General tips from Ayurveda

Wrong food combinations
Ayurveda is a system of traditional medicine which has many rules regarding foods, practices and routines that a person should follow to stay healthy. One can easily ignore the rules stating that they are not practical. The wise, however, will appreciate the in - depth knowledge that our ancestors possessed.
In recent times, the usage of antacids and medication for digestive problems has increased drastically. Flatulence, heartburn, improper bowel movements and irritable bowel syndrome are some of the problems. Have our digestive systems changed so much over the years or are we just doing something elementarily wrong?
Some of the rules regarding food and food combining are mentioned here:
1. Avoid drinking water with a meal. The digestive fire or ‘agni’ of a person has optimum ph to digest the food. Once diluted with water, digestion is compromised. 
2. Fruits should never be eaten with a meal. They have to be consumed on an empty stomach. Digestion of fruits takes very little time. When eaten along with a meal or after a meal, the fruit starts fermenting giving rise to flatulence. 
3. Combining citrus fruits with milk and milk products will cause indigestion.
a. e.g. many people eat their morning cereal with milk and finish breakfast with a glass of orange juice. This results in milk curdling.
b. There is a reason that orange milk ice cream is not sold in the market. It is mostly sold as sorbets or candies. If they are being sold then it will contain a lot of stabilizers
4. Kiwi as a fruit CANNOT be combined with milk. It has an enzyme called Actinidain which digests milk. E.g. Kiwi milkshake or kiwi pastry is already spoilt before you consume it. 
5. One should not drink milk along with any meals. It should be a standalone drink. Milk can inhibit the iron absorbtion from the meal as it is an iron inhibitor. E.g. drinking milkshake with a meal. 
6. Avoid sour foods while consuming milk and milk products. E.g avoid eating fruits with tea or raisin/cherry/blueberry/strawberry cookies or cakes with tea. 
7. Do not speak too much while eating your food. When one speaks while eating, air gets swallowed giving rise to discomfort and a false feeling of fullness. The pockets of air can cause pain as it passes through the digestive tract.
What happens if we do not take into consideration the above rules of eating?
Whenever there is an adverse reaction, the product formed cannot be digested. The body is able to manage with rare instances of wrong food combinations. However, when one eats wrong foods on a daily basis, the resulting product forms a slimy coating on the insides of the digestive tract.
This gives rise to two conditions:
1. The slimy coating does not allow the nutrients to be absorbed and the person becomes painfully thin. Mostly seen in children and adults who have lactose intolerance but do not eliminate milk from their diet. 
2. In the second scenario, food is improperly digested. Many a times, during improper digestion, the body converts whatever it cannot absorb as fat. This fat is accumulated around the belly and hip region.
Most of us want to eat healthy. Unfortunately, eating right and eating healthy go hand in hand. Many people might like unique and unusual food combinations. Just make sure that your stomach is not paying the price in the name of creativity.

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