College of Natural Diet & Digestion

College of Natural Diet & Digestion

 

AYURVEDIC FOODS

Pears Benefits (According to Ayurveda)


How Does This Ayurvedic Food Improve Wellness?

CLINICAL AYURVEDIC REVIEW

Recipes with Pears: Roasted Pears & Raisins
Recipes with Pears: Roasted Pears & Raisins
Pears are a soothing, cooling, and Kapha friendly fruit that calms the heart and relieves restlessness. Western naturopaths consider pears to be hypoallergenic, a safe choice for those with food sensitivities.

Their cold and expectorant qualities are used in Chinese medicine when heat conditions dry up fluids in the lungs. Their lubricating action also relieves cough, especially when the juice is combined with rock candy. Although pears quench thirst they are also a diuretic.

In ancient Greece, pears were used to treat nausea. They are laxative and a good source of fiber. Too many pears, however, will have an excess cooling effect on digestion, aggravating Vata and Kapha. Avoid eating pears late at night, or if you have acid reflux.

Pears are also high in vitamin C and copper

About Pears

Pears are an ancient fruit eaten since pre-historic times. Older varieties of pear had a hardened flesh that required hours of cooking to soften. Impossible to eat raw, the Romans stewed pears with honey and spices. Around the 18th century pears were bred to have a softer, sweeter flesh more common in produce stores today. Despite breeding, pear flesh contains stone cells, which are grittier than the flesh of their related cousin, the apple.

Buying & Preparation

Pears are generally cultivated in cold, temperate climates. They are hardy, even growing as far north as Scandinavia. Although pears have become wild in Europe and form part of the natural vegetation of the forest, the genus originated in western China in the foothills of the Tian Shan. Pears ripen from the inside out; the best way to judge ripeness is to "check the neck." Since pears perish soon after ripening, they are generally sold unripe in the grocery store. When left at room temperature they will usually ripen within a few days after purchase. Storing them in the fridge will slow the ripening process. If you buy them in bulk and want to stretch your pear-eating time, try putting a third in the fridge, a third in a bowl, and a third next next to bananas that will help them ripen sooner. Ripe pears for days!

Cooking Pears

Pears are eaten raw, stewed, canned, as juice, or dried. They are often paired with raisins, nuts, sugar, and spices when cooked. Raw or cooked, pears are a frequent ingredient in gourmet salads, where they are often drizzled in balsamic vinegar. Cooking pears are generally harder than varieties eaten raw, and have a snappy crunch. Fermented pear juice is called perry or pear cider.

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Are Pears Good for My Ayurvedic Diet?

Find out by taking this free, easy quiz. You'll learn your body type, and whether 'Pears' is a good fit. Complete the basic quiz in 1 minute, or go deeper with additional quizzes at your own leisure to learn more about your body.

AYURVEDA'S GUIDE TO VITALITY & WHOLESOME NOURISHMENT

Your Ayurvedic diet is tailored to your individual body and your specific imbalances. With an Ayurvedic diet you feel joy and satisfaction because what you are eating truly nourishes and balances you. Disease results from diets and lifestyles that are incompatible with your nature. By eating a personalized diet matched to your body, you experience optimal health. See How it Works.

Health Virtues of Pears

Personalized medicine systems use biocharacteristics to classify the metabolic nature of food, hebs, lifestyle choices, indivdual constitutions, and disease.

METABOLIC NATURE / BIOCHARACTERISTICS

Metabolic Nature / Biocharacteristics

Ayurveda assesses metabolic imbalances through 20 main biocharacteristics (vital qualtiies). Aggravating them weakens your body and causes imbalance. By knowing which biocharacteristics are habitually imbalanced in your body, you will be able to identify and correct metabolic imbalances before you get sick. Every biocharacteristic has an opposite which balances it (i.e. hot balances cold). You restore balance by favoring diet and lifestyle choices that increase the opposite biocharacteristic.

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COLD

ABOUT COLD BIOCHARACTERISTIC

Cold refers to anything that reduces body temperature, metabolism, and blood flow.

LEARN MORE ABOUT COLD

DIFFICULT

ABOUT DIFFICULT BIOCHARACTERISTIC

Difficult refers to anything that is difficult to digest, or takes a long time to digest.

LEARN MORE ABOUT DIFFICULT

DRY

ABOUT DRY BIOCHARACTERISTIC

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?

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ASTRINGENT

ABOUT ASTRINGENT BIOCHARACTERISTIC

Astringency is characterized by constriction, drawing together, or drying.

LEARN MORE ABOUT ASTRINGENT

SWEET

ABOUT SWEET BIOCHARACTERISTIC

Sweet refers to anything builds tissue, including macronutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins and fats.

LEARN MORE ABOUT SWEET

AYURVEDA BODY TYPES (DOSHAS)

The Three Doshas / Body Types

Ayurveda is a metabolic theory of medicine that explains individual health, tendencies, and disease patterns through the concept of doshas, which can be understood as your metabolic patterns and tendencies.

Each dosha reflects a distinct metabolic nature and describes strengths & weaknesses in bodily function, and how these affect energy levels, digestion, susceptibility to disease, and many other tendencies.

