedic Tips for Weight Loss


Obesity is one of the most dreaded lifestyle ailments today and is spreading like an epidemic all across the world. Owing to slavery to the taste buds and lethargic living conditions, being obese and overweight is affecting all age groups and either sex. The main problem with weight gain is that not only does it affect the confidence and mental stability of the obese person (making him easy target to mockery), overweight and obesity lays foundation of many other serious diseases. No doubt, weight loss is much sought after by one and all.

 

Weight Loss in Ayurvedic Dosha TypesAccording to Ayurveda philosophy, Kapha type of individual (having more of water and earth in their constitution) is more likely to gain weight easily. Although, the Vata types having more of air and ether, would generally be skinny and devoid of much fat. The fire types or Pitta dosha personalities who are generally gifted with proportional body weight, could be gaining weight just in case they lose their balance.

In the case of weight gain or obesity, it is believed that the Kapha dosha gets accumulated which further slows down the fat metabolism and leads to the disease of obesity. Therefore, Ayurveda believes that of the three basic dosha types, those people who have more of Kaha dosha in their system generally have a low BMR and gain weight easily. Thus, for weight loss, the Kapha types need to be more strict and careful with themselves both in the terms of diet intake and undertaking exercise routine.

 

Ayurvedic Tips for Weight loss

  • So as to bring down the body weight, or the Medha dhatu, it is regarded essential to practice daily exercise not only of the body, but also of the mind.
  • Many Yoga exercises have been specified for the purpose of easy weight loss. Also, there are deep breathing exercises, orPranayama, which can be undertaken so as to accelerate your weight loss program.
  • The habit of sleeping in the daytime is to be discouraged.
  • Dry massages and enemas prove helpful for weight loss.
  • The weight loss dry massage technique which is called as Udvartana is an effective remedy for weight gain and obesity. It provides weight loss, tones the skin, removes cellulite, loosens fat molecules and eliminates them from the sub-cutaneous level and removes Kapha toxins from the body.
  • A glass of lukewarm water along with a few drops of lemon juice and half a teaspoon honey is to be taken on an empty stomach first thing in the morning.

 

Yoga therapy for Weight LossYoga therapy when undertaken along with Ayurvedic diet and lifestyle plan for weight loss, in the form of Yoga asanas, Yoga techniques and Pranayama, helps in providing considerable weight loss. Yoga asanas like Trikon asanaBhujang asanaSurya Namaskar and deep breathing techniques like Bastrika pranayama and kapal bhati pranayama are some of the effective yoga poses for weight loss.

Yoga sessions work wonderfully well with Ayurvedic therapies for weight loss. These help to make you eat only what is needed for the body and the urge to eat more and frequently will disappear on its own. This is the reason why Ayurvedic weight loss program with Yoga practice is the most successful program. Once you are hooked on it you will stay with it, and the body slowly returns to its normal weight and keeps it.

 

Mudra Therapy for Weight LossSurya Mudra is another effective therapy recommended in Yoga for weight loss. The ring finger is made to settle at the root of the thumb, with the thumb exerting a little pressure on the ring finger. As this alignment tends to increase warmth in the body systems, it is generally recommended to be practiced for fifteen to twenty minutes daily.

 

Ayurvedic Analysis of Weight Gain and ObesityObesity or Aatisthula or Medho Roga as referred in Ayurveda text is regarded to be one among the eight ‘nindya prakruties’ (undesirable constitution) of the body.  In the Ayurvedic texts, Charaka has described; obesity is one of them and is described as ‘Medoroga’. In an Obese person, individual Medas (Fat) is excessively nourished and remaining other Dhatus (tissues) get malnourished.

 

Ayurvedic Medicine for Weight LossSome Ayurvedic medicines and herbal medicinal formulations like Trifla churan, Mandoor bhasm, Swarnmakshik bhasm, guggulu and shilajit are available in the markets and can help in weight loss. Medicinal formulations like Medhohar guggul or Triushanaadi loha are generally prescribed. These should be taken under a qualified Ayurvedic doctor’s supervision. These would mainly help in weight loss provided other diet and lifestyle measures for weight loss are followed.

 

Ayurvedic Diet for Weight lossFood items sweet in taste should be decreased in daily diet schedule and at the same time intake of diet components containing pungent, astringent and bitter tastes should be encouraged. Food items like oatsbarleyhoney, pulses like moong and arhar, and herbs like dried ginger, bitter gourd, aamla, soye etc. help in removing excess body fat and aid in weight loss.

