This time the rains were too scanty in Maharashtra and especially in Pune, Mumbai region. Naturally you may have started felling the scorching October heat already. Usually this is the time when Pitta, the heat in the body increases and we experiences different Pitta symptoms such as mouth ulcers, acidity, red colour rash on the skin, burning in the stools, urine, eyes and hands. Even bleeding through nostrils or with stools. One type of fever, Pitta fever also comes during this time.
I am worried that this time all these symptoms will be more than always as the rains didn’t play their role of cooling the atmosphere. So we have to be more careful to withstand these changes. Pl refer your notes on the Sharada Rutu, the season of October heat (around 15 th of Aug to 15 th of Oct)
The most important change will the change in the food. Stop all the hot spices, and also all sour & salty food. They all carry fire element into them. Favour sweet, bitter & astringent food. In sweet avoid Jaggery, it is heaty. And in bitter Fenugreek seeds (Methi dana), it is heaty. Except curd & sour butter milk every think will be your medicines for Pitta.
So can have food such as vegetables tasting bitter or astringent. So all the gourds, leafy vegetables except Fenugreek, then all the pulses are very good. (Just see that you pacify their gas forming capacity by giving tadka by ghee or oil). The combination of rice, dal or rice milk/ butter milk, roti/ bhakri-milk will be good. Can add sugar to this combination as sugar is also cooling. You must remember that ghee is the best medicine of Pitta so an enjoy ghee with different food preparations.
The traditional food form this season such as Modak (a sweetmeat made from rice, coconut, sugar and ghee—all cooling in nature), the coconut rice, the pisum/kheer made from milk, sugar & rice are all helps in pacifying pitta. The seasonal fruits such as Guava, Custard apple are also cooling in nature.
I think this Pitta fever will be the most troublesome and fearful symptom. It’s a high grade fever which will accompany lot of weakness. Naturally the diagnosis will be a viral fever. In a way antibiotics does not have much role in such fever but still many will prescribe antibiotics which will further increase the weakness.
Rather the treatment of such fever will be Pitta pacifying one. If you remember we have discussed that in this fever your thirst and hunger will remain. It will not go away as in the case of Kapha fever. Now it’s your duty to provide appropriate food. So the food discussed above will be your medicine. And your wise body will also suggest all above things. So go for them don’t use your data of information collected from here & there. Rather give importance to your own body signals.
So everyone had his own choice such as cold coffee, ice creams such as vanilla, coconut, cold milk and rose sharbut, pisum/kheer, coconut water & malai , Petha a sweet made from Kohla and so many things. Don’t avoid such things because they are sweet, they are with sugar. Rather have them in such a way that you should get a feeling of satisfaction, your craving will be pacified. Your clever body is demanding all this things to balance the excess Pitta. Sugar is a very good medicine of Pitta.
Then some list of medicine you should know. Gulkand will be very good. But again have it in a very good quantity. May be one heap full of tablespoon or even more 2-3 times a day. Another is Ushirasav, a syrup made from khus/ Vala, a cooling medicine. But again have 5-6 teaspoons with equal amount of water 2-3 times a day.
So understand anything heaty coming up in the body its Pitta and now you know how to deal it. Coming month and so pitta is ready to attack you, be aware.
Most important is don’t make mistakes on your part to help Pitta increase in the body. So eat as you get hunger, eat fully, eat pitta pacifying food, sleep well, complete your sleep, don’t exert or exercise more than your capacity. Remember all the alcohols are heaty in quality.
Dr Nikhil Mehta
Pune.
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