Your metabolic nature not only affects your physical characteristics, but also influences your mental thought patterns, confidence, and enthusiasm.

Ayurveda balances these metabolic strengths & weaknesses to support your body's vitality and prevent recurrent disease cycles. This support is a critical aid, especially in chronic or incurable disease conditions.

The 3 metabolic body types (doshas), are Catabolic (Vata), Metabolic (Pitta), and Anabolic (Kapha).

Through dosha, Ayurveda empowers people to identify metabolic imbalances early, break repetitive patterns of disease, and cultivate habits that support long-term vitality and well-being.

Ultimately, these metabolic patterns also provide a framework for understanding yourself, including body, mind, and spiritual tendencies.

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PACIFIES
Kapha pacifying Pitta pacifying
AGGRAVATES
Vata aggravating

GREEK MEDICINE / TEMPERAMENTS

The Four Temperaments / Humors

Ayurveda & Greek Medicine were the dominant form of medicine along the Silk Road from England to China and South Asia. They work by assessing your metabolic type, patterns, and nature. Greek medicine recognizes 4 metabolic temperaments, Melancholic, Choleric, Sanguine, and Phlegmatic.

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PACIFIES
CHOLERIC

ABOUT CHOLERIC BIOCHARACTERISTIC

Has a hot and dry metabolic nature. Enthusiastic, vibrant and bright. In excess burns up fluids and ojas, irritable. Corresponds to high bilirubin in the blood that irritate and heat up the body and liver.

LEARN MORE ABOUT CHOLERIC

PHLEGMATIC

ABOUT PHLEGMATIC BIOCHARACTERISTIC

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.

LEARN MORE ABOUT PHLEGMATIC

SANGUINE

ABOUT SANGUINE BIOCHARACTERISTIC

Hot & moist. Full-blooded, vigorous. Vivacious, social, and epicurean. Bullish.

LEARN MORE ABOUT SANGUINE

AGGRAVATES
MELANCHOLIC

ABOUT MELANCHOLIC BIOCHARACTERISTIC

Cold and dry metabolic nature. Colicky, tense. Withdrawn, pensive, anxious, and hesitant.

LEARN MORE ABOUT MELANCHOLIC

Other Health Virtues

Medicinal Benefits, Uses & Herbal Actions of Pears
Experiences are Personal
Experiences vary according to the person and constitution. Individual results may vary. The list of herbal-actions below has not be approved by the FDA and should not be used to treat a medical condition.

(see all)
General Laxative

GENERAL-LAXATIVE

Promotes a bowel movement. General laxative is an umbrella term that refers to several different types of laxatives.

SEE ALL 'GENERAL-LAXATIVE' FOODS / HERBS

,
High Fiber Laxative

HIGH-FIBER-LAXATIVE

A class of laxative that adds bulk and water to stools. The large size of the stool stimulates peristalsis so the stool can pass more easily through the colon. It is important to drink plenty of water when using high fiber laxatives, as they can be dehydr

SEE ALL 'HIGH-FIBER-LAXATIVE' FOODS / HERBS

Soothing

SOOTHING

Calms and alleviates irritation, discomfort or pain in a particular region.

SEE ALL 'SOOTHING' FOODS / HERBS

,
Demulcent

DEMULCENT

Herbs that coat or form a soothing film over a mucous membrane, relieving minor pain and inflammation of the membrane.

SEE ALL 'DEMULCENT' FOODS / HERBS

Anti Inflammatory

ANTI-INFLAMMATORY

Reduces inflammation in the body. Different herbs and carriers target different body systems.

SEE ALL 'ANTI-INFLAMMATORY' FOODS / HERBS

Refrigerant

STRONG REFRIGERANT

An herb or substance that strongly cools the body. Can be helpful in cases of heat conditions.

SEE ALL 'REFRIGERANT' FOODS / HERBS

Constituents:
Catechins

STRONG CATECHINS

Antioxidant that reduces cancer and blood clots, dilates blood vessels, and is antimicrobial.

SEE ALL 'CATECHINS' FOODS / HERBS

,
Inositol

INOSITOL

Inositol is an alcohol sugar made naturally in the human body from glucose. It is lipotropic (aiding fat metabilism in the liver). It affects a variety of hormones, neurotransmitters, steroid, growth factors and water.

SEE ALL 'INOSITOL' FOODS / HERBS

Foods with a Similar Nature to Pears

  • Cassava Root / Yuca

    Cassava Root / Yuca has these Actions in Common

    Soothing, Anti-inflammatory, High-fiber-laxative, Demulcent, Refrigerant, General-laxative

