How Can Buckwheat Make You Feel Great?

AYURVEDIC ANALYSIS

The substantial feel of buckwheat is like a cast iron pot on an open flame - warm, rustic, and comforting. It contains both warming and drying properties, making this a superfood for those who feel chronically weighed down, heavy and weak. It is a great substitute for rice, but more textured. Unlike rice, buckwheat's flavor boldly commands the plate. You won't forget the experience of eating this ingredient, and you'll crave it at the first sign of frost in the late-autumn air.

Strengthening & Circulating

Buckwheat, a hardy & versatile plant, may be ideal for chronic weakness due low metabolism associated with aging. A lack of metabolic function is at the core of most chronic disorders. Buckwheat's warmth comes with an ample dose of earth element. It is ideal among metabolism building foods because it is nutritious and strengthening as well. Its high iron content makes it a good blood tonic while magnesium nourishes and relaxes the muscles. According to Paul Pitchford in Healing with Whole Foods, "Buckwheat strengthens capillaries and blood vessels, inhibits haemorrhages, reduces blood pressure and increases circulation to the hands and feet."

Warm Yourself from Within

Buckwheat's popularity in northern climates and high altitudes is a testimony to its warming qualities. However, its warmth is unlike ginger or black pepper, whose pungency fans the flames of metabolism quickly. Rather, it improves metabolism without over stimulating the body. In macrobiotic language, buckwheat "activates yang reserves" much like salt - supporting your body's sustainable energy from deep within. Its warmth also comes in handy for balancing cold conditions, such as Vata type diarrhea in the intestines or undigested food in the stools.

Dry Out Excess Baggage

It is unique to find a drying astringent that also heating, but we've found it in buckwheat. It is ideal for watery kapha dosha due to its diuretic ability to reduce water weight and dry up mucus in the respiratory tract. It lowers blood sugar levels and has even been used for lowering blood pressure. Several studies have also shown that buckwheat improves insulin uptake in cells, which may be useful in insulin resistant diabetes.

Narrow Your Focus

Buckwheat is contracting according to macrobiotics - good for focused attention. Buckwheat's flavor, scent and qualities bring you right here, right now. Enough of other worries that cloud your mind - buckwheat will help you focus on what's really important.

ABOUT BUCKWHEAT

Buckwheat's hearty warmth hits the spot on any damp cloudy day in November. Enjoy as you snuggle up with your loved ones, or while listening to crackling logs in a wood burning stove. Smoky, nutty and earthy, buckwheat is slightly demulcent like oatmeal but lighter on the stomach. Its rustic flavor is suitable for savory crepes and pastas. Its warming qualities make it one of the most commonly used grain-like foods in northern countries like Russia. It is also used in mountainous regions like Tibet where wheat cannot be grown.

The triangular shape of buckwheat and its hazel color make it resemble the nuts of the beech tree. This pseudo grain looks like rice, cooks like quinoa, but is really a fruit seed! Despite the name, buckwheat isn't related to wheat. Used as a grain or flour, the closest food relatives to this unique ingredient are rhubarb and sorrel.

BUYING & PREPARATION

Buckwheat can be found in most whole food grocery stores next to the rice, oatmeal, and quinoa. Its unusual triangular shape makes it particularly easy to spot. The seeds are called buckwheat groats, and often you'll see them included in a breakfast porridge mix along with other well-loved hot cereals. Roasted buckwheat imparts an earthy, nutty flavor. Unroasted buckwheat tends to be more bland. Browse Recipes

COOKING BUCKWHEAT

Interested in buckwheat for breakfast? We prefer buckwheat crepes to wheat, especially for the savory kind (called gallettes in Brittany, France). Have you ever eaten Japanese food? Then you might have already eaten buckwheat without even knowing. The grain-like fruit seed is ground up to make Soba noodles, which are a favorite in stir-fry dishes.

WHY SHOULD YOU EAT AYURVEDICALLY?

