Pitta Dosha and Lifestyle in Ayurveda

The energy elements of Pitta people are fire and water representing
transformation. The harmonious balance between these two interplaying
elements is reflected in the over all wellness and health of the Pitta
people. The ancient text of Ayurveda lays great importance on the
energy forces that regulate an individual's physiological and
psychological characteristics. One of the primary energy force or
Dosha in the human body is known as 'Pitta'. Pitta is a force created
by the elements of fire and water. It is imperative to understand
pitta dosha to ensure that the state of the body's defense mechanism
is balanced naturally, and also to understand why certain imbalances
are caused due to the interplay between the fire and water elements.
Pitta dosha plays an important role to ensure a strong immune system
as well sound mental health. The elements fire and water regulate the
body's metabolic system by governing the functions of digestion, body
temperature, absorption and assimilation.Pitta dosha represent
transformation, as the main elements of fire and water they tend to
control one another to maintain a balance. An unbalanced situation
occurs when one element is subjugated by the other. Physiologically
Pitta dosha mainly governs the liver, gallbladder, lower part of the
stomach, small intestine, spleen, pancreas, fats, sweat glands, eyes
and the skin. When the elements are in perfect harmony with one
another, they promote joy, internal bliss, comprehension, intelligence
and understanding, whereas in an unbalanced state, they can cause
restlessness, anxiety, and arouse negative feelings of anger, hate and
jealousy.Ancient Ayurvedic text lays great stress on Pitta balancing
herbal tea. This herbal tea blends the cooling and calming goodness of
chrysanthemum, saffron, marigolds, green cardamom, hibiscus,
peppermint, sarsaparilla, raspberry leaves, tulsi, lemon and peach
flavor. Each of these herbs lend highly effective means of balancing
the Pitta Dosha by detoxifying the system and cooling the stomach and
the mind.People with prominent Pitta dosha are usually of medium
height, with a delicate bone structure and moderately sized muscles.
Pitta dosha complexion is usually coppery, fair or slightly reddish
and the skin is warm, soft and oily. The hair is fine textured and
prone to premature graying or thinning. People with Pitta dosha have a
strong metabolism and good digestion, and are capable of consuming
large quantities of food. Elimination of bodily waste is usually
smooth and in large quantities. They have natural craving for sweets,
as well as bitter foods. As they have strong appetites, missing meals
makes them extremely irritable. They tend to perspire a lot, which
again increases their craving for liquids. They cannot tolerate heat
and are uncomfortable in hot weather.Pitta individuals are
strong-willed, passionate, very assertive, ambitious and
entrepreneurial in nature making them natural leaders in the society.
As they have sharp minds with focused concentration powers, they make
good, but opinionated public speakers. They usually rise high in life
and love a life of luxuries. As their key qualities are light, liquid,
hot and slightly oily, they do have a disposition to manifest various
imbalances due to wrong diet and lifestyle leading to pitta
accumulation which can cause imbalances in their physiological and
psychological characteristics. They become prone to anemia, skin
inflammations, and stomach related conditions such as ulcers, acid
accumulation, and intestinal problems. They also experience vision
disorders. Psychologically, pitta people under stress tend to throw
unreasonable tantrums, display anger, impatience and sometimes get
excessively stubborn and pushy.The hot summer season is when the pitta
people become more susceptible to imbalances in their elements. Yoga,
meditation, cooling body massages, and consuming a combination cooling
and calming herbal teas and foods can help Pitta dosha people to keep
their life in balance and reduce stress.