We may take for granted what growing in what season and why. Deer can eat bark off of trees in the dead of winter, to get by, but if they ate this bark in summer, they could, and most likely would die. Their gut flora is designed for seasonal eating. And we are too. In a world of imported food we have more digestive upset than ever before. Is the cost of imports making you want to eat locally? Here’s another reason why it should.
An ancient healing modality and philosophy that spans over many thousands of years, is known as Ayurveda. Originating in India, it’s one of our planets eldest medicinal practices. The name “Ayurveda” is Sanskrit for “Science of Life”. As this philosophy, and way of living in our true nature, is a diverse science that can’t even be touched on in this article. I’ll refer to it in the world of food, seasonal eating and the elements in nature.
Ayurveda is Yoga’s sister science and they work hand in hand to assist in our well being. Most who have heard of Ayurveda think that it’s about eating for your body type. Although this is true for those who are coping with digestive upset or dis-ease, eating seasonally and from foods in your climate is what we all should be doing to maintain overall digestive health. This is also because of the microbiome in the soil that sync’s with our internal gut flora.
According to Ayurveda, winter carries the elements of water & earth as well as attribute’s of wet, cold, inert & heavy. Foods consumed in this season like cold dairy, starches, sugars and low fibre foods can bring a heavy, depressive stagnancy to the mind and body. Early spring carries the same attributes until it warms up, and then we have summer with elements of fire & water as well as attributes of hot, light, sharp & oily. This season leads to more digestive upset like heartburn and acid indigestion & “hot tempered” or aggressive mental states when we consume too many foods with the above mentioned attributes (spicy, fried foods, nightshades and acidic hot alcoholic beverages). Okanagan summer’s can morph into fall in mid to late summer, if it’s extremely dry. This takes us into the elements of air & ether, for the season of autumn and into early winter. These attributes are dry, cold, rough and subtle. Foods like cold raw vegetables, crackers and light foods like popcorn, chips etc., are going create more “wind” in our guts and aggravate the digestive process. This season is important as we are preparing for winter “hibernation”. When the earth becomes dry we should luxuriate in warm, smooth, root veggies and squashes to ground the light, dry & rough qualities of the season.
In order to live harmoniously you could consider eating like the bears. In spring, we should consume the new sprouts and bioavailable bitter greens, asparagus, Solomon seal, arugula, rhubarb, mustard greens etc. This cleans up the heavy winter hibernating digestive sluggishness. Summer’s heat is cooled by juicy berries and low acid fruits like peaches, cherries, plums and pears. When we move into fall we need to build our constitution for winter with nuts, seeds and wild fish like the bears.
We’re fortunate to live in 4 seasons because our gut floral and food variety changes seasonally. Consider the 100 mile diet approach, grow food, forage and buy from your local farmers market vendors. What nature provides locally is what our body needs now.
Balance and Falls