How to Balance Phlegmatic's Cold, Wet TemperamentCLASSIFICATION OF FOOD, HERBS, & LIFESTYLE

AYURVEDIC PERSPECTIVE ON PHLEGMATIC

A Phlegmatic has a cold and wet metabolic nature. The coldness implies a slow metabolism, the moisture that you are well-nourished. Phlegmatics tend towards sluggishness and thickened fluids, including mucus.

Moisture (i.e. oiliness) and cold gives someone a Phlegmatic temperament or constitution.

If this is you, water is your dominant element. And your friends probably describe you as nurturing, compassionate, kind, reliable and patient.

They especially value your gentle nature that, like water in a stream, calms difficult situations and smoothes any roughness.

At the same time, your cold nature can slow you down and make you seem sluggish.

LIke the Kapha constitution in Ayurveda, when unbalanced you may be prone to weight gain and congestion and can be stubborn, possessive and resistant to change.

The keys to achieving balance and good health, then, are a diet and lifestyle with enough lightness, stimulation and movement to relieve stagnation, rebalance fluids, and prevent lethargy.

Stagnation can be physical, emotional or mental, and Phlegmatics need to be on guard for all these types.

Fortunately, the biocharacteristics theory of medicine can help you understand your Phlegmatic temperament and how to keep it balanced.

Balance & The Biocharacteristics Theory of Medicine

Greek Medicine is one of several traditional, holistic healing systems that utilize biocharacteristics to understand and treat disease. Others include Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine. In Arab cultures, modern Greek medicine is called Unani Tibb.

Biocharacteristics are terms to describe the metabolic nature of things, including:

• Qualities such as hot and cold, wet and dry, heavy and light
• Tastes such as sweet and sour
• See all the biocharacteristics here.

Living things, such as people, food, herbs, and infectious diseases, all have a unique metabolic nature as do lifestyle habits.

At its simplest, the biocharacteristics theory of medicine first uncovers the imbalanced qualities in an individual. It then applies the opposite biocharacteristics to correct the imbalances.

If you're too cold, biocharacteristic theory would recommend you enjoy a warm drink, snuggle up in front of your fireplace, or add warming spices like cinnamon to your food.

If you're too oily or wet, foods that dry and tone like those with bitter and astringent tastes would be recommended.

Simple, but powerful, adjustments to your metabolic habits, like these, form the basis for natural healing systems that have kept people well for thousands of years.

Greek Medicine's 4 Temperaments

You may have encountered Greek Medicine's temperaments (Choleric, Melancholic, Phlegmatic, and Sanguine), which describe your metabolic nature.

Your temperament is your metabolic nature, influencing your physical, mental, and emotional tendencies.

As with Ayurveda, knowledge of these helps you heal and understand your body, other people, and can even improve your interpersonal communication skills.

The Greeks associated each temperament with an excess of a humor, a substance in the body having the characteristics of the temperament: yellow bile, black bile, phlegm, and blood, respectively.

However, each humor is just one part of your body's systemic metabolic nature, which incorporates many different biochemicals.

Recognizing the connections between your body's metabolism, humors, constitution, and personality can help you correct physical, emotional and mental imbalances in yourself.

The Challenge of Balancing Phlegmatic's Cold, Mucousy Wetness

The name Phlegmatic comes from the Greek word phlegmatikós that means lots and lots of phlegm.

Excess Phlegm generally comes from excess sweetness in the blood, and stagnation of fluids.

This excess phlegm can come from eating too many cold foods, causing stagnation. Or, too many rich foods, causing sweetness.

As Phlegmatics already have a cold, wet nature, they are more affected by diet and lifestyle influences that cause phlegm.

Phlegmatic Temperament's Physical Traits

Physical traits of the phlegmatic temperament include a body with a heavy, stout frame.

They may have round features, smooth thick skin that is pale, captivatingly affectionate, big eyes, and light colored hair.

Thanks to their slow, cold and anabolic metabolism, excess weight is common in Phlegmatics and a life-long challenge for many.

Their cold, wet constitutions can lead to the sweet, thick blood that promotes their poor circulation.

They are also prone to fluid retention such as lymphedema as evidenced by often swollen feet and ankles and weak muscles that lack tone.

A major sign of a Phlegmatic constitution is their slow, heavy digestion.

Let's take a closer look at why that is.

If you are Phlegmatic you are especially affected by heavy, sweet foods like wheat, meat, dairy products and desserts.

Foods like these, in combination with your cold, wet temperament, promote mucus. As mucus builds up in your stomach it covers your food, weakens your digestive fire and slows your digestion.

This in turn slows the movement of essential nutrients through your digestive tract and contributes to poor circulation.

That is especially so if you suffer from hypothyroid, a cold condition that slows metabolism and circulation.

You may feel tired after eating and experience acid reflux due to insufficient stomach acid. Symptoms such as nausea or loss of appetite can result as well.

As a physically unbalanced Phlegmatic, you may suffer from congested lungs and may be frequently under the weather with colds, flu and acute and chronic respiratory issues like asthma, bronchitis or pneumonia.