Eating Ayurvedically makes you feel nourished and energized. An Ayurvedic diet is tailored to your individual body type and the specific imbalances you are working with at any given time. Foods that supplement your specific body type’s needs and digest easily create your menu. Watch as you eat less but feel more satisfied because what you are eating truly nourishes you. Since Ayurveda believes all disease begins in the digestive tract, food is your first medicine. By eating a healthy diet that’s ideal for your body, you experience optimal health.

LEARN MORE

Is Buckwheat Good for Me?

Find out by taking this free, easy quiz. You'll learn your body type, and whether Buckwheat is a good fit for you. Time to complete: approximately 1 minute.

MEDICINAL QUALITIES

INCREASES Increases These Qualities (Gunas) Functional Ayurveda helps you assess imbalances through 20 main states (gunas). Aggravating these characteristics weakens your body and causes imbalance. By knowing which states are habitually imbalanced in your body, you will be able to identify and correct imbalances before you get sick. Every state has an opposite which balances it (i.e. hot balances cold). You restore balance by favoring diet and lifestyle choices that increase the opposite state. Learn More	HOT ABOUT HOT GUNA Hot is identified by increased body temperature, metabolism, or inflammation. LEARN MORE ABOUT HOT DRY ABOUT DRY GUNA Dry is identified by lack of moisture, lack of fat, or anything that causes diuresis. LEARN MORE ABOUT DRY
TASTES The 6 Tastes Taste is used to sense the most basic properties and effects of food. Each taste has a specific medicinal effect on your body. Cravings for food with certain tastes indicate your body is craving specific medicinal results from food. Taste is experienced on the tongue and represents your body's reaction to foods. Sweet taste causes physical satisfaction and attraction whereas bitter taste causes discomfort and aversion. Kapha should use less sweet taste while Vata and Pitta would benefit from using more sweet taste. One of the first signs of illness is that your taste and appetite for food changes. The six tastes are sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent. Do you crave foods with any of the tastes below? Learn More	SWEET ABOUT SWEET GUNA Sweet refers to anything builds tissue, including macronutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins and fats. LEARN MORE ABOUT SWEET PUNGENT ABOUT PUNGENT GUNA Pungency is characterized by irritation, or sharp, spicy foods that irritate the mouth such as black pepper. LEARN MORE ABOUT PUNGENT ASTRINGENT ABOUT ASTRINGENT GUNA Astringency is characterized by constriction, drawing together, or drying. LEARN MORE ABOUT ASTRINGENT
DOSHAS The Three Doshas / Body Types People tend to get sick, over and over again, due to similar causes and habitual imbalances that are unique to the person. Your body type summarizes this tendency, showing you the 'type' of conditions and imbalances that frequently challenge your health & wellness. Using body type, you can also identify remedies likely to improve your strength and resiliency. Your body type identifies physical and mental characteristics as well as your personal strengths and weaknesses. The calculation of your body type is based on your medical history. The 3 functional body types (doshas), are Catabolic (Vata), Metabolic (Pitta), and Anabolic (Kapha). Catabolic individuals tend to break down body mass into energy. Metabolic individuals tend to burn or use energy. Anabolic individuals tend to store energy as body mass. Catabolic people tend to be easily stimulated, hyperactive, underweight and dry. Metabolic people tend to be rosy-cheeked, easily irritated, focused, driven, and easily inflamed. Anabolic people are heavy, stable and grounded, but if they store too much energy, they could gain weight easily and have congestion. Learn More	PACIFIES AGGRAVATES
HAS THE FOLLOWING	EFFECT Ojas OJAS Ojas is the essence of healthy tissue, immunity, stable energy and happiness. Substances that improve ojas are recommended after long-term illness, debility, emotional and physical trauma, and even sadness. LEARN MORE ABOUT OJAS , Acidifying ACIDIFYING An herb that creates an acidic pH in the blood chemistry. LEARN MORE ABOUT ACIDIFYING TYPE Grains ELEMENT Earth EARTH Resembles earth (prithvi) in quality - heavy, dense, solid, stable, hard. LEARN MORE ABOUT EARTH , Fire FIRE Resembles fire (tejas) in quality - hot, sharp, penetrating, light, dry. LEARN MORE ABOUT FIRE SUBTASTE Bland BLAND Bland means doesn't have much taste. In Chinese medicine, bland taste refers to afood without little macronutrients, such as cabbage, radish or bok choy. LEARN MORE ABOUT BLAND NUTRIENT Flavonoids, Insoluble Fiber, Iron, Magnesium, Manganese, Phosphorous, Selenium, Soluble Fiber, Zinc, Carbohydrate NOURISHES Muscle MUSCLE Muscle tissue (Mamsa Dhatu) includes muscles and ligaments. LEARN MORE ABOUT MUSCLE , Red Blood RED-BLOOD Red blood (Rakta Dhatu) includes red blood cells and blood vessels. LEARN MORE ABOUT RED-BLOOD , Plasma PLASMA Plasma (Rasa Dhatu) includes plasma, white blood cells, and lymph. LEARN MORE ABOUT PLASMA MOVES ENERGY Outward OUTWARD Outward-moving substances stimulate circulation, push heat towards the skin, or are stimulating. LEARN MORE ABOUT OUTWARD FAMILY Polygonaceae

