Tongue Cleaner

One more item to list for my daily morning regimen! Behold, the tongue cleaner:

This is an Ayurvedic practice. Tongue cleaners help to reduce bad breath (brushing your tongue is not very effective!), activate digestion, improve the detox process through the tongue, and decrease plaque. They are very cheap too!

Neti Pot

A few posts ago, I listed my ideal morning routine and I forgot to mention one of the most important parts! The Neti Pot! I love my neti. The Neti Pot is an Ayurvedic cleansing tool that is easy to use and very affordable. All you need is a plastic or ceramic neti pot (can be found in pharmacies, health food stores, and spiritual/new age bookstores/gift shops), warm water, and sea salts.

This You Tube video shows you exactly how to use the Neti:


It may feel funny at first, but it will become second nature. It is not painful at all and should only take a few minutes. I always feel refreshed afterward. This cleansing method allows you to breathe more deeply, it awakens your senses, and helps to clear your mind. Make sure that you use non-iodized salt (not table salt!) and the water should be body temperature. If you have any questions, let me know!

Be Well,
Sundari

Humane Society Video

Words cannot describe how shocking, sickening, and saddening this video (secretly filmed by the Humane Society) is, so watch at your own risk. Background on the beef recall can be found here. I was deeply disturbed by the footage, but at the same time, where did I think hamburgers came from? Baltimore Sun reporter, Rob Kasper, said it best when he wrote:

Longtime vegetarians are, Cunningham said, "somewhat bemused" by the reaction of surprise to the video. "As a friend of mine said, 'What did people think happened at a slaughterhouse? Did they think the animals got tickled to death?' "

This video shows the reality of food sitting on most American's kitchen tables. If I wasn't already a vegetarian, I think seeing this video would make it difficult to take another bite of meat. We don't need to eat meat to be healthy. Its becoming more and more evident that animal-based protein is not the best source of protein and it is actually harmful to our health. So why do so many people eat it? I hate to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but the more I face the facts, the more I realize that the government and "food" corporations have brainwashed Americans to think that vitamin-infused Coke, hormone-injected meat and dairy, and calcium-fortified cereal will make us strong and healthy. Have you seen commercials for Special K Protein water???

All of this information is obviously not spontaneously entering my brain. Currently, I am reading In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, and today I picked up The China Study by Dr. T. Colin Campbell. The China Study is fantastic. Its easy to understand and based on decades of research. Over the past six months, I've been scouring the web for information on vegetarianism, raw foods, organic foods, ayurvedic nutrition, and macrobiotics. Kris Carr has also offered a wealth of information and resources. I guess what I'm saying is, educate yourself before putting packaged and processed foods into your body! I have just skimmed the surface of understanding these concepts, but the changes that I have made (i.e. vegetarianism, raw foods, juicing, organic produce, food combining) has made a huge impact on my mental and physical health. More later on all the fascinating and relevant things I am learning from Pollan and Campbell.

Kitcheri, Ghee, and an Ayurvedic Consultation

On Thursday afternoon, I visitied Melissa DiRito at Seed's Wellness Center for an Ayurvedic Consultation. I had been on the raw diet for a few days and it was working well, but I needed more dietary guidance. I was also curious about which vitamins and herbs were best for my needs. Melissa spoke with me about my physical and mental condition and examined my tongue, eyes, and pulse. She determined that my Vata was elevated and causing my Pitta to also rise, which was causing some of the symptoms that were concerning me at the time.

One of many helpful suggestions made by Melissa was to follow an Ayurvedic diet. Since my Vata is agitating and increasing my Pitta, she counseled me to follow a Pitta-Vata diet. She also gave me a kitcheri recipe from the Ayurvedic Institute website and suggested that I eat kitcheri for lunch and dinner, and drink a breakfast shake (almonds, flax, banana, mango, sunflower seeds) in the morning for three days, while I transition back to some cooked foods. Here is a picture of my first Kitcheri creation:

I spent Sunday afternoon preparing the Kitcheri and the Ghee. Making Ghee was another first time experience. Ghee is created by heating unsalted butter in a special way. Here are a few of the benefits of ghee, according to the Ayurvedic Institute:

"Ghee is a digestive. It helps to improve absorption and assimilation. It nourishes ojas, tejas and prana. It is good for improving memory and lubricates the connective tissue. Ghee makes the body flexible and, in small doses, is tridoshic."

You can check out both recipes through the Ayurvedic Institute's website here.

Raw Food, Ayurveda, and Kris Carr's Blog

I've been feeling pretty blah lately and I have a hunch that it has to do with my diet. I've been going a little overboard with candy, cupcakes, cookies, and any other form of processed sugar or baked good imaginable. This weekend was the worst sugar crash I've ever had. I needed a clean slate, so I decided to start a raw food diet (for at least a week).

Of course this diet started with a trip to Whole Foods to pick up some veggies, dried and fresh fruit, raw food bars, and hummus (which is already cheating because the chick peas are cooked, but I had to make this exception). There are a lot of resources on the web for raw food eating. Here are a few I've been checking out:

Raw Food Life
Living and Raw Foods
We Like It Raw
The Sunny Raw Kitchen

Its been a little over 24 hours raw and so far, so good. No sugar crashing today. I'll keep you posted.

On another note, I've become quite interested in Ayurveda (the sister science of Yoga). Since arriving home from the ashram, Ayurveda is everywhere I turn. If you are curious about your dosha (, Deepak Chopra's website has a helpful and quick dosha quiz. I have spoken with individuals who follow Aruyvedic practices and found it life-changing. I'm also very insterested in Panchakarma, which according to the Ayurvedic Institute is "...a cleansing and rejuvenating program for the body, mind and consciousness. It is known for its beneficial effects on overall health, wellness and self-healing." There are five daily Panchakarma treatments, practiced for five to seven days. If you would like to learn more about Panchakarma, click here.

Lastly, I can't get the documentary, Crazy Sexy Cancer out of my head! Since watching the movie, I've felt more inspired to ditch harmful products and foods that most people don't think twice about eating or using for personal care (I know I didn't!). Kris Carr's blog is packed with insights that will challenge your everyday habits. Its easy not to notice the harmful chemicals in the lotion, soap, and mascara a lot of us use everyday. Carr makes a thought-provoking point about these habits when she notes in her blog, "Check this out, the largest organ in our body is our skin. What you put on your body, you literally absorb. So if you wouldn’t drink a bottle of Jergens, then don’t put it on your body because your skin literally drinks it in." The website is filled with inspirational and helpful information too!