INCOMPATIBLE FOODS

INCOMPATIBLE FOODS

Visham or Viruddha
Ahara: An Ayurvedic Perspective

The purpose of this article is not to create fear, but to
highlight the importance of proper food combinations (food compatibility).
Habitually following suitable dietary combinations can not only enhance the
body’s natural immunity but may also help prevent many chronic diseases.

The close relationship between food and health has been
emphasized in Ayurveda for centuries. In his famous work Vaidya Jeevan,
the Ayurvedic scholar Lolimbaraja (About 1538-1608 ) writes:

पथ्ये सति गदार्तस्य किमौषधनिषेवणैः।
पथ्येऽसति गदार्तस्य किमौषधनिषेवणैः॥

That means : “If a patient follows proper dietary rules and
wholesome food habits, medicines may hardly be needed. Conversely, if proper
dietary discipline is not followed, medicines alone are unlikely to provide
lasting benefit because treatment cannot succeed without correcting the diet” .

Therefore, according to Ayurveda, proper diet and
self-discipline are the first and foremost medicines in the treatment of
disease  particularly Chronic and Complex
diseases.

The Sushruta Samhita (Sutrasthana, Chapter 1)
describes food as the root of strength, complexion, vitality, and immunity.
Among the various means of maintaining and restoring health, food is given the
highest importance. It is also stated that a physician who understands the
nature of disease can often provide significant relief simply by prescribing an
appropriate diet (Pathya).  In
Ayurveda, the term Pathya refers to foods and practices that are beneficial
to the body, easy to digest, and supportive of recovery from illness.

A famous Ayurvedic principle states:

“Hitabhuk,
Mitabhuk, Ritubhuk”

“हितभुक्, मितभुक्, ऋतुभुक्”

That means  “person who consumes wholesome food, in moderate quantity, and according to the season
generally remains healthy” .

The Ayurvedic Concept of Incompatible Foods

The concept of Visham or Viruddha Ahara
(incompatible diet) is extensive and highly practical. In essence:

“It is not only important what we eat, but also when
we eat, how much we eat, with what foods it is combined, in which season it is
consumed, by whom it is consumed, and how it is prepared and eaten.”

According to Charaka, regular consumption of incompatible
foods may contribute to:

• Weak
  digestive power (Agnimandya)
• Formation
  of Ama (toxic metabolic residues within the body)
• Skin
  disorders
• Allergies
  and itching
• Impurities
  of blood (Rakta Dosh)
• Joint
  disorders such as arthritis and rheumatism
• Obesity
• Tendency
  toward diabetes
• Reduced
  immunity

Ayurveda considers Vishama Bhojana (improper,
incompatible, or unsuitable eating habits) as a major cause of disease.
Classical texts such as the Charaka Samhita, Sushruta Samhita,
and Ashtanga Hridaya describe eighteen forms of dietary incompatibility.

Eighteen Types of Incompatible Diet (Vishama Bhojana)

Important Incompatible Food Combinations

Milk-Based Incompatible Combinations

Curd-Based Incompatible Combinations

Honey-Related Incompatible Combinations

Fruit-Related Incompatible Combinations

Ghee, Oil and Fat-Related Combinations

Other Common Incompatible Combinations

Beneficial Food Combinations in Ayurveda

Additional Dietary Observations

• Walnuts,
  peanuts, and water chestnuts are often regarded as highly nourishing foods
  and may provide more energy and nutrients than meat, egg and paneer.
• Jamun
  (Indian blackberry) contains copper; bananas, mangoes, and spinach are
  recognized sources of iron and other micronutrients.
• Traditional
  literature mentions trace mineral content in foods such as silver in kachnar
  buds and gold in amaranth.
• Bathua
  (Chenopodium) is traditionally valued in Ayurveda and folk medicine for
  supporting digestive and joint health. Eating 12 gram raw Bathua empty
  stomach for 40 days may cure arthritis and rheumatism.
• Rice
  consumed together with watermelon is traditionally considered likely to
  cause digestive upset.
• While
  eating outside at restaurants, curd may be helpful because it acts as a
  natural probiotic, supports digestion, helps balance stomach acidity, and
  may reduce discomfort from spicy foods.

Note

The above principles are based on traditional Ayurvedic
concepts of digestion, doshas, potency (Virya), and food compatibility.
Modern nutritional science supports some of these observations (such as
avoiding reheated oils, overeating, and poor-quality foods), while others
remain traditional Ayurvedic recommendations only but by and large these
concepts are overwhelming modern nutritional science which is superficial and
could not have gone into the depth of food related health.

Sir Robert McCarrison (1878–1960), who is regarded as
one of the pioneers of nutritional research in India, established a Food and
nutrition  Investigation Unit at Coonoor
(Tamil Nadu) in 1918. This institution later evolved into what is now associated
with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

When McCarrison conducted extensive investigations and
analyses of the nutritional constituents of Indian foods, he reportedly
expressed his amazement at how the ancient Indian scholars of dietetics
possessed such a scientific, analytical, and profound understanding of
nutritional balance centuries ago. He observed that modern scientists have
added little that is fundamentally new to these principles; rather, through
their continual experiments, they have largely been confirming and validating
the same concepts and rules day after day.

This view emerged because many of the dietary principles
that McCarrison presented to the world after nearly twenty years of research
and experimentation had already been described centuries earlier by Lolimbaraja.
Similar principles had also been propounded much earlier by Maharshi Atreya,
traditionally believed to have lived around a thousand years before Christ.
These teachings are found in classical Ayurvedic texts such as the Charaka
Samhita, Sushruta Samhita, and Ashtanga Hridayam, which
preserve ancient doctrines on diet, health, and nutrition and were written around a thousand years before Christ .

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