MEDICINAL PROPERTIES

Experiences are Personal

Experiences vary according to the person and constitution. Individual results may vary. The list of actions below has not be approved by the FDA and should not be used to treat a medical condition.

Digestion	Warms abdomen WARMS-ABDOMEN Warms the muscles and organs of the abdomen, stimulating digestion and metabolism. LEARN MORE ABOUT WARMS-ABDOMEN
Energy Vitality Strength	Satisfies stomach SATISFIES-STOMACH Provides a sense of gratification and fullness in the stomach. LEARN MORE ABOUT SATISFIES-STOMACH , Nutritive NUTRITIVE An herb that is strengthening and nourishing. LEARN MORE ABOUT NUTRITIVE
Heart & Circulation	Blood Thinner BLOOD-THINNER Herbs that thin the blood. Helpful for people with heart disease or clogged circulation. LEARN MORE ABOUT BLOOD-THINNER , Blood Tonic BLOOD-TONIC An herb that produces more blood cells in the body or otherwise strengthens blood. Helpful for anemia and other types of deficiency. LEARN MORE ABOUT BLOOD-TONIC , Hypotensive HYPOTENSIVE An herb that lowers blood pressure. LEARN MORE ABOUT HYPOTENSIVE , Vessel Tonic VESSEL-TONIC An herb that improves the tone and integrity of blood vessel walls. This is helpful in easy bruising. LEARN MORE ABOUT VESSEL-TONIC
Kidney & Urinary	Diuretic DIURETIC Herbs that promote urine formation, thereby flushing the kidneys and urinary tract while eliminating any excess water retention. As diuretics reduce water retention, they are often used to reduce blood pressure. LEARN MORE ABOUT DIURETIC
Mind, Stress & Sleep	Grounding GROUNDING Encourages feelings of stability and heaviness. Makes you feel settled, mentally relaxed. Mildly sedates the nervous system to ease stress. Can bring a spacey or anxious person back to earth. LEARN MORE ABOUT GROUNDING , Relaxes mind RELAXES-MIND Reduces mental agitation, irritation, stress and racing thoughts. LEARN MORE ABOUT RELAXES-MIND
Weight Loss	Lowers Blood Sugar LOWERS-BLOOD-SUGAR An herb that lowers blood sugar. LEARN MORE ABOUT LOWERS-BLOOD-SUGAR
Find Your Symptom	Strengthens resolve STRENGTHENS-RESOLVE Increases determination and courage by reducing stress and building strength. LEARN MORE ABOUT STRENGTHENS-RESOLVE
Muscle-Health	Muscle relaxant MUSCLE-RELAXANT Herbs that relax muscles. Helpful for chronic pain or tension as well as healing from physical trauma. LEARN MORE ABOUT MUSCLE-RELAXANT
Strengthening-Tonics	Muscle Tonic MUSCLE-TONIC Herbs that strengthen and tone muscle tissue. Helpful for people recovering from long term illness and debility, or after a sprain. LEARN MORE ABOUT MUSCLE-TONIC