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Ayurveda and Science

Loss of Appetite

Home remedies

Loss of appetite and indigestion are closely linked entities of digestive disturbance in Ayurveda. Agnimandhya is the term used to denote loss of appetite while Ajeerna denotes indigestion. A harmonious balance of Vata and Pitta holds the essence of a normal appetite. A vitiation in their mutual balance could lead to a loss of appetite. Irregular dietary habits bring about a vitiation in Pitta while psychic problems like anxiety, fear or physical causes like suppression of impeding urges lead to an imbalance in Vata. Both these sequences lead to disturbances in normal levels of appetite.

Ayurvedic ingredients

Ingredients for Loss of Appetite

Mustered Seed

Eating some amount of mustard seeds daily also improves your digestion, which is beneficial when trying to lose weight.

Butter Milk

Buttermilk can also help in anemia and loss of appetite. It has proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, and essential enzymes. It can be used daily. Buttermilk has 90 percent of water. Its intake helps to maintain the body's water balance.

Nutmeg

Nutmeg has been used for medicinal purposes. Nutmeg eliminates toxins from your body, and has digestive properties that can help in increasing metabolism, thereby helping with weight loss.

Cinnamon Bark

Health benefit of cinnamon is its ability to relieve cold and soothe sore throat. It is rich in antioxidant polyphenols and proanthocyanidins that boost your immunity naturally.

Clove Oil

Eugenol in clove has analgesic and antifungal properties making it very useful for cavity protection

Coriander

Coriander, which is also known as dhania in Hindi, is known to have magical medicinal properties. The leaves of this plant contain the quercetin pigment which has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.

Small Cardamom

Cardamom essential oil acts as an appetite stimulant, which once taken along with milk or any other breakfast item can increase appetite.

Cummin Seeds

Cumin is believed to promote agni (digestive fire) that helps to burn toxins in the body.

Fennel Seeds

According to the principles of Ayurveda, saunf seeds are known to normalize the appetite and enhance digestion. It can boost the metabolism and promotes the burning of excess fat accumulated

Ginger

The antibacterial properties of ginger help prevent the buildup of bacteria and plaque, and its anti-inflammatory properties can reduce pain associated with toothaches.

Tamarind Pulp

Tamarind is loaded with hydroxycitric acid, which reduces appetite by inhibiting amylase, an enzyme responsible for converting carbohydrate into fat.

Black Salt

Black salt or kala namak is one of the most popular home remedies for nausea and indigestion. Just a pinch of black salt under the tongue could be very helpful in treating nausea.

Black Papper

It is commonly used to remedy cold by crushing black peppercorns and adding them to a teaspoon of honey. Honey is known to soothe a sore throat, suppress cough and can boost the cold-fighting action of black peppercorn.

Milk

Dairy products provide Ca and protein which may facilitate appetite control. Conversely, weight loss is known to increase the motivation to eat.

Long Pepper

Indian long pepper is used to improve appetite and digestion, as well as treat stomachache, heartburn, indigestion, intestinal gas, diarrhea, and cholera. It is also used for lung problems including asthma, bronchitis, and cough.

Basil Leaves

Basil leaves is revered for its strong medicinal and healing properties. Basil fortifies the digestive and nervous system and can be a good remedy for headaches and insomnia.

Asafetida Indian Gooseberry

Indian gooseberry works amazingly in restoring back lost appetite. It enhances the functioning of the digestive tract making digestion of food easy.

Ajowan Seeds Honey

Honey activates certain hormones in our body which suppress appetite and thus, prevent us from bingeing on calories. When taken with ajwain, this concoction can reduce your excess body weight in less than two weeks.

Common recipes:

Extract about a cup of pomegranate seed juice. Add a pinch of rock salt and a spoonful of honey. Taking this solution slowly removes the bad taste from the mouth and increases your appetite!

Take equal parts of mustard seeds, asafetida, ginger, cumin seeds and black salt and grind the mixture to a fine powder. Add this mixture to a glass of buttermilk and drink it an hour before meals to enhance the appetite.

Mix well a spoonful each of Indian gooseberry powder, clarified butter and honey. Take this paste prior to meals to improve the appetite.

Ingredients: one part each of cloves, nutmeg and  long pepper, 3 parts of Indian gooseberry and 8 parts of ginger. Grind the mixture to obtain a fine powder. Add sufficient sugar to make the taste palatable. Consuming a spoonful of this mixture twice or thrice a day helps in regaining lost appetite.

Mix in equal parts cinnamon bark, small cardamom, coriander seeds and fennel seeds. Soak the mixture in cold water overnight. Strain this blend with a tea strainer. Drinking this cold infusion early in the morning helps in building an appetite.

Soak about 10 grams of tamarind in a cup of warm water for 30 minutes. Squeeze the mass to obtain tamarind juice. Add a pinch of table salt to suit your taste. Add about 2 grams of powdered ajowan seeds. Taken before meals, this juice improves appetite. Alternatively, you can dilute 1/2 a teaspoonful of tamarind pulp in one cup of water for this purpose.

Basil tea is an efficacious drink to enhance appetite. Take about 20 gms of Basil leaves and boil it in 250 ml of water till the quantity is reduced to half the original volume.