Monsoon season brings various diseases with it. The first rain of the monsoon season is often welcomed heartily, as it brings relief from the scorching sun. The downpours of the rainy season call for football matches on the muddy fields, rowing your paper boats in the puddles, or simply dancing about in the rain. However, as much as all of these sound fun, the terror strikes right after them. Monsoon season is often accompanied by low immunity and a poor digestive system. The long showers bring with them several bouts of illness, chronic diseases, and allergies. Diseases like malaria, dengue etc. strike during the monsoon season and affect people at a large rate. The rainwater often gets collected in the dark and swampy places. In the absence of sunlight, this collected rainwater becomes the breeding ground of different types of insects and mosquitoes. Thus, the number of mosquitoes multiplies significantly during this season. As a result of which, people often become victim to the mosquito and insect menace. In such a situation, the ancient science of Ayurveda comes to our rescue.
Ayurveda’s Perspective about Monsoon Season:
According to Ayurveda, Pitta Dosha is accumulated in the body during the monsoon season. Due to this, problems like hair loss, indigestion and skin infections are caused. Also, during this season, the acidic content of the atmosphere increases above normal level which in turn increases the susceptibility of the human body towards the diseases and also creates problem in the digestion of food. As a result of which, your digestive system turns quite sluggish and hence the stomach is not able to absorb the proper nutrients required for fighting against these deadly monsoon diseases.
11 Ayurvedic Ways to Increase Immunity During Monsoon
Below Are Given The Best Ayurvedic Ways To Increase Immunity During Monsoon Season:
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Neem Leaves
According to Ayurveda, Neem leaves are considered as the best antibacterial, antiviral, antiprotozoal and antifungal agent. The smell of the smoke of dried neem leaves scare away the mosquitoes. Thus, fumigate your home with the smoke of dried neem leaves to keep the mosquitoes away. Use mosquito repellent devices and creams to keep yourself safe from the disease-causing mosquitoes.
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Bath Rituals
According to Ayurveda, the accumulation of Vata Dosha in the body also leads to the weakening of the immunity in the body. Hot water baths are considered as a great method to curb the Vata Dosha. You can even choose to take an oil bath once a week. Combine sesame oil with neem oil in equal proportions. Now massage your body using this oil and wait for twenty minutes before having a hot water bath. Not only will this help to keep the infections away, but also to increase blood circulation in various parts of the body.
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Take Proper Foot Care
Getting drenched in rainy season is often followed by a fungal infection in the feet and the other parts of the body. Infections often strike the feet first as they are the part of the body, which have the maximum contact with the rainwater and then sweeps into the various parts of our body. Hence foot care is an important aspect that needs to be done during the monsoon season. For people suffering from diabetes, foot care is an essentially important aspect. As they say, ‘Precaution is Better than Cure’, hence, the first thing you need to do is avoid soaking your foot in the muddy water. If you do so, then wash your feet immediately and dry them. You should always keep your toenails well-trimmed so as to prevent moisture from being trapped in them, which would otherwise lead to fungal infection. Remember to wear footwear always, even when you are inside your home so that your feet don’t soak up the moisture, which can aggravate the Vata Dosha.
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Avoid Taking Raw Food
You should always take care of the food you eat during this season. Food often becomes a pathway through which the vector-borne diseases enter the body. Avoid food which is raw and uncooked. Even if disease-carrying vectors are present in the food, cooking the food properly will kill these vectors and hence will make the food completely safe to consume. During the rainy season, the numerous bacteria and fungi stick on the food materials, take in nutrients from them and multiply to form a colony. Hence, you should only eat those food materials which are completely hygienic. Certainly, there is no denying of the fact that the raw vegetables contain more nutrients and vitamins. However, the human body takes more time to metabolize them. Hence, you should always eat properly cooked food, as it not only safeguards you from the harmful bacteria and fungi, but also aids to the metabolism.
