Ayurvedic perspective on Food items, Compatibilty and Appetite

Ayurveda for a healthy life- 67/2026 on 1.1.2026

Ayurvedic perspective on Food items, Compatibilty and Appetite 

4.     What is meant by heavy (guru) and light (laghu) food items ?

In Ayurveda, the words heavy and light are used with respect to the digestibility and effect of the food item on the body.

Ghee, walnut and almond are heavy, that is, difficult to digest and are also heavy in relation to the body, thereby they increase the weight of the body. Leafy vegetables are heavy as well as light, that is though they are difficult to digest, they reduce the weight of the body.

In the first trimester of birth-life, the body can easily digest cereals and pulses. In this age, popped rice is easy to digest while flattened rice is difficult to digest. After the extraction of butter, buttermilk is easy to digest.

Individuals with a weak digestive power and physically weak individuals should be given a nutritious but light diet that is a diet easy to digest. Individuals with a good digestive power can digest any food item.

5.     What is meant by dry (ruksha) and wet (klinna) food items ?

Yava (barley) is dry while salt is a wet food item. Barley increases the quantity of urine and reduces the quantity of fluid in the body and makes the body dry.

Salt absorbs water and increases the water content of the body. Hence, salt is avoided in oedema, ascites, etc.

Thus, medicines and food items increase their own quality in the cells, doshas, tissues and waste products of the body and reduce the opposite quality.

6.     What is an incompatible diet ?

We eat different food items together. Though each individual food item may be beneficial, a combination of some of these (even nutritious items) can be harmful to the body if consumed over a prolonged duration.

          Ayurveda advises to avoid the following combinations –

6A.   Incompatible diet (contradictory diet)

1.  Milk and fish if eaten together gives rise to indigestion and blood disorders.

2.  If honey, jaggery, radish, udid (black gram) or til (sesame) are consumed with fish or meat of aquatic animals such as crabs or duck for a long time, hearing and eyesight are adversely affected and the patient develops tremors, stammering and restlessness.

3.  Spinach and sesame if taken simultaneously can cause diarrhoea.

4.  Jackfruit and tobacco leaves should not be consumed together.

  5.  Milk + radish or milk + garlic can trigger disorders of skin.

6.  Bananas should not be eaten with milk, curds or buttermilk.

7. Curds should not be eaten with jackfruit, banana, mutton, fish, jaggery and hot food items.

  8.  Milk should not be consumed with fruits, astringent food items, kulith (horse gram), vari, val (field beans) and matki (kidney beans).

9.  Chicken should not be eaten with curds.

10.  Leafy vegetables and spices should not be consumed with milk.

11.  A combination of any of the following – honey, ghee, animal fat, oil and water in equal parts should not be consumed. Side-effects of consuming incompatible food items are seen only after a long time. Effects as narrated above may or may not be seen in individuals who have a good digestive system. An individual who has a weak digestive system and convalescent individuals should avoid dietetic incompatibility.

3.  Appetite

1.     Why are many children fussy about food ?

1A. Increased demand for food is reflected in increased appetite of the child in first year and thereafter rate of growth slows down untill the age of 12 years 

Appetite is determined by food requirements. A child in its first year of life grows very fast, e.g. an infant trebles its birth weight by one year of age. As the body weight depends upon the total weight of various organs and tissues, it means that the blood, muscles, fat, bones and other organs of the child grow three times in the first year of life. These growing organs demand more food for their own growth. This increased demand for food is reflected in increased appetite of the child who feels hungry every three to four hours in the first year. Between 1 to 12 years of age, the rate of growth slows down and a child puts on 3 to 5 lbs weight. This amounts to 10% to 15% of additional body weight every year. As the formation of new tissues i.e. blood, bones, muscles proceeds at a slow rate, likewise the food demands are comparatively fewer. Hence, the appetite declines during this period of slow growth.

1B. Rate of growth increases from 12-18 years of age

Appetite again increases between 12-18 years, i.e. during the period of adolescence. It is a common experience that a 16-year-old proudly says, “My father and elder brother eat hardly 3 chapatis (Indian bread), while I eat 5.” This is because he puts on weight at the rate of 15 to 20 pounds every year during this period, while his father and elder brother do not put on any weight.

1C. The appetite is dependent on various factors of individuals

In addition, there are many factors which affect the appetite, e.g. some adults eat a lot but still remain thin and vice-versa. Individual requirements vary a lot. This applies to children also. In winter, appetite is good and in summer it is poor. It is a common experience that in cities our appetite is poor, but if we go a few miles away from the city for a picnic, our appetite improves. In any illness, we lose our appetite which returns to normal when the illness subsides.

1D. The daily caloric requirement of the child is though becomes a deciding factor for acceptance of food by child – exceptions are there as referred here. 

Children might refuse to eat at meal times, if they have been eating in between meals. This again is perpetuated by many parents who would give the child some wafers, extra milk, chocolates, fruits or biscuits in between meals. Some children eat at the neighbour’s house also. As a result, they are not hungry at their next meal time. Some mothers give as many as 4-5 bottles of milk to the child during sleep. The daily caloric requirement of the child is thus, practically fulfilled. Therefore, the child refuses to eat or drink milk during the rest of the day.

Some families enjoying food and munching something practically whole day – Representational image

Some families are habitual good eaters. One sees the grandparents, parents as well as children enjoying food and munching something practically whole day. The children in these families naturally eat well. On the other hand, children in families where all members talk about dieting are poor eaters in general.

Refusing to eat is a problem of children coming from higher middle and rich class of society, where a variety of food is available in excess. Children from poor families are good eaters and they long for food.