Safeguard Your Health This Winter

As winter approaches and we move into the cold, damp, and cloudy season ahead, it's important to be prepared for the fact that kapha can accumulate in the body more readily during the winter months. Ayurveda teaches us that like increases like, so the winter season—which shares a number of characteristics with kapha dosha—will tend to increase kapha, especially if it is a key player in your constitution. (If you don't know your Ayurvedic body type, take the Ayurvedic Profile™ quiz to determine your constitution).

You can protect your health this winter by learning to recognize the common signs and symptoms of kapha imbalance. Mild signs and symptoms will typically occur in the early stages of kapha accumulation, may come and go for some time, and are relatively easy to correct. Keep in mind that the earlier you can address an imbalance, the easier it will be to remedy.

Signs & Symptoms of Kapha Imbalance

In the Mind

Mild Imbalances

Changes in your mental state will often be one of the first indications that an imbalance is on the horizon. Signs that kapha is increasing in the mind include a generalized feeling of heaviness or lethargy, sluggishness, drowsiness, brain fog, and a tendency towards excessive sleep, laziness, melancholy, or depression.

In The Digestive Tract

Mild Imbalances

The digestive tract is one of the first places that aggravated kapha will make itself known. Early signs of kapha imbalance include a sense of heaviness, an uncomfortable feeling of fullness in the stomach, nausea, excess salivation, a poor appetite, a sweet taste in the mouth, indigestion, and a slow or suppressed metabolism. Excess kapha in the digestive tract can also cause the stools to be heavy, oily, pale or sticky. Kapha is also at the root of mucoid diarrhea and pre-diabetes.

In the Respiratory System

Mild Imbalances

Signs of kapha imbalance in the respiratory system include colds, coughs, excessive accumulation of mucus, a runny nose, excess nasal crust, and hay fever. Aggravated kapha can also cause congestion or a feeling of tightness in the sinuses, throat or chest.

In the Circulatory System, Skin, Muscles, and Adipose Tissue

Mild Imbalances

Excess kapha in the circulatory system, skin, muscles and adipose tissue can be an indication that a kapha imbalance is starting to spread. This may cause lymphatic congestion, swollen lymph glands, mild (and intermittent) hypertension, hives, itching, pallor, cold sweats, reduced sweating, loss of strength, the formation of lipomas, and/or weight gain.

Elsewhere in the Body

Mild Imbalances

Excess kapha is also behind water retention, excess urination, low grade fevers, fungal infections, excess ear wax, dental tartar, excess hair growth, low libido, an exaggerated desire for sex, premature ejaculation (emotional), enlarged prostate, cold or heavy testicles, fibrocystic lumps, leucorrhea, and prolonged, slow menstrual cycles. Imbalanced kapha can also cause a foul smell, swelling and stiffness in the joints, a sense of heaviness in the eyes, and whiteness in the urine, eyes, or feces.

Promoting Balance During Kapha Season

Adopting a seasonally appropriate kapha-pacifying diet and lifestyle can help you to prevent kapha imbalances from arising in the first place and can help you return to balance, if kapha has already started to accumulate. These tips are very useful during the winter season, when kapha is more likely to become aggravated.

The Basics of a Kapha-Pacifying Diet

You can reduce the amount of kapha in your system by favoring the pungent, bitter, and astringent tastes, eating lots of fresh vegetables, indulging your taste buds with a variety of herbs and spices, and limiting your intake of heavy, oily foods, meats, dairy products, and sweets. Large quantities of grains and breads are also best avoided. In general, you'll want to eat foods that are warm, light, and dry in nature. Portion control is also essential to balancing kapha. Make sure that the stomach is never quite full. Ideally, at the end of a meal, the stomach contains one third food, one third liquid, and remains one third empty. Eat a light breakfast, snack as little as possible, and eat a healthy lunch and dinner that includes lots of vegetables, adequate complex carbohydrates and fiber, and a low-fat source of protein, like legumes. It's also helpful to drink room-temperature, warm, or hot beverages, and to avoid iced drinks. Boost your agni (digestive fire) and stimulate your appetite with some fresh ginger tea with a little honey between meals.

The Basics of a Kapha-Pacifying Winter Lifestyle

One of the most important things you can do to balance kapha is to get plenty of exercise. Kapha tends to stagnate easily and one of the best ways to get it moving again is to engage in physical activity, increase circulation, warm the tissues and break a sweat. In other words, get a good work-out every day. For the best results, start your day by or before 7 a.m. Brush your teeth with a stimulating toothpaste such as cinnamon, clove, or haritaki powder.¹ Then, hold sesame oil in your mouth and swish it around for 1–3 minutes, followed by a finger massage to the gums. Before you bathe, massage your skin with warm organic sesame oil to awaken the tissues, increase circulation, and to keep the joints lubricated and comfortable. Let any excess oil rinse off in a hot shower. Drink a cup of warm water to cleanse the system, activate digestion, and encourage elimination. If you practice yoga, you could start your day with some warming and cleansing pranayama, like kapalabhati or bhastrika. Then, a vigorous asana practice will help shake off any lingering morning sluggishness. Push yourself with several rounds of fast-paced sun salutations and include back bends, forward bends, chest openers, and flows in your routine. Close with a short shavasana. If you prefer other forms of exercise, cycling, hiking, and jogging are good winter choices, and early morning is a great time to get out there. After your pranayama, yoga, or work-out, administer a few drops of nasya oil to the nasal passages to bring lightness and clarity to the mind while keeping the nasal passages clean and clear. This way, before 10 a.m. your day is already off to an active and stimulating start. You can further the benefits of this routine by inviting newness and change into your life on a regular basis—resisting the temptation to occupy a well-established rut.

For more detailed information on an Ayurvedic winter routine—with diet and lifestyle recommendations specific to your constitution—click here.