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LIVE WELL<br />
IMAGES: (TOP TO BOTTOM) © VM2002/©XUANHUONGHO/©CONSTANTINOS / ADOBESTOCK.COM<br />
Along similar lines, we can drink a lot of water but that doesn’t mean that we are necessarily “moisturized.” Oil<br />
is unctuous which softens our outsides and penetrates deep in our tissues to keep vata emotional, mental and<br />
physical energy balanced. Here are some ways you can use various oils internally and externally.<br />
Ghee (clarified butter). Eat like you would butter. Melt on pastas, bread,<br />
oatmeal, mashed potatoes, veggies, baked apples. Increases agni (digestive<br />
fire), reduces vata and pitta, nourishes all tissues, relieves constipation and<br />
stabilizes moods.<br />
Sesame Oil. Use internal and external. Great for abhyanga for vatas and vata<br />
season. Use the “cold-pressed” kind, not the “toasted” kind or you’ll smell<br />
like Asian food.<br />
Coconut Oil. Great for pitta as it has a cooling effect. Especially great in<br />
warm, dry weather.<br />
Almond Oil. Good for vata and pitta externally. Light enough to use before<br />
bed near the eyes to reduce crow's feet. Great for full body and will not<br />
irritate pitta’s sensitive skin.<br />
Flaxseed Oil. Good for internal oleation and helps with constipation if you<br />
are ghee shy. Don’t heat it. Drizzle on veggies and rice bowls.<br />
Olive Oil. Not talked about much in Ayurveda because Indians don’t have<br />
olive trees...but Greeks and Italians use it liberally (on food and on skin)!<br />
Author of In Your Elements: A Blooming Ayurvedic Guide to Creating Your Best Life, Monica<br />
Bloom is an expert at tucking Ayurveda neatly into a busy modern life. She grew up in<br />
Milwaukee, Wisconsin on beer, cheese, fried things and Green Bay Packer football games<br />
on Sundays. She currently works a job-job with a 2.5-hour daily commute in tech-crazy<br />
San Francisco and comes home to an endearing husband, a spritely toddler, two<br />
dogs and a cat. She practices Ayurveda while juggling the busy-ness of life and<br />
has been actively sharing Ayurvedic wisdom since 2008. If she can incorporate<br />
Ayurveda into her wonky-busy schedule, you can, too.<br />
15 WANDER-MAG.COM
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