Why do we Crave too much Sweet Stuff in Winter? plus: Calendar of 2020 SVA Events in the USA, Canada, & Mexico – your SV Ayurveda Newsletter Jan. 16, 2020 – #1, Vol 10
Do you ever wonder why you crave more sugar and sweet stuff when the weather gets cold? Do you ever find yourself wishing you could curb your sweet tooth so you have a better chance at losing weight, not catching that cold, or just staying more fit? You can do something about it. First off, did you know it’s OK to crave more sweet stuff during the winter time? It’s not you, it’s your srotas!!! Because here’s what happens when the weather gets cold – very cold: just like low temperatures slow down and shrink the elements in nature (water freezes), just so it shrinks the physical channels in our bodies, or our srotas. When our channels constrict, things slow down, and guess what happens next? Circulation is blocked or slowed down and vata gets stuck and goes up up and up making you crave heavy sweet stuff. In addition, metabolic fluids also get slowed down and stuck – agni is stuck and you feel more hungry and crave more sweet heavy somagenic stuff.
So you see, it’s not just ok but it’s important to eat more soma-rich foods, including sweets, in order to help pacify vata and also feed your agni (metabolic enzymatic fluids). BUT, as Vaidya Mishra reminded us with a laugh, the trick is to eat the healthy fresh pranic stuff – not the chocolate bars, or the heavy cold vata aggravating foods. If you eat un-intelligent food, chances are your body will not be able to process it and you will make ama – toxic bi-products. And then what? You’ll get the sniffles and a miserable cold! It’s important to eat balanced in ayurvedic terms. Which means what? Have all 6 tastes…
According to the basic principles of Ayurveda, the natural taste of a food item is very important because it gives you information about what it is going to do in your body, what actions it is going to perform once you eat it. This is why, in Ayurveda, food is first and foremost categorized and evaluated according to its taste. In total, there are 6 tastes: madhur (sweet); amla (sour); lavan (salty); katu (pungent); tikt (bitter); kashai (astringent).
The first three tastes are known to be vata pacifying (as the sutra says:
tatrādyā māruta ghnanti trayastiktādaya kapham|
kaāyatiktamadhurā pittamanye tu kurvate||171||
The first 3 tastes pacify marut/vata or the air principle. So craving and eating sweet, sour, (and salty) during winter is actually recommended. Vaidya’s “Sweet Orange and Mango Chutney” contains a balance of both the sweet (madhur) and sour (amla) tastes, and a pinch of Soma Salt too, therefore, it pacifies all vata aspects right away – body and mind. But does this not aggravate kapha dosha – since only the bitter, pungent, and astringent tastes pacify kapha?
Vaidya’s chutney is made of raw sweet mangos that are known to be astringent, and in this recipe, the astringent taste or “kashai rasa” counter-balances the sweet and sour properties of the chutney keeping kapha in balance.
This chutney is also pitta pacifying as the sutra says: “kashai tikt madhura, pitta manyecho kurvate”- astringent, bitter and sweet tastes all pacify pitta. The chutney contains the astringent (kashai) and the sweet (madhura) tastes that pacify pitta.
So, this chutney is actually tridoshic when kapha individuals consume it with perhaps an added chili or two on the side, and in moderation!
But beyond doshas, this fruit spread is tridosically balanced because it not only contains premium ingredients but these ingredients have been meticulously put together to balance each other out, so for example, the natural pectin binds the micro-molecules of the raw organic sugar so the sugar does not go into the system in a fast-forward fashion but rather at a sustained-release pace, so when you consume it you do not get a sugar high and come back for more after you’ve crashed from your high. With the sustained release of sugar, you satisfy your craving and walk away happy with a small amount! The sugar is also balanced by the ascorbic acid and all the other ingredients.
Plus, Vaidya’s chutney is naturally preserved with no hidden sodium or potassium benzoate, no synthetic flavors or colors or aromas. Only nature’s goodness of the most delicious mangoes and sweet oranges in a jar…
So here it is, the perfect delicious answer to your sweet craving: a sweet fruit spread that’s delectably perfect to balance pitta and vata doshas without aggravating kapha! Free from chemical and toxic additives, colors, and flavors, and made according to the most ancient ayurvedic principles that help balance the body and the mind, a delicious chutney you can use daily with your meals or eat alone at snack-time.
So there it is, now you can indulge in your craving without guilt!
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