HEALTH ~ Turmeric Superior to Chemical Mouthwash In Improving Oral Health

Since ancient times, turmeric has been used for remedying oral ailments, among other therapeutic applications too numerous to count.[1] Consider that plants like turmeric were first eaten for thousands of years before our species ever devised the modern day oddity of encapsulated or tableted extracts that could be swallowed without significant oral contact.  It is only logical, therefore, that after long stretches of biological time, taking the root orally as either food, spice or medicine, it would agree with and have benefit for that part of our anatomy and its unique physiology.

Indeed, recent research shows that turmeric extract and turmeric oil may even reverse precancerous changes in oral submucous fibrosis in humans.[2] [3]  In addition, there are at least a dozen studies showing turmeric extract can kill oral cancer cells,[4] including a recent study showing that turmeric extract-loaded nanoparticles kill chemotherapy-resistant oral cancer cells.[5] But turmeric’s positive role to play in oral health encompasses more than relatively rare health issues like oral cancer, as it also has tangible value to the vast majority of folks who use common mouthwash in an attempt to keep their mouth clean of plaque.

Turmeric contains approximately 3-4% curcumin by dry weight. This yellow pigmented polyphenol has been studied extensively in human clinical research as a natural alternative to the common mouthwash ingredient known as chlorhexidine for the treatment of gingivitis, “inflammation of the gum tissue.”

Gingivitis is classified as a non-destructive periodontal disease,[6] and involves bacterial plaque-induced inflammation, but if left untreated, it can progress to a form of periodontal disease that can be highly destructive. Some of the most common symptoms associated with gingivitis are bad breath (halitosis), and bleeding, bright, tender or swollen gums.

Chlorexidine, while considered the gold standard in dentistry for the prevention of dental plaque,[7] was flagged in 2012 in a patient safety alert issued by the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), due to its potential to induce anaphylactic reactions.[8] While chlorexidine-induced analaphylaxis is an exceedingly rare reaction, low level exposure has been confirmed in numerous scientific studies to cause a variety of complications.[9] [10] [11] Clearly, safer alternatives are needed and especially if they can be shown to be more effective.

Turmeric Mouthwash Shown Superior to Chlorexidine

Turmeric Mouthwash Shown Superior to Chlorexidine

In 2012, a study published in the Journal of Indian Society of Periodontology compared the efficacy of a .1% curcumin extract mouthwash + .01% eugenol (Group A) to a more strongly concentrated .2% chlorhexidine gluconate mouthwash (Group B), in subjects with mild to moderate gingivitis. Both Group A and Group B consisted of 30 subjects who were advised to use 10 ml of mouthwash with equal dilution of water for 1 min twice a day 30 min after brushing.  They were then tracked for plaque and gingival changes at day 0, day 14h and day 21. Both their direct experience (subjective) and objective criteria were assessed at days 14 and 21.

The results were as follows:

On comparison between chlorhexidine and turmeric mouthwash, percentage reduction of the Plaque Index between 0 and 21 st day were 64.207 and 69.072, respectively (P=0.112), percentage reduction of Gingival Index between 0 and 21st day were 61.150 and 62.545 respectively (P=0.595) and percentage reduction of BAPNA [The N-benzoyl-l-arginine-p- nitroanilide assay; a measurement of pathogenic bacterial activity] values between 0 and 21st day were 42.256 and 48.901 respectively (P=0.142). [emphasis added]

In all three objective parameters tested, turmeric extract was at least as effective as chlorhexidine mouthwash at improving the patient’s oral health. However, technically, the curcumin formulation beat out the chemical mouthwash in all 3 measurements, and at only one-half the concentration.

Also, subjective evaluations showed that the turmeric mouthwash was better received by the subjects.

In the characteristically conservative style of academia, the author’s concluded:

“Chlorhexidine gluconate as well as turmeric mouthwash can be effectively used as an adjunct to mechanical plaque control in prevention of plaque and gingivitis. Both the mouthwashes have comparable anti-plaque, anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties.”

