I recently met one of the Ayurvedic vaidyas for lunch—someone I have known for a while. She is an elderly woman, but her skin glows and her face is radiant. She was the one who instilled the following mantra in me very early on, “If you can’t eat it, don’t apply it to your skin.”
Did you know that our skin is considered the largest organ in Ayurveda? Whatever we smear our skin with, it eventually gets absorbed by our organs, teaches the ancient healing system from India.
What’s the Link Between Digestion and Skin?
Our skin also reflects our digestive health. According to Ayurvedic principles, the process of digestion is carried out by agni or digestive fire. If agni is working at par, the skin looks radiant. But if an individual has ama (mental, emotional, environmental, or physical toxins), their skin won’t be healthy. It will lack luster, and they may even have acne, despite using the best skincare products.
The Ayurvedic approach to health and skincare embraces all aspects of a person’s diet and lifestyle. Therefore, an unhealthy diet and lifestyle will result in the doshas becoming imbalanced and the imbalanced doshas impair agni. This can lead to toxins accumulating in your body and impacting the health of your skin. That’s why it’s important to make sure that your digestion is functioning properly. It’s equally important to eat foods that won’t increase inflammation.
Relationship Between Ayurvedic Doshas and the Skin
In Ayurveda, we look at skin on a deeper level. Be it redness or inflammation or scaliness or oily or breakouts or blackheads, we can rely on Ayurvedic doshas to explain these conditions. There are three main doshas or constitutions that we focus on: Vata, Pitta, and Kapha when it comes to the body. There is a reason why surface treatments and remedies won’t eradicate deep-rooted skin issues.
Vata Skin: Vata dosha is composed of the elements of air and space. Thus, Vata skin type will exhibit qualities of Vata: dry, thin, delicate, and cool to the touch. And if Vata skin is imbalanced, it will be prone to excessive dryness. Have you seen people with rough, scaly, flaky skin? That’s Vata imbalance. Ayurveda tells us that Vata skin tends to wrinkle a lot earlier than other skin types. It’s also predisposed to early aging symptoms. A person with high Vata imbalance often has a tendency toward disorders such as dry eczema. Mental stress, nervousness, and anxiety aggravate Vata skin.
Pitta Skin: The elements of fire and water make up Pitta dosha, and Pitta skin is the least tolerant of the sun. Pitta skin is warm, soft, slightly oily, and of medium thickness. While a Pitta complexion tends to be on the pink or reddish side, there are often copious amounts of freckles or moles. People with Pitta skin and imbalances tend to develop rashes, rosacea, acne, and pigment disorders. Pitta skin is most likely to accumulate sun damage over the years. When Pitta dosha is aggravated, it can show up as anger, criticism, resentment, frustration, competitiveness, and an overtly critical nature.Unfortunately, these are also the emotions that aggravate Pitta skin.
Kapha Skin: Kapha dosha is composed of the elements of earth and water. Kapha skin is thick, oily, soft, and cool to touch. Kapha skin type is the last one to wrinkle and does so much later in life. People with Kapha tend to have a pale complexion. But when Kapha skin becomes imbalanced, it can lead to excessive oiliness, enlarged pores, blackheads, and most types of eczema. Kapha skin is also much more prone to fungal infections.
Ayurveda and Summer
Summer is considered pitta season in Ayurveda. Pitta is made up of fire and water elements. Even though pitta types are most affected by the summer season (highest levels of heat and therefore fire), you don’t have to be predominantly pitta to experience the doshic imbalance. The gunas or qualities of pitta are hot, light, sharp, spreading, pungent, liquid, and oily.
Since Ayurvedic philosophy reminds us that like increases like, a diet or lifestyle with excessive pitta-like qualities will aggravate your pitta dosha. For instance, drinking beer under the sun when it’s 100 degrees Fahrenheit, or eating chicken vindaloo or mirchi pakodas on a hot day will aggravate pitta dosha. Getting into an argument over sports or politics or guzzling a dozen cups of chai or coffee while eating pakodas will have a similar effect.
Ayurvedic Tips for Good Skin Health in Summer
Avoid Alcohol: Wine, beer, or any other alcoholic beverage is sharp, acidic, sour, and heating. These can vitiate pitta dosha. Have you ever seen an intoxicated person turn red? That’s pitta showing its anger.
Eat a Summer-Friendly Diet: Ahara (diet) is one of the pillars of health in Ayurveda. Favor the tastes that nourish pitta dosha and choose a pitta balancing diet. Avoid animal meats and fried foods, or anything too spicy or sour.
Exfoliate and Cleanse: A regular facial exfoliating, cleansing, toning, and nourishing ritual is essential to unclogging your skin pores and eliminating dirt and grime that accumulate over time.
Stay Hydrated: This sounds simple, but I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to drink at least eight glasses of water every day. Water nourishes the skin and flushes out toxins. According to Ayurveda, iced cold water kills your agni, so choose room temperature or warm water.
Apply Sandalwood: Choose an herbal face pack which has soothing ingredients like sandalwood. It can be very calming for the skin.
Practice Cooling Pranayama: Our mental health affects the health of our skin. Sitali and sitkari are two pranayama techniques which are cooling for the mind and body, and also help reduce stress. You can also practice yoga asanas to release heat from the body.
Heal with Aloe Vera: Aloe vera is an Ayurvedic favorite for when you have sunburn. I apply aloe vera gel all over my face and let it soothe, cool, and heal the skin.
Move Your Body: Movement releases toxins and lowers stress. But exercising outdoors when the sun is at its peak or in a hot studio can aggravate pitta. It can also cause breakouts and clog pores. In summer, pick an exercise that’s not going to create doshic imbalances. Moon salutations, nature walks, swimming, and other mindful movements can do wonders for skin health.
Sleep Well: Getting good quality sleep and rest is imperative to reducing the puffiness around the eyes and minimizing skin aging.
May your summer be filled with softness, radiance, and rituals that remind you: when you care for your skin through Ayurveda, you’re also caring for your whole self—mind, body, and soul.
Disclaimer: The content is purely informative and educational in nature and should not be construed as medical advice. The information is not intended for use in the diagnosis, treatment, cure, or prevention of any disease. Please use the content only in consultation with an appropriate certified medical or healthcare professional. If you are nursing, taking medications, or have a medical condition, please consult with your health care practitioner prior to the use of any of these herbs.
