Christian Schlepphorst <[log in to unmask]>:
>Do you practice a full Ayurvedic style of diet? Is there an ayurvedic
>raw food diet? Or only for *some* body types?

Tom:
I use Ayurveda to help me make choices of which foods to eat, and I try to
avoid aggravating certain doshas. That said, I don't let the tables of
good/bad food totally control me - on occasion, I will eat food that I
should not, per the tables. Sometimes the food affects me, sometimes I
get away with it. I think it best to not be too strict, to have too many
rules.

Gabriel Cousens uses Ayurveda in his book, "Conscious Eating". Ayurveda
advises against raw foods for people whose body is vata (dosha) dominant.
The reasons are that such foods are too cold, heavy, hard to digest for
vata people. However, the standard Ayurvedic methods suggested to counteract
this problem with cooked food, often work with raw food as well. Those
measures are: use of spices to enhance digestive power, 1 bowl meals (raw
soups, "stews", maybe even salads), and warming the food (but not cooking
it) before eating. Cousens reports success using the above measures.

I have formed the opinion that the above will often work (but might not
be sufficient in case there is a serious vata imbalance). In the more extreme
cases, use of dairy, cooked food, oil enemas, and anti-vata herbs might
be necessary.

The most difficult case appears to be the "100% raw vegan" with dual dosha
imbalance, specifically both vata and pitta out of balance. The problem here
is that the techniques used (for raw fooders) to reduce vata, often increase
pitta. In such cases, use of raw dairy is highly recommended, for raw milk
reduces both vata and pitta. The person who clings to veganism, in
this case, will probably have to accept: 1) very highly restricted diet,
(in other words, a very boring diet) 2) use strong herbs, 3) do oil massage
daily and take enemas. Even that might not be enough for people with a severe
imbalance.

Christian Schlepphorst <[log in to unmask]>:
>Did you get a diagnosis from a experienced ayurvedic nutritionist? Or
>did you experiment by reading books?

Tom:
Initially, I only read books and did self-diagnosis. Later I saw an Ayurvedic
practicioner, and since have seen an actual Ayurvedic physician (and
discussed my status with two other Ayurvedic physicians). I recommend
seeing a practicioner or physician, trained in pulse diagnosis. It is
easy to get your body type wrong by using the tables and tests in the
books. Also, if you have an imbalance, the practicioner or physician can
suggest specific measures for you to get back into balance.

Regards,
Tom Billings
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