Are you curious about what Veda says about breakfast and its impact on your health and wellbeing? It is the most important meal of the day and you need to have something healthy at this time. In Ayurveda, Nyahari is the word used for breakfast. It says that you should wake up early from 4 am to 7 am and have your breakfast anytime between 6 am to 10 am. Let’s explore why the Ayurveda lifestyle gives such importance to breakfast:
Digestive Fire
Agni or digestive fire of your stomach is quite low in the morning and your body cannot digest a heavy meal. Ayurveda recommends you have a light breakfast that is easy to digest for your body. If the body is overwhelmed by the first meal of the day, it cannot take nourishment from it. On the other hand, your body will feel comfortable and nourish itself with a light meal. You need to rekindle the flame of your stomach gently with a healthy fire. Your body doesn’t have much fire to digest in the morning sometimes when you have had a heavy meal the night before.
No Heavy Breakfast
When you consume a light meal in the morning, it supports your body in performing other functions optimally. If the body is overwhelmed by the heavy meal, your metabolism might not be as efficient. Imagine your stomach is a wood-burning furnace you need to tend it carefully to burn your food. It takes energy and support to perform all other activities in the day. Inability to digest your morning meal affects your relationships, quality of work, and productivity throughout the day.
Well-Balanced Food and Spice
To achieve all the benefits of early breakfast, you need to eat a well-balanced meal with cooked fruits or vegetables and cereals with suitable spices. You must avoid raw and very spicy foods. Avoid eating ready-made breakfasts, sweets, buttery toasts, and cold cereals. Everything sugary will hamper your digestive fire and it will die out earlier in the day. Spices aid digestion by keeping your digestive fire alive and making it stronger. Some of the beneficial spices as per Ayurveda are turmeric, rock salt, nutmeg, mustard, green chili, fresh ginger, fenugreek, cloves, cinnamon, cayenne, cardamom, black pepper, basil, and rosemary.
Eat Fresh
When talking about breakfast, most people prefer convenience over quality. Your breakfast should be prepared warm and fresh to make it nourishing for your body. So, you need to take out some time to prepare your breakfast. A warm hearty morning meal lit the digestive lamp gently and doesn’t come in the way of your other activities in the day. Your freshly cooked breakfast may include dates, oatmeal, and stewed apple cooked with warm spices.
Let’s improve your lifestyle! And why not start by waking up early in the morning? Have your breakfast early. Cook your meals warm, fresh, and well-balanced with little spices. Little lifestyle changes do make a huge difference.