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Recipes with Potato: Parsnip, Potato & Carrot Soup with Turmeric
Causes Weight Gain
The abundance of starch in potato and their high glycemic index cause weight gain.This heaviness puts you to sleep and can slow digestion.
Cools Inflammation
Potatoes, un-remedied by spices and cooking, cause gas and weight gain. They are naturally astringent, a unique quality among starches. Potatoes are also soothing and demulcent, making them useful for cooling inflammation in the GI tract.
Digestibility of Potatoes
The fiber content of potatoes aids regular elimination, while their astringency binds overly loose stools. The heaviness of potatoes, un-remedied by spices, makes them difficult to digest for Vata. In that case, add spices like turmeric, cumin or black pepper. Salt and lime juice can help, as well as pureeing potatoes with water for a thin potato soup. As with all members of the nightshade family, eat sparingly if you have a weak liver or arthritis.
Buying & Preparation
Watch out for mushy patches. The green color beneath the potato skin is poisonous - always peel your potatoes especially if you have a weak liver or arthritis. The skins are also difficult to digest. You'll still get plenty of vitimins if you eat a balanced diet.
Cooking Potato
For Ayurvedic mashed potatoes try mashing cooked potatoes with almond milk and ghee, instead of cream and butter. Asafoetida, otherwise known as hing, is a ideal spice for potato that improves both flavor and digestibility. Add some ghee and fresh green onion, and your dinner will be delicious and easy on your body.
Be sure to cook until slightly mushy all the way through. Undercooked potatoes are very difficult to digest.
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Find out by taking this free, easy quiz.
You'll learn your body type, and whether 'Potato' 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.
Ayurveda assesses metabolic imbalances through 20 main biocharacteristics
(gunas).
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.
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?
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.
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.
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 irritates and heats up the body and liver.
Medicinal Benefits, Uses & Herbal Actions of Potato
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.
STRONG NERVE-RELAXANT-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. Reduces agitation, irritation, stress and racing thoughts.
Sedative herbs create a sense of calm in the mind and body by specifically calming or quieting the nervous system. Excellent for anxiety, stress and chronic pain.
An antioxidant is a molecule that inhibits oxidation. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that can produce free radicals that lead to a chain reaction causing damage or death to cells. Antioxidants terminate these oxidation reactions.
A herb that contracts tissue or blood vessels. Generally styptics are astringent. They are often used topically as a hemostatic to stop bleeding, or to reduce secretions.
In each clinical research trial below, students from the
Joyful Belly College of Ayurveda ate the selected food for 3 days and reported the pharmacological effects.
See other clinical research trials for diet & herbs at Joyful Belly.
TEMPERATURE/CIRCULATION
How did Potato affect your temperature?
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
9
9
2
0
Much colder
Slightly colder
Same
Slightly warmer
Much warmer
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your ear temperature?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
18
2
Hotter
No Change
Cooler
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your sweat quantity?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
2
18
0
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the color of your skin?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
2
1
0
17
Yellower/Greener
Paler
Redder
Grayer
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the color of your tongue body?
20
16
12
8
4
0
4
2
0
14
Paler
Redder
Bluer
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the swelling of your tongue body?
20
16
12
8
4
0
3
1
16
More Swelling
Less Swelling
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your appetite/hunger?
10
8
6
4
2
0
8
8
2
1
1
Much less hungry
Slightly less hungry
Same
Slightly hungrier
Much hungrier
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your digestion speed?
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
3
9
6
2
Much faster
Slightly faster
Same
Slightly slower
Much slower
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
TOXINS
How did Potato affect the amount of gas & bloating?
15
12
9
6
3
0
0
2
10
7
1
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your stool smell?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
15
5
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the thickness & size of your tongue coating?
15
12
9
6
3
0
0
0
12
7
1
Much smaller
Slightly less
Same
Slightly larger coating
Much larger
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the color of your tongue coating?
10
8
6
4
2
0
1
0
3
8
8
Yellower
Browner
Grayer
Whiter
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your throat soreness?
16
13
10
7
4
1
4
14
2
More sore
No Change
Less sore
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your urine smell?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
18
2
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the amount of bubbles in your urine?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
18
2
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Many more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your sweat smell?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
16
4
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your acne?
20
16
12
8
4
0
3
16
1
More acne
No Change
Less acne
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your freckles/moles?
25
20
15
10
5
0
0
19
1
Darker
No Change
Lighter
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the color of your sclera (white part of eye)?
25
20
15
10
5
0
0
0
0
0
0
Redder/Bloodshot
Yellower
Grayer
Browner
Whiter
20
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the color of the lower eye lid?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
1
18
1
More green/dark green
More purple
No Change
Less green/purple
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
HYDRATION
How did Potato affect your urine frequency/quantity?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
3
15
2
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the dryness of your skin?
21
17
13
9
5
1
3
2
15
Drier
Oilier
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the puffiness of lower eye lid?
21
17
13
9
5
1
2
16
2
Puffier
No Change
Less Puffy
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the cracks on your tongue?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
16
4
0
Larger/longer/more cracks
Slightly more
Same
Slightly less/smaller/shorter
Much less
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
FLUID-THICKNESS
How did Potato affect your ear pressure?
20
16
12
8
4
0
2
17
1
More pressure
No Change
Less pressure
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your congestion?
15
12
9
6
3
0
8
12
0
More congestion
No Change
Less congestion
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the thickness of your mucous congestion?