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Avoid Spicy Food Items
Greasy food containing too many spices and chilies should be avoided as during this season, people regularly suffer from indigestion and loose motions due to the consumption of spicy food items. Hence, this kind of food should be avoided and the consumption of oil-free food is a must. According to Ayurveda, the consumption of barley and wheat along with moong dal in the form of a soup in freshly boiled water, helps greatly to boost the immunity of the body. It also helps to flush out the toxins present in the body. Hence, it helps to maintain good health and decrease the vulnerability. This mixture is completely loaded with vitamins and minerals and helps to replenish the body with the much-needed nutrients, which are required for the proper functioning of the body.
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Perform Panchakarma (Strictly Under Expert Supervision)
According to Ayurveda, Panchakarma, as the name suggests, is a combination of five procedures, which heals the body if performed correctly. It is a process which needs to be performed a disease attack. It helps to remove all the toxic materials, which are present in the body as a residue of the diseases, which has affected the body earlier. It is a healing process which completely heals both the mind and the body and also maintains a balance between them. This method is inclusive of various herbal methods, oil-based remedies, and massages that rejuvenate the various internal organs of the body. Panchakarma is treated as a seasonal therapy and the best results are obtained during the monsoon season.
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Monsoon Yoga
Yoga is one of the most natural methods of being disease free. Ayurveda suggests that performing yoga regularly helps to strengthen the immunity and it also improves blood circulation in various parts of the body. Monsoon Yoga is a form of yoga which helps to boost both the mental and the physical health. It is considered as a well-tested natural remedy used for treating various diseases and deadly medical conditions. All you need to do is practice yoga daily under an expert during the monsoon season and experience how it naturally boosts your immunity to help you enjoy your monsoons without any concern of falling sick.
Here are mentioned a few yoga postures which if you practice daily, will greatly help you to keep all the diseases at bay:
- Kapalbhati pranayama
- Nadi Shodhan pranayama
- Setu Bandhasana
- Adho Mukha Svanasana
- Bhujangasana
- Naukasana
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Eat Lots of Fruits and Vegetables
Everyone is quite familiar with the role fresh fruits and vegetables play in improving our immunity system. Apart from their nutritional value, fresh fruits and vegetables also help to clean the internal organs and keep the body free of any toxic material. According to Ayurveda, our immune system weakens during the rainy season due to the increase in the amount of Vata, Pitta, and Kapha in the body. All three of them can be decreased by the consumption of proper fruits and vegetables in the right quantity.
You can choose to start your day with stewed apples or pears. Try eating a handful of berries for your midday snack. According to Ayurveda, you should always eat those food items which are bio-available. Most individuals do not respond in a good way to eating uncooked vegetables, hence eat a lot of fresh fruits during the monsoon season and eat preferably cooked vegetables to boost the immunity.
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Take Honey with Warm Water
Drink a cup of warm water mixed with a teaspoon of honey every morning. You should drink this mixture right after you wake up, i.e. on an empty stomach. This mixture helps to flush out the accumulated toxins in the body.
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Take Radish Juice to Eliminate Cold
If you are suffering from cold, then you must regularly drink radish juice. Radish is known for its properties to fight against cold, as it kills the disease-causing bacteria and increases the immunity. If you are suffering from a chronic cough, then you must drink a mixture made by a pinch of long pepper powder and rock salt in water. It is advisable not to eat red meat and curds during the rainy season. You may have buttermilk in place of curd. You should intake fluids in a large amount, as it helps to maintain a balanced metabolism in the body.
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Avoid Sour Food
Try to avoid consuming sour food items such as chutneys and pickles during monsoon. Drink two to three cups of green tea in a day. Also, incorporate Tulsi tea in your diet. Both of these herbal teas have terrific healing properties and strengthen the immunity system.
Above everything, nobody knows your stomach better than you. Therefore, avoid the foods which you know may upset your stomach and keep yourself well protected from the diseases during monsoon.
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