Ayurveda Solutions for Hot Weather

Ayurveda Solutions for Hot Weather

Ayurveda is the only science of medicine which explains in detail about the changes that occur in each climate and its influence on human body. Due to these changes in human body certain diseases appear during that season. It may appear as an individual disease, endemics or epidemics. It has been very well explained in Ayurveda the measures to reduce the impact of such climatic changes on human body thereby preventing the occurrence of diseases. So humans are advised to follow them strictly to prevent harmful effect of the climate on the body.
Ayurveda classifies seasons as 6.
Sisiram
Vasanatam
Greeshmam(Summer)
Varsha(rainy)
Sarat
Hemanta.
Now the season is summer.
Summer is a season usually beginning from end of February extending till may half. In this season sun will be nearest to earth and will give maximum heat. Each year summer records the maximum temperature varying from 38°C to 45°C which changes from place to place. During this climate due to this intense heat the entire atmosphere and land will be very hot. Land gets dried and drought appears As a result plants get dried up. Situation is a very horrible.
Ayurveda says that climatic changes have a direct and indirect influence on human body. In summer due to this intense heat, man starts sweating heavily which results in great water loss from the body. As a result man starts feeling very thirsty.
Along with this excessive sweat ions from the body are also lost. This may prdoduce cramps in the body.
During summer, as the outside temperature increases the metabolic rate also increases, this will cause increased utilization of the energy stored in liver and muscles. This produces fatiguness and weakness of body. Since the water content of the body is also decreasing, the general stamina of the person becomes very less.
During this season moisture content of the body decreases and skin bacomes dry. The strength of the tissues decrease and hence the immunity also.
When excessively sweated there are higher chances of getting infection on the groins and arm-pits. It is because of clogging of sweat, debris and waste and sufficient heat from outside and of tight undergarments which makes micro-organisms to grow and produce infection.
Ayurveda explains every change in the body and atmosphere in terms of Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Analyzing the climatic changes during summer, there is a decrease of water content (Drava guna in Sanskrit; decreases), increase in temperature (Usna guna increases), decrease of moistness of tissues (Snigdha guna decreases), tissues start getting depleted due to the increase in metabolism(Rooksha guna increases), water content and tissue physique decreases, the heaviness of body decreases(Laghu guna increases) and loss of moistness(Snigdha guna decreases). So day by day kapha from our body gets dried up and vata increases.
Ayurveda has advised many measures to combat the heat and consequent complications that are seen during the summer. Many of them are practically not possible nowadays. Using the ideas in those practices, the things which can be followed today are described. Ayurveda advises to eat such foods and drinks and practice certain regimes which will combat this outcome of high temperature on human body.
Have an early morning bath
Get up early in the morning and have a bath before sunrise. Water in the early morning hours is cool. The water that is in a tank which has become cool after getting the overnight breeze or water from a deep well may be used for bath. This makes your day fresh during the summer. Usually the heat of the summer cause exhaustion in the body.
Practice exercise before 8 AM and after 5 PM
Never do exercise after 8AM and before 5 PM. Between this time sun will be getter hotter and will be at its peak from 1 PM to 3 PM. So never do exercise during this period. Similarly never work in hot sun during summer. This produce a great loss of water in the form of sweat resulting in sun stroke. It may also lead to burns on skin.. So do work only after standing in shades. Never have a direct exposure to sun.
Use Mild perfumes
Use only mild perfumes. They will keep you fresh and confident. It will remove the bad body odour due to excess sweating. Mild fragrance of jasmine, Rose etc can be chosen according to desire. Use it twice- Morning after bath and at night before sleep after wiping the body with a cool towel.
Do not spray the chemical perfumes directly on your skin. Since the skin is already soft due the clogging of sweat direct spray may cause burning sensation or irritation and sometimes burns on the skin. So it is better to spray them on your clothes.
Eat only easily digestible, cool and semi-solid/Liquid foods
Food should be regularized and qualitative. Ayurveda advises to take food that is easily digestible and liquid in nature food, having natural sweet taste and which is cool in nature. This logic which has been explained 5000 yrs ago is very much appreciable. During summer our metabolic activity is set at a very high side. So body will be utilizing all the stored energy and there will be acute shortage of energy. So body must be supplemented with food items that can be easily converted into energy. Solid and heavy digestible foods require a lot of time to get digested and converted into energy. By that time, body will get exhausted of energy and will start to feel tired. So food which are light i.e. easily digestible, liquid in nature and naturally sweet are always the best. Top priority stands for fruit juices. Make the habit of drinking one or two fruit juices every day. The juices should be cool and NEVER BE COLD. Fruit juices also have a lot of vitamins and minerals in them and they will maintain the loss of potassium and sodium through sweat. Drinking tender coconut water is the best method. It is cool in nature, reduces the increased metabolic rate, makes mind fresh and nourishes the body. It is also a good health supplement as it has ample amount of vitamins and minerals essential for normal growth. Drinking sugar cane juice is also good. It is sweet, cool and an instant energy provider.
It is better to take some rice water soup or vegetable soup every day. It will keep you fresh, energetic and healthy.
It is advised to eat rice with meat. It can be practiced in the afternoon. Do not eat fried or grilled chicken. It is better to eat meat in the form of curry. Drink meat soup with without adding much oil or butter to it.
