Feb 2018

LIVING
aYurveDa
aDvisorY
Dr SriKanth
tackling heartburn
OUR stomach produces acid to digest the food that we eat. This is a
regular and natural process. Whenever we consume food, cells
within the lining of the stomach pump acid to start digestion. The
problem occurs when these cells produce large amounts of acid, more than
the stomach needs. When this happens, the person will suffer from ‘acidity’
or ‘heartburn’.
Occasional complaints of heartburn (a burning sensation in the chest) can
be managed with minor lifestyle and dietary modifications suggested below.
However, if heartburn is very frequent and disturbs your routine, then you
must consult your doctor.
diEt & LifEstyLE rEmEdiEs: Begin by avoiding food and drinks that
trigger heartburn. For example, these are: • Tea, coffee, carbonated and
alcoholic beverages • Processed and fermented foods • Oily, salty, spicy and
sour foods • Avoid using mustard, green chillies, garlic, ginger, onions,
tomatoes and vinegar in cooking. • Avoid sesame (til), horsegram and curd.
• Include more fresh fruit and vegetables like bananas, pomegranates and
papaya in your diet. • Include boiled potatoes and bananas in your meals.
Both help in reducing acidity. • Don’t lie down immediately after a meal.
You should try and go to bed only three hours after your meal. • Avoid
wearing tight-fitting clothes. They tend to put more pressure on the
abdomen, leading to acid reflux and causing heartburn. • Avoid stress and
anxiety. • Yogasanas such as Vajrasana, Bhujangasana, Pranayama (Shitali
and Shitkari) may be helpful.
homE rEmEdiEs: Here are a few simple preparations you can make at
home to get relief from heartburn. The ingredients are easy to find and
probably lying on your kitchen shelves. • Mix equal parts of powdered
fennel (saunf), licorice (mulethi) root, basil (tulsi) leaves, and coriander
(dhania) seeds. Drink half a teaspoon of this mixture with half a teaspoon of
powdered sugar candy (mishri) 15 minutes before lunch and dinner.
• Lemon juice provides quick relief in cases of nausea and bloating.
• Consuming one teaspoon of amalaki powder (amla) with honey daily
helps to avoid acidity. • Drinking coconut water or water boiled with cumin
(jeera) seeds or barley water regularly will help avoid symptoms of heartburn.
• Half a cup of freshly extracted ash gourd juice (lauki) on an empty stomach
is helpful. • Boiled ash gourd pieces with some jaggery (gur) helps to relieve
burning sensation in the stomach. • Boil one teaspoon of triphala powder in
100 ml water until it reduces to 50 ml. This hot decoction taken with a little
honey gives relief from symptoms of gastritis. • Chewing about half a
teaspoon of fennel seeds aids digestion and helps in relieving heartburn.
• Fresh buttermilk (should not be sour) with a pinch of asafoetida (hing), a
quarter of a teaspoon of fried cumin seed powder and a quarter of a teaspoon
of finely chopped fresh ginger and coriander leaves with rock salt for taste
(sendha namak) also provides relief. • Make a powdered mixture of equal
parts of sugar candy (mishri), fennel, and green cardamom. Whenever you
experience heartburn, mix one teaspoon of this in a glass of cold milk
and drink.
mEdiciNE: In severe cases of heartburn, any of the following combinations
may be helpful:
comBiNatioN 1: • Himcocid SF (Himalaya) or Madiphalarasayana (Imis
Pharma / Baidyanath) — two teaspoons, thrice daily, before meals.
• Yashtimadhu (Himalaya) — two tablets twice daily after meals. • Gasex
(Himalaya) — two tablets, thrice daily, after meals may be included in
associated complaints of bloating/ flatulence.
comBiNatioN 2: • Drakshadikashayam (Kottakkal / Vaidyaratnam
Oushadasala) — two teaspoons, twice daily, with six teaspoons of boiled and
cooled water on an empty stomach, twice daily. • Sutashekararas
(Baidyanath/Dhootpapeshwar) – one pill, twice daily with milk. •
Avipattichurna (Kottakkal / Vaidyaratnam Oushadasala) – half to one
teaspoon, twice daily, with water.
comBiNatioN 3: • Amrutottarakashaya (Kottakkal / Vaidyaratnam
Oushadasala) — two teaspoons, twice daily, with six teaspoons of boiled and
cooled water on an empty stomach. • Kamadugharas (Baidyanath) — one
pill, thrice daily. • Sooktyn (Alarsin) — two tablets, thrice daily, after meals.
Amlant tab (Maharishi Ayurveda) — one tablet to be chewed three to four
times daily, after meals.
The right diet and lifestyle must be strictly followed to avoid relapse. •
Dr Srikanth is a postgraduate in Ayurveda and has been a consulting physician for the past 17 years. He is currently
National Manager, Scientific Services, at The Himalaya Drug Company
proDucts
a clean sweep
Kanta Kharse sits in a small stall in Dilli
haat with an assortment of brooms laid
out before her. Women shoppers mill
around as she explains the many uses of
her brooms. “this one is a laptop broom,
this here a carpet broom and that one
there is to clean your window grills,” she
says briskly. “no bargaining, please.”
Kharse’s neatly made brooms, it seems,
can sweep away dust from any nook and
cranny. She is a member of the Dastkari
haat Samiti and is here at their annual
mela to sell brooms made by her Self-help
group (Shg), the Mahalakshmi Swarg
Sahayta Samoh, consisting of 20 women.
“We have some 118 broom designs,” says
Kharse proudly. they were helped by the
national institute of Women, child and
Youth Development with funds and
technique. the brooms are made of khajoor
(phoenix dactylifera) grass gathered from
forests surrounding their village in Mandla
zilla of Madhya pradesh. the forest
department has been helpful, says Kharse.
the women are part of a joint forest
management committee and have
community rights to forest produce.
Kharse has received an award from the
government of odisha. She has also visited
Dubai to sell brooms there at a crafts fair
organised by the government of india.
“i earn around `40,000 which, after
deducting my expenses, is equally divided
amongst members of my Shg,” says Kharse.
“But we need much more marketing
support to double our income.” •
address: Kanta Kharse, pindrai, Mandla
Zilla, tehsil nainpur, Madhya
pradesh-481776 for sales enquiries:
8462932340
34 Civil SoCiety FeBRUARy 2018