By Gerry Matthew Villegas (IAM Intern)
This week we learned about Ama, the Sanskrit word for toxins or undigested food (Frostick, 2024). This is the first time I have ever heard about Ama and it was interesting hearing about which foods can over time lead to the accumulation of Ama. From what I understood, Ama is the product of our body’s inability to properly digest certain types of food. Ama is manifested as a slimy and heavy substance that causes various consequences such as sickness-related symptoms like fever, loss of taste, and elimination difficulties, and other more interesting signs like bad
odor and laziness. Like everything else, however, the effects of Ama differ by the person.
It appears that many different types of consumables and habits contribute to the production of Ama. In that regard, it, at least for me, seems relatively strict in that many of the easy access and affordable foods found in daily life are those that produce Ama. In the above photo, there are well-known causes of unhealthy living, such as consuming fried, heavy, and processed foods or eating in excess. On the other hand, there are also more particular to Ayurveda advisements such as reducing the consumption of cold products, reducing eating foods without life force like those
that are canned or frozen, reducing eating incompatible food combinations, eating without distractions, and eating while calm or happy (Uike & Parate, 2017).
Essentially, the importance of understanding and preventing or maintaining Ama lies in its effect on our doshas. That is, to prevent diseases and to live a healthier and longer life. Luckily, I was also able to draw some ways of preventing or maintaining Ama from this presentation. It appears that we should nurture ourselves according to our body’s natural desires. These include not eating in the middle of the night, waking up when the sun rises, eating only when we are hungry, allowing ourselves to digest after eating, eating the foods generated by the contemporary season, and not suppressing natural urges. The largely utilized technique of tongue scraping is one of Ayurveda’s key methods for removing Ama as Ama accumulates on the tongue throughout the night and into the morning (Tokinobu et al., 2018). In that regard, the Ayurveda lifestyle in the dietary realm seems achievable. In reference to Dr. Patel’s book, A Brief Manual on Life, the Ayurveda lifestyle can be incorporated into anyone’s life by integrating one strategy at a time. I believe I will begin drinking warm water instead of cold water starting tomorrow.
References
Frostick, S. (2024). AMA [Powerpoint Slides]. Institute of Ayurvedic Medicine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGZnIVuSqHc.
Tokinobu, A., Yorifuji, T., Sasai, M., Doi, H., & Tsuda, T. (2018). Effects of tongue cleaning on Ayurvedic digestive power and oral health-related quality of life: A randomized cross-over study. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 36, 9–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctim.2017.11.011.
Uike, S., & Parate, M. (2017). CONCEPT OF AGNI AND AMA IN AYURVEDA -A BRIEF REVIEW. In An International Journal of Research in AYUSH and Allied Systems AYUSHDHARA. https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/333809967.pdf.
