This perfectly resonates with what the 5000+ years old Ayurvedic system of medicine has already
stated. Ayurveda is the science of life that views health as a balance of doshas, dhatus (tissues),
agni along with the proper elimination of toxins, and a happy state of mind.
So what is the connection between digestion, Agni & dhatus?
The process of digestion, absorption, assimilation and elimination revolves around Agni. It converts food into energy which nourishes the dhatus and supports the functions of the body. As per Acharya Charak, if the Agni is disturbed, it leads to ailments and imbalance of energies. Agni is responsible for maintenance of health and can also lead to disease.
Jatharagni is the Agni related to the Jathara (stomach and duodenum). Anything that we eat or drink gets processed by jatharagni which transforms it for utilization by the respective dhatus (tissues). When the jatharagni is balanced (samagni), the food is well digested and assimilated and increases the quality of the Dhatus. The person stays healthy. But when the agni is irregular (visamagni), too strong (tikshnagni) or weak (mandagni), the dhatus are not nourished properly and the person suffers from a range of ailments.
One of the things that can disturb the jatharagni is wrong or incompatible food combinations (samyoga viruddha ahara).
Viruddhahara :
As per Charaka Samhita, those food substances and combinations, which induce deteriorating action on the body tissues i.e., Dhatus can be called as Viruddha Ahara.
Mode of action of Viruddha Ahara
Viruddha Ahara taken regularly could induce inflammation at a molecular level, disturbing the eicosanoid pathway creating more arachidonic acid leading to increased prostaglandin-2 and thromboxane. This inflammatory effect is an important effect as these are all the basic pathologies that create Agni Mandya, Ama, and a number of metabolic disorders.
Examples of incompatibility (Viruddha-Aahara)
• Veerya Viruddha (potency incompatibility) — fish + milk.
• Sanskar Viruddha (processing incompatibility) — heated honey.
• Matra Viruddha (dose incompatibility) — honey + cow’s ghee mixed in equal proportion.
• Krama Viruddha — hot water after taking honey.
• Kala Viruddha — (time incompatibility) pungent substance in summer and cold substances in winter.
• Krama Viruddha (order incompatibility) — consuming curd at night. Taking Madhura Rasa food or Dravya at the end of meals and Tikta and Katu Rasa Dravyas (food substances) at the starting of meals.
• Samyoga Viruddha (combination incompatibility) — fruit salad or milk + banana.
• Parihar Viruddha (contraindication incompatibility) — consuming cold water immediately after having hot tea or coffee.
Food incompatibilities in today’s perspective Viruddha Ahara can lead to inflammation at a molecular level. As per biochemistry of body, proteins must not get combined with starch and carbohydrates and may be consumed differently. When proteins are cooked with sugars in the absence of water, AGEs are formed. Water, however, prevents these sugars from binding to the protein molecules. Thus, combination of proteins with sugar and cooking it in absence of water is Viruddha.
Similarly, eating sugars and acid fruits hinder the action of ptyalin and pepsin, reducing the secretion of saliva, and delaying digestion. Such food combinations can prove harmful, which may be imparting its untoward effects on immune system, cellular metabolism, growth hormone, and Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS).
The unwanted side effects can emerge inside the body when two or more types of foods are consumed together. Such reactions can be less important but on long term, it can be fatal upon precipitating serious side effects.
It has been clearly mentioned in Ayurveda, oil and food must not be reheated. Reheating of oil creates more oxidation and if consumed, may create more oxidative stress creating more free radicals. Effects of cooking oil fumes on the genotoxicity and oxidative stress in human lung carcinoma (A-549) cells. Degree of saturation of oil is an important factor determining the quality of cooking oils. Unsaturated fatty acids are more susceptible to lipid oxidation than saturated fatty acids and for this reason they are good source of free radicals
According to a recent study, a toxin called 4-hydroxy- trans-2- nonenal (HNE) forms when such oils as corn, soyabean, and sunflower oils are reheated. Consumption of foods containing HNE from cooking oils has been associated with increased risks of cardiovascular disease, stroke, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, various liver disorders, and cancer.
High-temperature cooking (Sanskara Viruddha) may contribute to the risk and exacerbation of chronic diseases linked with inflammation. Grains, vegetables, fruits, and all such have protein in them as well, with browning being an indication of AGEs. Formation and accumulation of AGEs progress during normal aging,and at an extremely accelerated rate under diabetes, thus being implicated in various types of age related disorders, such as diabetic vascular complications, neurodegenerative diseases, and cancers.
Following are some examples of Viruddhahar:
Edibles Incompatible with
Beans Fruit, Cheese, Eggs, Fish, Milk, Meat, Yogurt
Eggs Fruit, especially Melons, Beans, Cheese, Fish, Kitchari, Milk, Meat, Yoghurt
Fruits As a rule, with any other food. (There are exceptions, such as certain cooked combinations,
as well as dates and milk, which have the same rasa, virya and vipaka.)
Grains Fruit; Tapioca
Hot Drinks Mangoes, Cheese, Fish, Meat, Starch, Yoghurt
Honey** With equal ghee by weight (e.g. 1 tsp. Honey with 3 tsp. Ghee). No heating.
Lemon Cucumbers, Milk, Tomatoes, Yoghurt
Melons EVERYTHING – especially dairy, eggs, fried food, grains, starches. Melons more than
most fruit should be eaten alone or left alone.
Milk Bananas, Cherries, Melons, Sour Fruits, Bread Containing Yeast, Fish, Kitchari, Meat,
Yoghurt
Yoghurt Fruit, Cheese, Eggs, Fish, Hot Drinks, Meat, Milk, Nightshades
However, Acharya Charaka has also mentioned that those people who are able to digest Viruddha Ahara properly, who exercise very regularly, who are young and have a very good status of Agni can consume Viruddha Ahara.
From the above discussion, it is clear that Viruddha Ahara is an important aspect of today’s improper dietary habits. This can lead to several hazardous diseases unknowingly to the patients. Prevention is always better than cure. Therefore, it is important to enlist the causative incompatible dietary factors and train the patients to avoid such etiologic factors.
