Ayurveda Vata Diet
VATA Diet Sheet
This is meant to serve as a guideline to help you gain better understanding of yourself, not suppress yourself! Remember a list of balancing foods not on the list. It just means favor the list, and eat other foods in less quantities. The foods to favor will cause specific influences over time that the designated dosha needs to maintain balance in the body and physiology.
FAVOR THESE foods
Beverages: almond milk, aloe vera juice, apple cider, apricot, berry-not cranberry, carrot, cherry, grain coffee, grape, lemonade, mango, miso broth, orange, papaya, peach, pineapple, rice milk, sour juices, vegetable bouillon
Herbal teas: ajvain, bancha, catnip, chamomile, chicory, chrysanthemum, clove, comfrey, elder flower, eucalyptus, fennel, fenugreek, ginger–fresh, Hawthorne, juniper berry, kukicha, lavender, lemon grass, licorice, marshmallow, oat straw, orange peel, pennyroyal, peppermint, raspberry, rosehips, saffron, sage, sarsaparilla, sassafras, spearmint, strawberry, wintergreen
Condiments: black pepper, chutney-mango, chili peppers, coriander leaves, dulse, gomasio, kijiki, kelp, ketchup, lemon, lime, lime pickle, mango pickle, mayonnaise, mustard, pickles, scallions, seaweed, soy sauce, sprouts, tamari, vinegar
Dairy: butter, ghee, whole milk-cow and goat (avoid homogenized if possible), lassi, cheese-cow and goat, panir, cottage cheese, sour cream, yogurt
Food Supplements: aloe vera juice, bee pollen, amino acids, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, since, royal jelly, spirulina, blue-green algae, vitamins A, B, B12, C, D, E, EFA’s (essential fatty acids) found in cold process oils from cod liver, evening primrose, black currant seed, flax seed, borage
Fruits: (ripe and sweet) apples-cooked, applesauce, avocado, banana, berries, cherries, coconut, dates, figs, grapefruit, grapes, kiwi, lemon, lime, mango, melons, oranges, papaya, peaches, pineapple, plums, prunes-soaked, pomegranate, raisins-soaked, rhubarb, strawberries, tamarind
Grains: whole; amaranth, durham flour, oats-cooked, quinoa, seitan (wheat meat), sprouted wheat bread (Essene)wheat, white rice (basmati is best) (if digestion is weak carbohydrates and proteins e.g., rice and dal, may be eaten at separate meals in the same day
Legumes: lentils-red, mung beans, mung dal, tur dal, urad dal
Meats: Ayurveda makes no recommendations for these foods as habitual diet), beef, buffalo, chicken, duck, eggs, fish, turkey, sea food
Nuts: almonds (without skins are best), black walnuts, brazil nuts, cashews, charole, coconut, filberts, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, peanuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, walnuts
Oils: ghee, olive oil, sesame (for external use), sunflower oil, and others generally ok; use coconut and avocado oils externally only
Seeds: chia, flax, halva, pumpkin, sesame, sunflower, tahini
Spices: ajvain, allspice, almond extract, anise, asafoetida-hing, basil, bay leaf, black pepper,cardamom, cayenne, cinnamon, clove, coriander, cumin, dill, fennel, fenugreek, garlic, ginger (especially fresh), marjoram, mint, mustard seeds, nutmeg, orange peel, oregano, paprika, parsley, peppermint, pippali, poppy seed, rosemary, saffron, , salt (saindhava), savory, spearmint, star anise, tarragon, thyme, turmeric, vanilla, wintergreen
Sweeteners: barley malt, fructose, fruit juice concentrates, honey, jaggary, molasses, rice syrup, raw sugar or sucanat, rock crystal sugar, turbinado
Vegetables: asparagus, beets, cabbage–cooked, carrots, cauliflower, cilantro, cucumber, daikon radish, fennel (anise), garlic, green beans, green chilies, Jerusalem artichoke, leafy greens, leeks, lettuce, mustard greens, okra, olives-black, onions-cooked, parsley, parsnip, peas-cooked, sweet potato, pumpkin, radish-cooked, rutabaga, spaghetti squash, spinach, summer squash, taro root, turnip greens, water cress, zucchini
SOME THINGS TO AVOID
- Frozen, canned, fried foods, leftovers
- All ice cold food and drink
- The combination of Milk or yogurt with fruits, vegetables, or fish (is toxic)
- Honey cooked in anything (is toxic)
- Fruits and vegetables in the same meal
- Mushrooms, peanuts, tomatoes, garlic, eggplant (affect meditation)
- Sweet, flour desserts after a meal (before is best)
- Alcohol,coffee, tea, chocolate, other beverages (affect meditation)
- All refined grains and sugar and foods containing them
- All food cooked in used fats/oils
Because of significant contraindicating research ALL soy products no longer carry a recommendation.