Ayurvedic principles of food and nutrition: Translating theory into evidence-based practice

Abstract

Food in Ayurveda is considered not only a substance providing essential nutrients to the body but also one providing nutrition to the mind. The individualization of food quantity and variety based on individual need is the single most important contribution of Ayurveda. This is more specific to the choose my plate approach. Methods of eating may also have an important effect on determining the net outcome of the food consumed. Many Ayurvedic principles of food and nutrition are practiced regularly in an ethnocultural context in millions of households of Southeast Asia. However, a better scientific reappraisal may bring out a testimony to these practices.