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 Vata-Pacifying Foods

AYURVEDIC DIET
UPDATED 2020

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Vata-Pacifying Foods
 

Vata can be brought back into balance by eating the right foods. Read below to find
out what you can eat to help pacify this dosha. If you are not certain whether your vata
is out of balance, take our free Ayurvedic Profile™ quiz.

Fruits
Fruits that pacify vata will generally be sweet and nourishing. While some raw fruit is
appropriate, cooked or stewed fruits are easier to digest and offer additional warmth,
moisture, and sweetness—which makes them even more beneficial for vata. Fruits to
avoid are those that are exceptionally cooling, astringent (drying), or rough, which
includes most dried fruit (unless it has been soaked or cooked to rehydrate).
And remember, fruits and fruit juices are best enjoyed alone—30 minutes before, and
ideally at least 1 hour after, any other food. This helps to ensure optimal digestion.
Note: this rule does not apply to fruits that we typically consider vegetables
(avocados, cucumbers, tomatoes, etc.). You will find these fruits listed among the
“vegetables.”

Favor Avoid

 Apples (cooked)  Apples (raw)

 Applesauce  Bananas (green)
 Apricots  Cranberries
 Bananas (ripe, not green)  Dates (dry)
 Berries  Dried Fruit, in general
 Cantaloupe  Figs (dry)
 Cherries  Pears
 Coconut  Persimmons
 Dates (fresh, cooked or soaked)  Pomegranate
 Figs (fresh, cooked or soaked)  Prunes (dry)
 Grapefruit  Raisins (dry)
 Grapes  Watermelon
 Kiwi
 Lemon
 Lime
 Mango
 Melons
 Oranges
 Papaya
 Peaches
 Pineapple
 Plums
 Prunes (cooked or soaked)
 Raisins (cooked or soaked)
 Tamarind

Vegetables
Vegetables that pacify vata will generally be sweet, moist, and cooked. Root
vegetables are especially beneficial because they grow underground, and are therefore
supremely grounding and stabilizing for vata. Avoid exceptionally dry, rough, and
cold vegetables, including most raw vegetables. If you must have raw veggies, a
salad, or any of the vata-aggravating vegetables, keep the quantities small and eat
them at mid-day, when digestive strength is at its peak. A really thorough cooking or a
well-spiced, oily dressing will help to offset some of the dry, rough qualities of these
foods.

Favor Reduce or Avoid

 Asparagus  Artichokes
 Avocado  Beet Greens
 Beets  Bell Peppers
 Carrots, Cooked  Bitter Melon
 Chilies (in very small quantities)  Broccoli
 Cilantro  Brussels Sprouts
 Cucumber  Burdock Root
 Garlic  Cabbage
 Green Beans  Carrots, Raw
 Green Chilies  Cauliflower
 Leeks  Celery
 Mustard Greens  Chilies (in excess)
 Okra  Corn, Fresh
 Olives (black)  Dandelion Greens
 Onion, Cooked  Eggplant
 Parsnip  Jerusalem Artichokes
 Peas, Cooked  Kale
 Pumpkin  Kohlrabi
 Rutabega  Lettuce
 Spinach, Cooked  Mushrooms
 Squash, Summer  Olives, Green
 Squash, Winter  Onion, Raw
 Sweet Potatoes  Peas, Raw
 Watercress  Peppers, Hot
 Zucchini  Potatoes, White
 Radishes
 Spinach, Raw
 Sprouts
 Tomatoes
 Turnips
Grains
Grains that pacify vata are generally sweet, nourishing, easily digested, and well
cooked. Mushy grains and puddings (things like oatmeal, cream of wheat and rice
pudding) exemplify the smooth quality and, when sweetened and spiced, are often
delicious comfort foods. Avoid grains that are exceptionally light, dry, or rough, or
especially dense and heavy. It is one or more of these qualities that gives the grains in
the “avoid” column below, their capacity to disturb vata.

Favor Avoid

 Amaranth  Barley
 Durham Flour  Buckwheat
 Oats, Cooked  Cereals (cold, dry, or puffed)
 Pancakes  Corn
 Quinoa  Couscous
 Rice (all types)  Crackers
 Seitan  Granola
 Sprouted Wheat Bread  Millet
 Wheat  Muesli
 Oat Bran
 Oats, Dry
 Pasta, Wheat
 Rice Cakes
 Rye
 Spelt
 Tapioca
 Wheat Bran
 Yeasted Bread
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Legumes
Vata can enjoy a narrow selection of legumes, provided they are well-cooked and
well-spiced. The beans that work best for vata are a little less dense, rough, and dry,
than other legumes. They tend to cook relatively quickly, are easily digested, and offer
a grounding, nourishing quality. Many other beans are simply too dry, rough, and hard
for vata’s delicate digestion.

