Sri Lanka is famous for a lot of things, among them the ancient medicine form Ayurveda and the many pearls of wisdom that follow. Ayurveda is a 5000-year-old medicine practice originated from India, but is also widely spread in Sri Lanka, and has been used ever since to treat imbalances in the body in a holistic manner. Ayurveda is Sanskrit for "life knowledge", and is all about becoming in tune with yourself. This also applies to imbalances in the skin. Differencing from western medicine, ayurvedic practices use herbs, diet, and lifestyle choices to get the body back into balance. Therefore, Ayurvedic practitioners look not only to your skin if you are facing an imbalance, they will also ask you about your happiness, the food you eat, and the level of stress in your life.According to this philosophy, the skin is an extension of the body, and everything we apply to the skin ends up in the bloodstream. Therefore, applying toxins to the skin or our hair will go directly into your bloodstream and end up in the liver.Generally, an Ayurvedic practitioner will look at your different doshas, as it is rooted on the idea that every person had a dosha, which is the biological energies that govern a persons body and mentality. Your doshas determine your optimal diet, mentality and lifestyle. You can take a test to find out what your predominant dosha is.Typically, fall and winter cold creates dryness and coldness inside us. This means that there will be excess Vata (wind and air) in the body, which accumulates in dry skin, brittle nails and thinning hair which many of us experience during the winter. According to the simple principles of Ayurveda you must apply the "principle of opposites" to balance this. Here is a short and simple list of things you can do:
- Eat warm foods and drinks, instead of cold meals.
- Drink plenty of water everyday and keep hydrated! Make sure the water is not ice cold, but luke warm to warm up your body.
- Add healthy fats to your diet, such as nuts, coconuts, ghee and seeds.
- Exercise/move your body for 30 minutes everyday.
- Find something that makes you de-stress and chill out