Phlegmatic mucus is typically thick, white or clear. Further evidence of excess can be seen in a thick white coating on your tongue.

Phlegmatics & Mental Balance

A Phlegmatic's heaviness and coolness is associated with a mind that can appear steady and even keeled when balanced, or dull and slow when imbalanced.

You may feel you lack the oomph you need to be more energetic.

When unbalanced you may feel like a couch potato who avoids exercise, is unmotivated and even depressed. Brain fog is common.

On the other hand, while you appear slow to learn, you are excellent at retaining knowledge and are highly empathic.

The people in your life know they can rely on you, making you a dependable and well respected employee and friend.

Phlegmatics & Emotional Balance

While a Phlegmatic can appear calm and relaxed on the outside, they are often, in fact, very anxious internally. They have strong social anxiety and tend to withdraw from group activities that make them feel vulnerable.

Do people urge you to stand up for yourself more? Or say you're too agreeable?

Phlegmatics are terrified of conflict and go out of their way to avoid it, often by agreeing, or withdrawing, rather than confronting a difficult situation.

Phlegmatics have difficulty coping with disruptions to their routine, and avoid chaotic environments.

They prefer a slow paced lifestyle that is familiar.

When balanced a Phlegmatic is friendly and kind. They are non- judgemental listeners who make good arbitrators, mentors, police officers, diplomats, or any profession where steadiness and a calm demeanor are helpful.

Phlegmatic Temperament's Relation to Ayurvedic Doshas

Ayurveda defines three body types or constitutions. Vata is dry and cold. Pitta is hot with some moisture. Moisture and stagnancy predominate in Kapha.

Kapha is most similar to the Phlegmatic type, which is associated with water and the body's fluids. Vata is most similar to the cold, dry Melancholic temperament of Greek medicine.

Of the other two temperaments, Choleric is hot and dry and resembles a Pitta-Vata constitution.

The Sanguine temperament with its hot, oily wetness is similar to the Pitta-Kapha constitution.

Greek medicine, in other words, splits Pitta into two body types - hot and dry, and hot and moist. Thus, Greek medicine has 4 doshas, not 3.

Ayurveda associates moisture and heaviness with slowness. Kaphas tend to be cold, grounded and stubborn with a slow, lethargic metabolism.

While the wateriness of both Kapha and Phlegmatic makes them very similar, the Phlegmatic temperament does not include earth, which is part of Kapha.

Balancing Phlegmatic's Wet Coldness with Diet

A basic principle of the biocharacteristics theory is that like produces more of the same, and balance comes from opposites.

Hot, dry foods, or those with a bitter, pungent, or astringent taste oppose a Phlegmatic's cold and wet temperament.

Bitter tasting foods balance a Phletmatic's craving for sweet foods and stimulate peristalsis, which helps speed movement of nutrients through the digestive tract.

Examples include:

• Chard, collards, kale, arugula and other bitter greens
• Brussel sprouts, radishes, spirulina and stinging nettles
• Aloe vera juice
• Coffee, black and green tea
• Lemon, lime and orange zest
• Bee pollen

Astringent foods are drying and constricting and many are high in minerals. They make your mouth feel rough and dry and cause a puckering sensation when you bite into one.

Astringents balance Phlegmatic's wetness, and help break up mucus in the digestive tract and lungs.

Some examples include:

• Legumes and most other beans: chickpeas, pinto beans kidney beans and split peas to name a few
• Alfalfa sprouts, cilantro, red leaf lettuce and strawberries
• Walnuts, beet greens and millet
• Lemons, apple cider vinegar and stinging nettles
• Cranberries, pears, pomegranates

Pungent foods are hot, dry and light. They boost circulation and digestion, breaking up and drying excess mucus. Examples include:

• Spices like black pepper, wasabi, cayenne, dried ginger or fenugreek.
• Celery, radishes mustard greens, and watercress
• Mint, coriander, and chamomile

Lifestyle Practices to Warm & Dry Phlegmatic Temperaments

Follow these helpful lifestyle practices for Phlegmatics:

• Exercise regularly and with energy to stimulate circulation and increase your oomph.
• Avoid oversleeping and sleeping during the day, which promotes sluggishness.
• Abstain from eating at night, which can promote weight gain.
• Try dry brushing with a brush, or a raw silk glove to encourage circulation and reduce water retention.
• Get out more and try new things

Warming, Drying Herbs to Balance Excess Phlegm

While diet and lifestyle practices are key, herbs can also help. An Ayurvedic practitioner can assist with selecting the best herbs and herbal formulas for your situation.

The following are some options to consider:

• Triphala to help keep your colon clean
• Cumin, coriander & fennel tea to reduce water weight
• Trikatu, to stimulate digestion
• Holy Basil for improved circulation
• Garcinia to support weight loss
• Gymnema, known for reducing sugar cravings
• Brahmi, which helps support mental clarity and promote memory and focus
• Punarnava, a general tonic that helps eliminate excess fluid and improve circulation.