20
16
12
8
4
0
6
14
0
More thick
No Change
Less thick
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
NERVOUS-SYSTEM
How did Potato affect your energy levels?
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
9
7
4
0
Much less energy
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more energy
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your muscle tension?
15
12
9
6
3
0
0
7
13
0
0
Much less tension
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more tension
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your anxiety?
15
12
9
6
3
0
1
7
11
1
0
Much less anxiety
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more anxiety
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the stillness of your tongue?
20
16
12
8
4
0
4
16
0
More still
No Change
More Trembling / Jittery
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
DIGESTION
How did Potato affect the amount of gas & bloating?
15
12
9
6
3
0
0
2
10
7
1
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your appetite/hunger?
10
8
6
4
2
0
8
8
2
1
1
Much less hungry
Slightly less hungry
Same
Slightly hungrier
Much hungrier
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect burning sensations in digestive tract (do not include acid reflux)?
10
8
6
4
2
0
2
7
9
2
0
Much relief
Slight relief
Same
Slightly more burning
Much more burning
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your digestion speed?
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
3
9
6
2
Much faster
Slightly faster
Same
Slightly slower
Much slower
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
TONGUE
How did Potato affect the stillness of your tongue?
20
16
12
8
4
0
4
16
0
More still
No Change
More Trembling / Jittery
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the thickness & size of your tongue coating?
15
12
9
6
3
0
0
0
12
7
1
Much smaller
Slightly less
Same
Slightly larger coating
Much larger
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the cracks on your tongue?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
16
4
0
Larger/longer/more cracks
Slightly more
Same
Slightly less/smaller/shorter
Much less
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the color of your tongue body?
20
16
12
8
4
0
4
2
0
14
Paler
Redder
Bluer
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the color of your tongue coating?
10
8
6
4
2
0
1
0
3
8
8
Yellower
Browner
Grayer
Whiter
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the swelling of your tongue body?
20
16
12
8
4
0
3
1
16
More Swelling
Less Swelling
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
STOOL
How did Potato affect your stool consistency?
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
3
7
9
1
Much softer
Slightly softer
Same
Slightly harder
Much harder
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your stool frequency/quantity?
10
8
6
4
2
0
1
7
9
2
1
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your stool color?
20
16
12
8
4
0
1
0
1
2
16
More yellow
More gray
More green
More orange
Same
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your stool lightness?
15
12
9
6
3
0
0
4
12
4
0
Much lighter
Slightly lighter
Same
Slightly darker
Much darker
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your stool smell?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
15
5
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
URINE
How did Potato affect your urine smell?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
18
2
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your urine lightness?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
4
14
2
0
Much lighter
Slightly lighter
Same
Slightly Darker
Much Darker
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your urine frequency/quantity?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
3
15
2
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the amount of bubbles in your urine?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
18
2
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Many more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your urine clarity?
21
17
13
9
5
1
2
16
2
More cloudy
Same
More clear
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
SWEAT
How did Potato affect your sweat smell?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
0
16
4
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your sweat quantity?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
2
18
0
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
SKIN
How did Potato affect the dryness of your skin?
21
17
13
9
5
1
3
2
15
Drier
Oilier
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the color of your skin?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
2
1
0
17
Yellower/Greener
Paler
Redder
Grayer
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your freckles/moles?
25
20
15
10
5
0
0
19
1
Darker
No Change
Lighter
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your acne?
20
16
12
8
4
0
3
16
1
More acne
No Change
Less acne
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
EYE
How did Potato affect the color of the lower eye lid?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
1
18
1
More green/dark green
More purple
No Change
Less green/purple
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the puffiness of lower eye lid?
21
17
13
9
5
1
2
16
2
Puffier
No Change
Less Puffy
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the color of your sclera (white part of eye)?
25
20
15
10
5
0
0
0
0
0
0
Redder/Bloodshot
Yellower
Grayer
Browner
Whiter
20
No Change
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
ENT
How did Potato affect your congestion?
15
12
9
6
3
0
8
12
0
More congestion
No Change
Less congestion
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your ear pressure?
20
16
12
8
4
0
2
17
1
More pressure
No Change
Less pressure
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your throat soreness?
16
13
10
7
4
1
4
14
2
More sore
No Change
Less sore
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect the thickness of your mucous congestion?
20
16
12
8
4
0
6
14
0
More thick
No Change
Less thick
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your ear temperature?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
18
2
Hotter
No Change
Cooler
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
HEART
How did Potato affect your heart rate?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
2
18
0
0
Much slower
Slightly slower
Same
Slightly faster
Much faster
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your heart rhythm?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
18
2
More palpitations
Same
Less palpitations
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your heart pain/pressure/cramping?
20
16
12
8
4
0
0
3
17
0
0
Much less
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
SYSTEMIC
How did Potato affect your temperature?
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
9
9
2
0
Much colder
Slightly colder
Same
Slightly warmer
Much warmer
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your energy levels?
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
9
7
4
0
Much less energy
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more energy
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your muscle tension?
15
12
9
6
3
0
0
7
13
0
0
Much less tension
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more tension
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
How did Potato affect your anxiety?
15
12
9
6
3
0
1
7
11
1
0
Much less anxiety
Slightly less
Same
Slightly more anxiety
Much more
Total Responses: 20 Study ID:103 (2022-03-21 - 2022-06-23)
Potato may be beneficial for 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.
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.
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.
His wife and family of 7 kids live in Asheville, NC.
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* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.
The information and products on this website are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any
disease.
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