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Worst Food Combination According to Ayurveda
By Dr. Helen Thomas, D.C. | July 17, 2008
Revealed in this week’s issue…
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Results From My Little Quiz: Readers’ guesses on what I think is the worst food combination Westerners consume… |
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Clog Up Your Gut First Thing in the Morning: I reveal the congesting food combo many health magazines promote, yet Ayurveda warns to avoid… |
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Last week, in my article on food allergies, I gave everybody a quiz: What is the worst food combination that Westerners consume these days?
We received a number of great guesses…
Mary Peyer said: “Peanut butter and celery.” Actually, that’s a good combination if we we’re talking real peanut butter (not the sugar-coated stuff that lines the supermarket).
Diana guessed: “Fruit and vegetables; bad ph combination and all the fancy restaurants are doing it!” True, that’s a nasty one. But, I don’t think it’s as popular as the one I had in mind.
Wanda said: “Cornflakes, milk and a banana!” That’s getting warm, but I’m not sure if I can count Cornflakes™ as a FOOD combination.
Shveta said, “Dairy and citrus (e.g. cold cereal & orange juice).” Yeah, that’s not a good one. Any type of fruit with dairy isn’t a great idea.
Likewise, Allyson said, “Dairy and other foods?” Yes, but a specific type of dairy and specific type of food…
How to Create a Sticky Substance That’ll
Clog Up Your Gut First Thing in the Morning
All good observations. I’m glad to see my readers are so smart.
Yet, the food combo I had in mind was one you’ll often see promoted in yoga and health magazines. In fact, they often give recipes out, not realizing how unhealthy and un-yogic a combination it is.
They are two opposites that do not mix well. First, because fruit is sweet and yogurt is sour. That’s why yogurt is worse than say, milk or cheese.
But more so, yogurt produces a lot of mucous and when you combine that with the sugar in fruit, you end with a sticky substance. The gooey mess ends up clogging the microscopic channels along your gut, blocking enzymes from being released and stopping the proper absorption of nutrients.
Now, isn’t it interesting that the enzyme to digest milk is released in the small intestine (not in the stomach). But if you’ve turned your meal into a big glob of sweet mucous you may be preventing the lactose enzyme from being released.
Further, any undigested food ends up being consumed by the bacteria in your gut. That results in gas and toxic waste being excreted by the bacteria.
This is NOT a Healthy Breakfast
Yogurt and fruit is often thought of as the “healthy breakfast.”
We even sell yogurt with fruit AND sugar already mixed in.
Now your body is smart, but it’s not that smart. It figures out that milk isn’t doing it any good, but it doesn’t understand that it’s because of the combination with fruit. So, in order to protect you, it puts an antibiotic tag on milk (and possibly fruit also), attacking it when ever it sets foot in your gastrointestinal tract.
Now, again, fruit is good for you, yogurt is good for you, milk is good for you. But NOT when you chop up the fruit and stir it into your yogurt and puree into a smoothie.
If you really like this dishes, once in a while is okay. Often, though, once you get away from these nasty food combinations, you have a natural dislike for them. Often allergenic foods are addictive, as strange as that may sound. Many food combinations my patients thought they couldn’t live without are long forgotten habits, now.
If have you have these food combinations every day, however, that will cause problems. First, there’s digestive allergies, like we’ve been talking about. After that, the toxins produced by the undigested food, which can’t get out through your impaired colon, will be purged through your skin. You might start getting dull looking skin, dry skin, rashes… you name it. So much of your skin’s health is a result of how clean your body is on the inside.
This IS a Healthy Breakfast
Now, an alternative to yogurt and fruit for breakfast is…. fruit and yogurt.
Well, have some fruit in the morning. Maybe a little more than you have been so you fill yourself up. Then, pack yourself a lassi. A lassi is a traditional Indian drink where you combine yogurt, with a little water (or rose water) and spices (like cardamom, or for a more savory taste, cumin). You can bring that with you to work and have it mid-morning.
Or, do the reverse, have the yogurt for breakfast and the fruit for a snack.
When you avoid the combinations, the food will digest a lot faster. Your body can digest one, and then digest the other. You’ll get far more nutrients and energy from them, without the allergenic affects.
PS: Oh yeah, itchy skin… If your skin is itchy it could very well be caused by the combination of fruit and dairy. Another surefire way to start some serious skin disorders is to eat fish with dairy, according to Ayurveda.
PPS: For a full list of allergenic food combinations, check out page 46 of my Effortless Ayurvedic Living Guide . If you are eating any of them, trying breaking them up and see how you feel.
PPPS: Please tell your friends and family about the guide — especially if they suffer from food allergies. Just send them to www.effortlessAyurvedicLiving.com to get a free copy. I could easily be selling that volume for $37 online, but I’m giving it away for free, so that anybody can start living a healthier life.
Topics: Ayurveda & Allergies, Ayurveda & Skin Care, Ayurveda and Digestive Health |
7 Responses to “Worst Food Combination According to Ayurveda”
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July 17th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Nice writing style. Looking forward to reading more from you.
Chris Moran
July 17th, 2008 at 12:16 pm
Green smoothies made with fruit, green leafy veggies and water are more delicious, easier to digest and much healthier than yoghurt followed by fruit.
July 17th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
So glad I read this just before I was about to go the store to buy some “healthy” breakfast food like yogurt with fruit in it…not!!! I, my GI tract and itchy skin thank you!
July 17th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
I never new about the fruit and yogurt at the same time. Very enlightening, and certainly makes sense. Thanks, Dr. Helen!
July 18th, 2008 at 3:55 am
It was really interesting to learn about it. I used to have fruit and yogurt at the breakfast thinking I was dong the right thing…
I´d like to know about soy yogurt - is it the same problem?
Thanks Dr Helen
July 18th, 2008 at 5:05 pm
Is it just fruit and yogurt? Or is it fruit in a smoothie with raw milk as well? Is that a bad combination? I am really enjoying this information, thanks for all your efforts.
Jenilyn
August 11th, 2008 at 2:13 pm
hello dear sir, andar here. i enjoy post of yours very much so. i am agree to you. good day.