Additional human clinical research has confirmed curcumin’s effectiveness as a chlorexidine alternative in reducing plaque,[12] as well as reducing plaque-associated gum inflammation.[13]

One of the major differences with a turmeric (curcumin)-based mouthwash is that if one happened to swallow some, it would not result in the type of adverse effects associated with a biocidal/antiseptic chemical such as chlorhexidine. In fact, given the broad range of documented health benefits of turmeric, it would actually provide some side benefit, were this to happen.

Ultimately, the choice is yours. But remember, always exert caution when embarking on any new dietary and/or supplement change, and do so under the guidance of a trained professional such as a medical herbalist or integrative physician. And remember, the quality of the herb will depend on whether it was organically produced (non-irradiated), well-handled and preserved in order to eliminate mycotoxins and related microbial contaminants.

 

References

[1] Note: Our research project on turmeric alone has identified over 600 experimentally confirmed health benefits of turmeric and/or curcumin.

[2] Jayashree Joshi, Sadhana Ghaisas, Ashok Vaidya, Rama Vaidya, D V Kamat, A N Bhagwat, Sumati Bhide. Early human safety study of turmeric oil (Curcuma longa oil) administered orally in healthy volunteers. J Assoc Physicians India. 2003 Nov ;51:1055-60. PMID: 15260388

[3] Balwant Rai, Jasdeep Kaur, Reinhilde Jacobs, Jaipaul Singh. Possible action mechanism for curcumin in pre-cancerous lesions based on serum and salivary markers of oxidative stress. J Oral Sci. 2010;52(2):251-6. PMID: 20587949

[4] GreenMedInfo.com, Professional Database Feature: Focus Curcumin Articles to Oral Cancer (17 results)

[5] Pei-Ying Chang, Shu-Fen Peng, Chao-Ying Lee, Chi-Cheng Lu, Shih-Chang Tsai, Tzong-Ming Shieh, Tian-Shung Wu, Ming-Gene Tu, Michael Yuanchien Chen, Jai-Sing Yang. Curcumin-loaded nanoparticles induce apoptotic cell death through regulation of the function of MDR1 and reactive oxygen species in cisplatin-resistant CAR human oral cancer cells. Int J Oncol. 2013 Oct ;43(4):1141-50. Epub 2013 Aug 5. PMID: 23917396

[6] The American Academy of Periodontology. Proceedings of the World Workshop in Clinical Periodontics. Chicago:The American Academy of Periodontology; 1989:I/23-I/24.

[7] Amita M Mali, Roobal Behal, Suhit S Gilda. Comparative evaluation of 0.1% turmeric mouthwash with 0.2% chlorhexidine gluconate in prevention of plaque and gingivitis: A clinical and microbiological study. J Indian Soc Periodontol. 2012 Jul ;16(3):386-91. PMID:23162334

[8] MHRA, Medical Device Alert, Issued Oct. 2012

[9] Sivathasan, Niroshan; Ramamurthy, Nitin Kumar; Pabla, Ravinder Singh (2010). “Chemical Burns Associated with Chlorhexidine-Alcohol Solution: An Avoidable Complication?”. Journal of Burn Care & Research 31 (5): 833. doi:10.1097/BCR.0b013e3181eed4d6. PMID 20644490

[10] Sivathasan, N; Sivathasan, N; Vijayarajan, L (2010). “Chlorhexidine’s complications”. Journal of perioperative practice 20 (8): 300–1. PMID 20860191

[11] Sivathasan, N.; Goodfellow, P. B. (2011). “Skin Cleansers: The Risks of Chlorhexidine”. The Journal of Clinical Pharmacology 51 (5): 785–6.doi:10.1177/0091270010372628. PMID 21383335

[12] Pf Waghmare, Au Chaudhari, Vm Karhadkar, As Jamkhande. Comparative evaluation of turmeric and chlorhexidine gluconate mouthwash in prevention of plaque formation and gingivitis: a clinical and microbiological study. J Contemp Dent Pract. 2011 ;12(4):221-4. Epub 2011 Jul 1. PMID: 22186854

[13] Sangeeta Muglikar, Kalpak Chandrakant Patil, Sumanth Shivswami, Rashmi Hegde. Efficacy of curcumin in the treatment of chronic gingivitis: a pilot study. Oral Health Prev Dent. 2013 ;11(1):81-6. PMID: 23507685

 

Source: http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/turmeric-superior-chemical-mouthwash-improving-oral-health-0