3 Ayurveda-approved fruit rules to boost digestion

From Ayurveda to medical science, it is said that fruits play a crucial role in a healthy diet because they provide a powerful combination of nutrients that support overall well-being. They are also said to be naturally rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber, all of which help strengthen immunity, improve digestion, and protect the body from chronic diseases. The high fiber content in fruits supports gut health, prevents constipation, and helps maintain a healthy weight by keeping you full for longer. They are also rich in antioxidants that fight inflammation, reduce cell damage, and lower the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and even certain cancers. But have you ever thought about what the right way of eating fruits is? In a recent video on Instagram, Dimple Jangda, a nutrition and wellness expert, explained the Ayurvedic rules in the context of eating fruits that can help boost the digestion system and overall metabolism too. Scroll down to read the details.

In the video, Dimple explains not to mix fruits with veggies or any other ingredient. Wondering why? Well, the reason being, fruits require only 3 hours in your system. One hour in the stomach, one hour in the small intestine, one hour in the large intestine. They get digested very quickly. Which is why when you have a fruit salad, you get hungry within an hour because it's already moved from your stomach to the small intestine. But, when you eat vegetables, they require 6 hours, 2 in the stomach, 2 in the small intestine and 2 in the large intestine due to the presence of fiber, she explains. And then, you have grains, pulses, legumes, lentils, nuts and seeds that require at least 18 hours in your body, 6 in the stomach, 6 in the small intestine and 6 in the large intestine. And on the other hand, meat, seafood, eggs take even longer to digest, 72 hours in total. So when you eat fruits with these other food groups, either it stays in the stomach longer than needed, becoming acidic, fermenting and leading to acidity or the digested fruit starts pushing the undigested foods into your small intestine, leading to indigestion, bloating, burping and flatulence. Hence, one should avoid mixing fruits with any other food group.

As per Ayurveda, when you chew your fruits, you create that much saliva in your mouth which aids the digestion process. But, when you juice your fruit, you're literally drinking a glass of sucrose and fructose which is going to give you a glucose spike which is going to damage your insulin resistance, your pancreatic health and can also cause fatty liver in the long run, explains Dimple. And this is only going to worsen your gut health and can also lead to unhealthy bacteria producing faster in your gut. Hence, always chew your fruits, do not juice it and do not make a smoothie out of it, she adds.

According to Dimple, eating sweet fruits with citrus fruits is not right. She suggests eating sweet fruits together like your bananas and mangoes. And recommends to separate your astringent fruits and eat them separately. For instance, you can eat apples, pears, berries and cherries together. Explaining the reason backed by Ayurveda she says, sweet fruits help in building new tissues whereas astringent fruits help in tightening the tissues and improving your collagen production reducing water retention in your body. And the third fruit group which is citric fruits helps in cleansing the tissues. According to Ayurveda, all three fruit groups have three different activities and when you mix them, it confuses the body, it fights for more enzymes in your stomach leading to delayed digestion and delayed absorption of nutrients.

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Disclaimer: The information provided in this article—is intended for general informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. Always consult your health practitioner before starting any routine.