    LEARN MORE

  • Persimmons

    Persimmons has these Actions in Common

    Demulcent, Refrigerant, General-laxative, Soothing, High-fiber-laxative

    LEARN MORE

  • Jackfruit

    Jackfruit has these Actions in Common

    Demulcent, Soothing, High-fiber-laxative, Anti-inflammatory, Refrigerant

    LEARN MORE

  • Flax Seed

    Flax Seed has these Actions in Common

    General-laxative, Anti-inflammatory, High-fiber-laxative, Demulcent

    LEARN MORE

  • Acai

    Acai has these Actions in Common

    Anti-inflammatory, Refrigerant, General-laxative, High-fiber-laxative

    LEARN MORE

  • Chia Seeds

    Chia Seeds has these Actions in Common

    General-laxative, High-fiber-laxative, Demulcent

    LEARN MORE

  • Sweet Peas

    Sweet Peas has these Actions in Common

    General-laxative, High-fiber-laxative, Anti-inflammatory

    LEARN MORE

  • Endive

    Endive has these Actions in Common

    Anti-inflammatory, General-laxative, Refrigerant

    LEARN MORE

  • Bok Choy

    Bok Choy has these Actions in Common

    Refrigerant, Anti-inflammatory, High-fiber-laxative

    LEARN MORE

  • Cabbage (cooked)

    Cabbage (cooked) has these Actions in Common

    Refrigerant, Anti-inflammatory, High-fiber-laxative

    LEARN MORE

Herbs & Supplements with a Similar Nature to Pears

  • Cornsilk

    Cornsilk has these Actions in Common

    Anti-inflammatory, Demulcent, Refrigerant, Soothing

    LEARN MORE

  • Psyllium Seed Fiber Supplement

    Psyllium Seed Fiber Supplement has these Actions in Common

    Demulcent, General-laxative, High-fiber-laxative

    LEARN MORE

  • Borage Leaf

    Borage Leaf has these Actions in Common

    Anti-inflammatory, Demulcent, Refrigerant

    LEARN MORE

  • Uva Ursi

    Uva Ursi has these Actions in Common

    Refrigerant, Anti-inflammatory, Demulcent

    LEARN MORE

  • Yellow Dock

    Yellow Dock has these Actions in Common

    Anti-inflammatory, General-laxative, Refrigerant

    LEARN MORE

  • Cleavers

    Cleavers has these Actions in Common

    Anti-inflammatory, Demulcent, Refrigerant

    LEARN MORE

  • Comfrey Root

    Comfrey Root has these Actions in Common

    Anti-inflammatory, Demulcent, Soothing

    LEARN MORE

  • Plantain Leaf

    Plantain Leaf has these Actions in Common

    Anti-inflammatory, Demulcent, Soothing

    LEARN MORE

  • Shatavari

    Shatavari has these Actions in Common

    Anti-inflammatory, Demulcent, Refrigerant

    LEARN MORE

  • Goldenseal

    Goldenseal has these Actions in Common

    General-laxative, Refrigerant, Anti-inflammatory

    LEARN MORE

  • Amalaki

    Amalaki has these Actions in Common

    Refrigerant, Anti-inflammatory, General-laxative

    LEARN MORE


Joyful Belly is a recognized college of biocharacteristics medicine.

how to use Pears Ayurvedically

1 medium pear (about 165-180 grams / ~6 oz)

TRADITIONALLY INDICATED FOR
THESE SYMPTOMS

Pears may temper these symptoms. The suitability of any food for a condition is highly dependent on the individual. Please see your doctor before using this food to treat a medical condition.

CONTRAINDICATED FOR
THESE SYMPTOMS

Pears may be harmful or contraindicated for these symptoms. Note this is not a complete list of all possible contraindications. Please see your doctor before using this food to treat a medical condition.

Pears (Pyrus communis) are generally safe, nutritious, and gentle on the system, but there are a few contraindications and precautions

Fructose Malabsorption / IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome): Pears are high in fructose and sorbitol, which are poorly absorbed by some people. This can trigger bloating, gas, cramping and/or diarrhea.

Pears are considered high-FODMAP, which means they may worsen symptoms in people with IBS.

Sorbitol Sensitivity: Sorbitol is a naturally occurring sugar alcohol in pears. Some people are sensitive to sorbitol, even if they tolerate fructose, leading to GI distress, loose stools, and/or abdominal discomfort.

View other ingredients
for Autumn-Winter

Pears is recommended for Autumn-Winter. Check out these other Autumn-Winter foods here.
VIEW ALL AUTUMN-WINTER FOODS MORE FOODS FOR PITTA / KAPHA MAIN INGREDIENT PAGE

HOW DOES EATING AYURVEDICALLY MAKE YOU FEEL?

Eating Ayurvedically makes you feel nourished and energized. Food digests with ease when right for your body type (dosha). Healthy digestion is seen as the cornerstone of well-being in Ayurveda. Healthy digestion generally prevents illness. If you do get sick, a strong digestive fire reduces the severity of illness and increases your resilience. It also improves your mood. Once you begin eating Ayurvedically, you will feel refreshed, vital and strong.
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Clinical Tools & Resources

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About the Author

John Immel, the founder of Joyful Belly, teaches people how to have a healthy diet and lifestyle with Ayurveda. His approach to Ayurveda is clinical, yet exudes an ease which many find enjoyable and insightful. John also directs the Joyful Belly College of Ayurveda, offering professional clinical training in Ayurveda for over 15 years.

John's hobbies & specialties include advanced digestive disorders, medieval Catholic philosophy, & botany. He holds a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Harvard University. John, his wife Natalie and their 7 kids live in Asheville, NC

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