Favor Avoid

 Lentils, Red  Adzuki Beans

 Miso  Black Beans
 Mung Beans  Black-Eyed Peas
 Mung Dal, Split  Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas)
 Soy Cheese  Kidney Beans
 Soy Milk (served warm)  Lentils, Brown
 Soy Sauce  Lima Beans
 Soy Meats  Navy Beans
 Tofu (served hot)  Pinto Beans
 Toor Dal  Soy Beans
 Urad Dal  Soy Flour
 Soy Powder
 Split Peas
 Tempeh
 White Beans

Dairy
Dairy products are generally quite balancing for vata, but it’s good to avoid highly
processed preparations (like powdered milk), and especially cold dairy products. For
example, boiled cow’s milk (ideally a non-homogenized variety) spiced with
cinnamon and nutmeg, sweetened if desired, and served hot, is a tonic for vata,
whereas cold cow’s milk may be too difficult for many to digest. As a rule, dairy
milks (cow’s milk, goat’s milk, sheep’s milk, etc.) should be taken at least one hour
before or after any other food. For this reason, avoid drinking milk with meals.
Almond and rice milks are good substitutes, if you need to combine milk with other
foods, or if you don’t digest dairy milks well.

Favor Avoid

 Butter  Frozen Yogurt

  Buttermilk  Powdered Milk
 Cheese
 Cottage Cheese
 Cow’s milk
 Ghee
 Goat’s Milk
 Ice Cream (in moderation)
 Sour Cream (in moderation)
 Yogurt (fresh)

Nuts & Seeds

In moderation, all nuts and most seeds are pacifying to vata. They are oily, nutritious,
and they offer a power-packed combination of proteins and fats that’s highly
beneficial to vata. That said, nuts and seeds are quite heavy and should be eaten in
small quantities so as not to overwhelm vata’s fickle digestive capacity.

Favor Avoid

 Almonds  Popcorn
 Brazil Nuts
 Cashews
 Coconut
 Hazelnuts
 Macadamia Nuts
 Peanuts
 Pecans
 Pine Nuts
 Pistachios
 Pumpkin Seeds
 Sesame Seeds
 Sunflower Seeds
 Walnuts

Meat & Eggs

Vata does well with eggs and a variety of different meats, if you choose to eat them.
That said, vata can be easily be pacified without these animal foods, if your diet
doesn’t already include them. If you do eat meat, the meats to favor are those that are
nourishing, sweet, moist, and relatively easy to digest. Meats to avoid tend to be either
too light and dry, or too heavy, for vata.

Favor Avoid

 Beef  Lamb
 Buffalo  Mutton
 Chicken (especially dark)  Pork
 Duck  Rabbit
 Eggs  Venison
 Fish (fresh and salt water)  Turkey (white)
 Salmon
 Sardines
 Seafood
 Shrimp
 Tuna Fish
 Turkey (dark)

Oils
Because toxins tend to concentrate in fats, buying organic oils may be more important
than buying organic fruits and vegetables. Most oils are beneficial for vata, provided
they are high quality oils. Sesame oil, almond oil, coconut oil, olive oil, and ghee are
among the best choices. Less favorable oils are either too light and dry, too difficult to
digest, or too highly processed/altered for vata.

Favor Avoid

 Almond Oil  Canola Oil

 Avocado Oil  Corn Oil
 Castor Oil  Flax Seed Oil
 Coconut Oil  Soy Oil
 Ghee
  Mustard Oil
 Olive Oil
 Peanut Oil
 Safflower Oil
 Sesame Oil
 Sunflower Oil

Sweeteners
Most sweeteners are good for vata, but it’s generally best to avoid large quantities of
refined sugar. Favor sweeteners in their most natural state over anything highly
processed. For example, if you normally sweeten a cup of spiced milk with white
sugar, try tossing your milk into the blender with a few soaked dates instead. Beyond
that, sweeteners with a warming energetic like honey, jaggary, and molasses, are
especially helpful in offsetting vata’s tendency to be cold. But, honey is also quite
scraping and can be depleting, if overused. When it comes to finding the specific
choices that work best for you, it’s often helpful to experiment with a variety of
options in order to sort out your body’s unique preferences.

Favor Avoid

 Barley Malt  Artificial Sweeteners

 Date Sugar  White Sugar
 Fructose  Honey (heated or cooked)
 Fruit Juice Concentrates
 Honey (raw)
 Jaggary
 Maple Syrup (in moderation)
 Molasses
 Rice Syrup
 Sucanat
 Turbinado

Spices
Most spices are wonderful for vata, provided that none of your dishes are fiery hot
(due to excessive use of cayenne pepper, chili peppers, and the like). Experimenting
with a wide variety of new and exotic spices is generally great for vata, and can help
to kindle overall digestive strength.

Favor Use in Moderation

 Ajwan  Cayenne Pepper

 Allspice  Chili Powder
 Anise  Fenugreek
 Basil  Horseradish
 Bay Leaf  Neem Leaves
 Black Pepper
 Caraway
 Cardamom
 Cinnamon
 Cloves
 Coriander (seeds or powder)
 Cumin (seeds or powder)
 Dill
 Fennel
 Garlic
 Ginger (fresh or dried)
 Hing (Asafoetida)
 Mace
 Marjoram
 Mint
 Mustard Seeds
 Nutmeg
 Oregano
 Paprika
 Parsley
 Peppermint
 Pippali
 Poppy Seeds
 Rosemary
 Saffron
 Salt
 Savory
 Tarragon
 Thyme
  Turmeric
 Vanilla

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