ALCOHOL

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 3 reviews, 122 likes

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Alcohol is a hot depressant. Initially, the heat combined with the relaxing qualties of alcohol dilate blood vessels, an aid to circulation. The heart, which is a naturally affectionate and social organ, predisposes one to fun and perhaps risky social...

ALMOND MILK

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 3 reviews, 481 likes

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Almond milk is a wonderful soothing drink that builds strength, immunity, and grounded energy. Its cool, heavy sweetness creates a sensation of stability and calm in the body, while offering easily accessible energy. For those suffering from lactose...

ALOE VERA GEL

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 393 likes

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Aloe includes more than 250 species of flowering succulents and is native to Africa, Madagascar and Jordan. It is closely related to cactus, yucca and onion. For thousands of years and across many cultures, aloe has been used to heal a variety of...

ALOE VERA JUICE

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 220 likes

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Aloe includes more than 250 species of flowering succulents and is native to Africa, Madagascar and Jordan. It is closely related to cactus, yucca and onion. For thousands of years and across many cultures, aloe has been used to heal a variety of...

AMARANTH

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Amaranth represented up to 80% of the caloric intake of the Aztecs before the Spanish conquest. Amaranth tastes somewhat like corn, but is somewhat less sweet. Others have described the taste as nutty, like bacon or wood, or slightly bitter. It is...

ASPARAGUS

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 252 likes

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Asparagus has a delicate flavor and texture making it an ideal vegetable for gourmet cuisine!

AVOCADO

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 3 reviews, 395 likes

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The avocado fruit grows on trees, but does not ripen until after it has been picked. It has a pear shape, and a rough, dark green to black skin with tiny bumps, which earned it the name "alligator pear". Unlike other fruits, avocado isn't sweet at all,...

BANANA

(4.00 out of 5 stars) 5 reviews, 361 likes

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Replenish Electrolytes and RehydrateYou have spent a long hot afternoon tending your garden or chasing the kids and you're feeling parched. But sometimes, no matter how much water you drink, your body still feels thirsty. Simple...

BARLEY

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 225 likes

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Barley has an ancient history, and was first cultivated in the Near East.

BASIL

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Basil's warm and spicy aroma adds a passionate flare to any dish, bringing the heat of the Mediterranean sun to your table. Its bright green color and vigorous flavor is unmistakable in pesto. It adds verve to a home-made tomato sauce, and is a perky...

BASMATI RICE

(4.00 out of 5 stars) 2 reviews, 304 likes

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Rice builds ojas. Ojas is said to have the smell of burnt rice. Of rices, Basmati is the most sattvic and aromatic. Rice is nourishing and easy to digest giving more 'bang for the buck'. Rice offers more calories with less effort from digestive...

BEEF

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Red meat strongly rebuilds deficient blood. It is especially useful in late summer and early fall. Red meat increases Pitta and Kapha. Too much red meat clogs the lymphatic system (Kapha blocking Vata in rasa dhatu), and causes blood stangation...

BLACK PEPPER

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The word 'pepper' is dervied from the South Asian word 'pippali'. Pippali (long pepper) is a famous herb in Ayurveda for lung and heart conditions, and is a close relative of black pepper. The word pepper gradually came to include the unrelated New...

BLACK TEA

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 186 likes

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Caffeine shifts awareness from the heart chakra to the third eye. New trades routes brought caffeinated beverages to Europe creating an 'Age of Enlightenment' and ending the middle ages. Ayurveda comes from an older time where the mind was not separate...

BUFFALO MILK

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Difficult to digest, heavy and cold. [Ashtanga Hrdayam Su 5:23]

CARAWAY SEEDS

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In the Middle Ages, caraway seeds were served with a bit of sugar as a digestive after a big meal, much the way sugar coated fennel is eaten after a meal in India.

CARDAMOM

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 8 reviews, 444 likes

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Love for cardamom resonates through history - for instance, ancient Egyptians chewed cardamom to whiten their teeth and sweeten their breath. Cardamom helps take the edge off of caffeine in the famous drink Turkish coffee. Cardamom is a member of the...

CARROT

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 311 likes

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Ancestors of the wild carrot came from Iran and Afghanistan, the center of genetic diversity for carrot. Carrots were bred from a species of wild carrot, called Queen Anne's Lace. Originally they were grown for their aromatic leaves and seeds. Since...

