In our previous blog (read here), we discussed the principles, properties, functions, and types of the tridoshas. Now, we will explore the factors that aggravate these tridoshas.

In our daily lives we consume various foods and engage in different activities without considering their impact on the tridoshas. Consequently, as we continue these activities without being aware of the potential outcomes, they tend to accumulate their effects and ultimately aggravate the doshas. These aggravated doshas are what eventually serve as the direct cause for diesases. Hence, understanding these factors is crucial for our daily lives. And fot the same reason, we will now understand the irritating factors of the doshas respectively.

Dietary Factors: Regular consumption of excess of bitter foods (like turmeric, methi, herbal tea), pungent foods (like excessive use of strong spices, red chili, spicy fast food), astringent foods (like strong tea, red wine, raw banana). Consuming food in very limited quantities, food that is cold and stale and consuming dry food products or food cooked without proper oils are the dietery choices we make that aggravate ‘Vata’ in our body.

Behavorial Factors: Staying awake late at night, speaking execcesively loudly, vomiting, engaging in surfiet sexual intercourse, exercising profusely or more than one’s capacity and other activities that might physically drain the individual’s energy.

Mental Factors: Carrying out excessive mental stresses such as that of fear, grief or worry.

Other than these fcators, ‘Vata’ is also naturally aggravated at the end of the day and night, and after the digestion of a meal.

Dietary Factors: Consuming too much of bitter foods (like excess use of neem, bitter decoctions), sour foods (like lemon, pickles, buttermilk, wine), or salty foods (lke salted snacks, soy sauce, rock salt), consuming curd, fish, buttermilk, etc., consuming burnt food products and food products that are too hot or oily can exacerbate ‘Pitta’.

Behavorial Factors: Perfroming strenuous work, fasting regularily, engaging in frequent sexual intercourse and other activities that generate excess of body heat and sweat.

Mental Factors: Emotions such as anger, grief and fear tend to vitiate ‘Pitta’.

‘Pitta’ also naturally becomes aggravated in the middle of the day and night and during the digestion of the meal.

Aggravating Factors for Kapha Dosha:

Dietary Factors: Consuming sweet foods (like chocolates, ice cream, sweets, etc.), sour foods (like pickles, lemon, vinegar, etc.), salty foods (like salted snacks, rock salt, etc.), cold food items, oily foods (e.g., fast food, fries, etc.), meat of aquatic animals, fatty food products, sweet fruits like coconut, etc. and gobbling heavy meals can exacerbate Kapha.

Behavorial Factors: Sleeping consistently during the day, refraining from any kind of physical work or exercise, being lethargic, and engaging in other activties that cause more of slothfulness or shiftlessness in the body.

Mental Factors: Engaging too less in day to day mental stresses and mental inactivity causes accumulation of ‘kapha’.

‘Kapha’ also naturally aggravates at the beginning of the day and night and upon consumption of meal, before the digestive process starts.

Now, upon acquiring this knowledge it is crucial that we analyse our daily choices. This will help us figure exactly what kind of factors are we consuming out of proportion and then we conciously keep them under our check. This can ensure that our ‘dosha’ stay in a balance and continue to maintain the utmost health.

Apart from this it is important to note

that there are several other factors that lead to disease manifestations. These factors are dealt in the further blogs