Never take food stuffs and drinks which are very strong.
Ayurveda advises to take only little amount of salt, chilly and spicy food in summer. Excess amount of Salt, Chilly and spicy food if taken will increase the metabolism thereby increasing the hot character in the body. This will cause increased use of energy thereby causing easy tiredness. Moreover salt, spicy and chilly food will cause burning sensation in the body as pitta is increased. There may be constipation and greater chances of getting piles and fistula.
Avoid Junk Foods
Junk foods are always hard to digest. They provide calories to the body in very much high amount than required. It makes these calories to get deposited in the body in the form of fats thus making the person obese. When a person is obese, he will get more hungry and eats more thus making it a continuous cycle.
So a person tends to get more obese in summer than in any other season. Moreover obesity will cause increased sweating from the body thereby resulting in greater water loss, increased skin infection and increased urinary tract infections.
Do not fast in summer
Avoid fasting during summer season. In summer there will be increased metabolism and thus increased utilization of energy. Thus the body is weak and if fasting is done it will further aggravate the situation. When fasting is done, the tissues gets depleted. So the immunity further decreases and this will make a person more vulnerable to diseases.
Drink sufficient cool water
Increased thirst is a great problem in summer. The excessive heat causes depletion of water in the body in the form of sweat. So drink at least 10 to 12 glasses of water a day. It would be better if the water used for drinking is boiled with some cool drugs like Chandana, ramacha, patimukha, karingali etc. Drink only cool water and never a COLD one.
Summer is a season of maximum occurrence of skin diseases like prickly heat, pimples, skin rashes, sun allergic rashes etc. So drinking water made from these medicines will decrease the inner heat and also will cause decreased rate of exposure to these diseases.
Do not drink water without boiling it. There is a high chance of spread of infection as the immnue power of the body is lowest during the summer season.
Say no to alcohol
Alcohol is a very strong liquid. It is a fermented producted. Alcohol, called as Madya in Sanskrit, is absolutely contraindicated in summer season. It is because it has the same properties of the climate in summer. It is hot and powerful. It also has a lot of sugars which makes a man obese. If at all a person cannot leave alcohol it is advised to drink in very little quantity or drinking after adding a lot of water so that the strength of alcohol decreases and does not produce a severe impact on body. If alcohol is drunk in large amounts there may be odema, loss of energy and stamina, severe burning sensation or fainting.
Avoid Smoking
Smoking is very much contraindicated in summer. It is hot and taking smoke will increase metabolic activity thereby producing complications. There is a greater chance of getting bronchitis and other diseases. Smoking may be compared to Dhoomapana(a procedure of inhalation of medicated smoke). Dhoomapana is a medical practice and it does good to body while smoking is a harmful thing. This Dhoomapana is not allowed in the summer season.
Have a Nap in the afternoon
Usually day time sleep is absolutely contraindicated in Ayurveda. But summer is a season where day time sleep is advised. This is because in the afternoon hours the sun will be the most powerful. So it is better to be a home in a cool environment and take rest. Rest always decreases the metabolic rate and hences preserves the energy.
In the afternoon, have a sleep in a cool atmosphere. Sleeping in an A/C room is good provided the A/C is kept on moderate cooling. Never make the room too cold and sleep. Sleep for an hour or two is permissible
Wear Light Colored and Thin Cotton dress
Dark colored dress absorb more heat than Light colored dress. Hence wear only light colored dresses during summer. Light cotton dress is preferred. Light dress allow sufficient air passage to the body thereby regulate the heat generated in the body. This will cause decreased sweating and hence decreased chances of skin problems.
Always use loose undergarments made of cotton. They will ensure good air supply and prevent skin diseases.
Get Cool Air in the night
It is advised to sit on roof top at night getting the glimpses of the moon. The atmosphere will become cool as the sun sets and the moon comes. So this cool air will reduce the body temperature and thus will give comfort. For people living in flats, they can sit in the balcony and get the natural cool breeze. It is said that people should only wear light and thin cotton dresses and better to meditate during getting the breeze so that there will be a mental and physical relief from the stress and heat of summer.
Drink Milk everyday night
Drink 1 glass of milk with sugar and 1 teaspoon of ghee daily at night two hours before sleep. This is an excellent combination to prevent the complications of summer heat. Milk and sugar will restore the energy loss of the body during the day. It will remove the fatigueness and tiredness. Body will gain strength and immune power will increase. Ghee added with milk will restore the moist nature of tissues. It will remove the dryness and make the metabolic activity of the body to normal limits.
Not a suitable climate for making love
Summer is a climate which is not suitable to make sexual intercourse. Practice intercourse only once in 15 days. Ayurveda considers that for a man semen is his strength. If his looses semen through excessive intercourse, naturally his strength will come down and hence he is susceptible to many diseases. In Ayurveda semen is considered to be moist and cool. So this will also get decreased during summer. If you are taking some semonogauages like aswagandha, musali etc daily with milk and ghee then daily intercourse may be taken into consideration.
Have a cool water smeared towel wipe
These days the intensity of heat at night is also very high. So people sweat heavily even at night. This will make them difficult to get sleep. So it is better to wipe their entire body with a towel dipped in cool water before sleep so that the body heat comes down and a sound sleep is ensured.