CAYENNE PEPPER

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The entire nightshade family (solanaceae) aggravates Vata and Pitta, due to the weak liver of these two body types. All peppers aggravate Pitta due to heat. Note that black pepper...

CELERY ROOT

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 61 likes

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This bright food is one of the lightest of root vegetables. It's the only root vegetable with as much flavor and freshness as leafy greens - something you can't get from a turnip or carrot. Imagine a root vegetable that's perfect for spring, and that...

CHIA SEEDS

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The word chia is a native american word meaning 'oily' Chia seeds were an important food crop in central America. Chia seeds are one of the few seeds of the mint family consumed as a food. It is closely related to culinary sage.

CHIPOTLE CHILI

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Smokey and sharp, tastes like a campfire.

CHOCOLATE (CACAO)

(3.80 out of 5 stars) 5 reviews, 157 likes

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Romance may be sealed with a box of chocolates, but passion for chocolate is as eternal as true love. Long before John Cadbury invented the chocolate bar, native meso-american peoples brewed chocolate with medicinal herbs. Chocolate has been used as...

CINNAMON

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Cinnamon is a small evergreen tree in the Lauraceae family native to Sri Lanka. Other members of this family include sassafras, avocado, camphor, and spicebush. Trees of the laurel family, including cinnamon, predominate in the world's laurel forests....

CLOVES

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Cloves are native to India and Indonesia. They are the aromatic dried flower bud of a tree in the same family as Eucalyptus and Guava (Myrtaceae family). Cloves resemble a nail in shape. The English name 'clove' derives from the latin 'clavus'...

COFFEE

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 153 likes

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Coffee as a SacramentWhat are your rituals around coffee? Coffee has become a sacrament in our culture. A client reports, "The only time my husband and I relax together is over coffee." My response, "If your marriage is dependent...

CORIANDER SEED

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Coriander is the seed of the cilantro plant. Its pleasantly fragrant aroma lifts the spirits and has a rustic feel.

CUCUMBER

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 143 likes

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Oft considered a vegetable, these elongated cylindrical delicacies are actually a fruit. They join watermelon and honey dew as succulent members of the summer friendly melon family. Originally from the Indian subcontinent, cucumbers are now grown...

CUMIN

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 4 reviews, 229 likes

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Appreciated since ancient times, cumin's aroma has wafted through kitchens since at least the second millennium BC, even flavoring breads and soups mentioned in the Bible. The highly valued spice was a currency to pay tithes to priests. The ancient...

DAIKON RADISH

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Also known as white radish, long white radish, oriental radish, and mooli, daikon is native to southeat and east Asia. In Japan, many types of pickles are made with daikon. Daikon may be grated and mixed with soy sauce and citrus juice to form ponzu, a...

DATES (DRIED)

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 2 reviews, 120 likes

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Dates have been a staple food and cultivated in the Middle East for thousands of years. Their cultivation has been documented in Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt and as far back as 6000BC in Arabia.

DILL

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Dill seems to lighten the palate. As one client reports, "Dill embodies the taste of freshness with a little kick." It is called shatapushpa in Ayurveda. Dill is a member of the carrot family (apiaceae) along with parsley, celery, cumin,...

FENNEL SEEDS

(5.00 out of 5 stars) 3 reviews, 285 likes

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Cool and soothing, verdant and fragrant, fennel is a member of the carrot family that includes other popular spices such as cumin, coriander, dill and celery. Fennel is used as a flavoring in some natural toothpastes and mouth fresheners. Fennel seeds...

FENUGREEK

(4.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 151 likes

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Fenugreek s one of the oldest medicinal plants. It has been used since 4000BC. It's name means "ram's horn clover". It was found in the tomb of Tutankhamen.

FLAX SEED

(3.00 out of 5 stars) 1 review, 197 likes

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If you are constipated, try soaking a teaspoon of flax seeds in warm water for 2 hours. Soaking releases the soluble fiber in flax, which forms a slimy gel that bulks up stools for easy elimination. Its high oil content can lubricate a dry intestinal...

GARLIC

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Regarded as both a force for good and evil, folklore and superstition abound when it comes to this little but poignant member of the onion family. A garland of garlic kept evil spirits and vampires away in the west. In an eastern Islamic myth, garlic...