Ponsonby News Column February 2024: Perfect time for an Ayurvedic Detox

After overindulging over the Christmas holidays, now is the time to re-establish a healthy routine.

Detoxification is about simplifying life. When we eat simple meals, follow a regular routine, manage our social commitments and cut out unnecessary stressors, we cultivate self-regulation.

Reducing the amount of food we eat, having only two meals a day and avoiding snacking between meals can already create positive changes within a few days. Simplification promotes the most important part of ayurvedic detoxification – emptying the gut of digestive debris (ama) and reestablishing balance.

Once we have strengthened our agni (digestive fire), we can reverse other health issues and imbalances through diet and lifestyle, herbal medicine and a suitable detox.

Which detox is right for you?

There are endless detoxification options available.

Understanding your physical and mental imbalances is an important step to deciding which one is suitable for you. As part of an ayurvedic consultation, a customised detoxification programme will be created according to your needs and according to the season we are in, so we can work with the qualities of nature.

Exercise and diet

Gentle exercise such as yoga or nature walks during your detox are highly recommended. Make the most of our beautiful ocean, lakes and rivers to cool down. Hydrate as much as possible and eat cooling food such as cucumber, watermelon, coconut, mint and lots of greens.

We can also reduce the risk of inflammation, acidity and excess heat in summer simply and quickly via small regular fasts to flush out toxins and shed a few extra pounds. During any fasting period, it’s important to drink lots of warm water with fresh ginger to support the detox.

Tongue scraping

The surface of the tongue reflects the condition of your digestive tract. Ayurveda recommends to scrape your tongue before brushing your teeth as part of a morning routine. This practice will facilitate a daily detox, better breath and improved taste sensation. You can get a copper tongue scraper here.

Panchakarma

If you are interested in a deeper cleansing and purification therapy to remove the root cause of a chronic condition, to lose weight or to feel less sluggish, you should consider Panchakarma. 

Panchakarma is ayurveda’s traditional purification and detoxification therapy. In Sanskrit, Panchakarma translates to 'five actions', referring to five cleansing treatments designed to flush out toxins. The Panchakarma programme we are offering at Ayurveda New Zealand is home based and designed for seven days with a few visits to our clinic.

During an initial ayurvedic consultation we assess your health history, the strength of your digestive fire (agni), and the amount of impurities (ama) to create a customised treatment plan.

We recommend following a simple mono diet that includes ayurvedic kitchari (lentils, rice and seasonable vegetable curry) and vegetarian soups with your dosha specific spice mix. Recipes will be provided and catering to your home is an option. You will self-administer ayurvedic herbs throughout the seven
days to facilitate the detox. 

You will also receive two ayurvedic treatments selected according to your health history and detox goals. At the end of the Panchakarma week you will feel refreshed, full of energy and mentally focused, ready for the new year with all its demands and challenges.

Please contact Sarita to book an ayurvedic consultation or plan a Panchakarma detox.

If you would like to experience an ayurvedic detox in a nurturing environment away from home, come to our next 'Autumn Cleanse Retreat' at Parohe on Kawau Island 21-24 March.