Stay Cool this Summer with Ayurveda

According to the seasonal cycles, summer is considered to be Pitta season, where the energetic principles of Fire and Water are strongest. It is during that summer when the Pitta dosha, inherently driven by solar force, is most present, as it is made up of the Fire and Water elements. Time for healthy beverages, sunbathing, and swimming!

This combination is really rather complimentary. Pitta exists as water or oil (in the body)—which protects the tissues from the fire aspect.

Pitta is the principle of transformation and heat; it is responsible for all chemical and metabolic conversions in the body that create energy.

We need both Fire and Water to survive, for sure.

Fire's processes involve cooking and digestion-including the cooking of thoughts into theories in the mind. This dosha, or energy, governs our capacity to perceive reality and understand things as they are. In the body Pitta controls our appetite, digestion, and metabolism of nutrients, thirst, body heat, and the color, luster, and shine of the skin, hair, and eyes.

Its main area of transformation in the body is through the small intestine, but is also found in the eyes, blood, sweat, glands, stomach, and lymphatic system.

Pitta people tend to be medium build and weight with attractive, well proportioned figures. Their eyes are medium size, shiny, bright, and are often sensitive to sunlight and irritants. The eyes of Pitta people become easily red when irritated. Their skin tends to be warm to the touch, sensitive to heat, sunlight and irritants, and prone to rashes and other breakouts.

Pitta types blush easily, flush with anger, and/or from drinking alcohol. They sweat easily, even in cool or cold weather. They have fine, often straight or wavy, oily hair which turns gray early. Pitta men often go bald at a young age.

Pitta people have excellent appetites and love eating.

They don't like to miss meals; and when they are hungry, they can be irritable. Their digestion is good and their bowels efficient, but if they get hot, agitated, or angry or eat too many hot spicy or fried foods (which they love!) they can suffer from indigestion, heartburn, or diarrhea. They are quite methodical and organized. Some Pitta's tend to be perfectionists. They are naturally intelligent, fiery, and domineering or intolerant when out of balance.

Hot weather, getting overheated by vigorous exercise, spicy food, and red meats can all increase Pitta in the body.

If there is a Pitta imbalance in your body, you may feel hot, irritable, angry, overly critical, and maybe even competitive.

And there may be a tendency to work the day away.

High Pitta levels may causes inflammatory problems, skin conditions, excessive hunger and thirst, burning sensations in the body, and difficulty sleeping.

An important challenge for Pitta types is to learn how to transform the tendency for anger and irritability into a feeling of calm and love as well as expressing their emotions in a harmless non-judgmental way. To awaken and express unconditional love is the culmination of this challenge.