Become an Ayurvedic Digestive Health Coach: Class Starts Oct 8th

College of Ayurvedic Diet & Digestion

Study Ayurveda
Study Ayurveda Online
Ayurveda Certifications at Joyful Belly
ABOUT THE SCHOOL
My Body Type
- My Free Body Map & Imbalances Chart
- My Free Food Pattern Report
Diet & Recipes
Recipes
Food
Create Your Diet
Remedies
Herbs & Remedies
Diet & Digestion Remedies

Enroll Now

Share Content with Friends & Clients

Click one of the buttons above, or cut and paste the following link to share this page with your network. This link will automatically track your referrals to Joyful Belly:

Share URL for

Copy Link

About Sharing Content & Referrals.

WHAT'S YOUR DIET?

An Ayurvedic diet is highly personalized. It is custom fit to your unique body type and individual imbalances. Your Ayurvedic diet works with your body, so you can restore your health and vitality through food. This quiz takes about 5 minutes. Once you answer all the questions, you'll get your results along with options to delve into diet recommendations for your specific imbalances.

Page 1: Please select the choices that best match your current eating habits.

Which boxes best describe your 'Hydration / Electrolytes'?

Dry Mouth / Tongue

Xerostomia, or dry mouth is a subjective feeling that the mouth is too dry. The terms comes from the Greek: Xeros = dry and stoma = mouth. This condition is commonly called pasty mouth or cotton mouth and effects 20% of the population. Lips may...

Learn more about 'Dry Mouth / Tongue'.

Which boxes best describe your 'Diet'?

Vegetarian

Is a Vegetarian Diet Healthy? Adopting a vegetarian lifestyle needs to be a good fit for the individual. For many Pitta-Kapha individuals, going vegetarian for a year increases vitality. For other constitutions, going...

Learn more about 'Vegetarian'.

Meat every day

Meat is considered a supplement in Ayurveda rather than a daily food. Since our digestive tract is too long, an excess of meat tends to putrify in our gut.

Learn more about 'Meat every day'.

Red meat

Red meat should be consumed in small quantities only. Red meat is heavy & hot. It can make a person domineering.

Learn more about 'Red meat'.

Macrobiotic diet

Protein Shakes

The high convenience factor of protein shakes allows you to nearly skip the eating process altogether. Along the way, you can even forget your body's intimate connection with food - the cravings you were meant to feel and enjoy. Food is supposed to...

Learn more about 'Protein Shakes'.

Raw Food / Salads

There is no right or wrong answer to the raw versus cooked debate. The real answer to the debate depends on the digestive strength of the individual. Raw food offers nutritional benefits but is more difficult to digest, causing gas and bloating in...

Learn more about 'Raw Food / Salads'.

Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cabbage

Broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower are cruciferous vegetables. They are all difficult to digest in a person with a dry or cold digestive tract.

Learn more about 'Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cabbage'.

Brown Rice

Whole grains are more difficult to digest than husked, but have more fiber and are nutritionally superior. If your digestion is poor, however, you won't be able to absorb the nutrition benefits of whole grains.

Learn more about 'Brown Rice'.

High fiber diet

Low fiber diet

Few leafy greens

Our ancestors subsisted on a diet high in leafy greens and nuts. Bitter leaves such as endives stimulate digestion, restore proper food cravings, and cleanse the liver and the blood. Leaves are also high in fiber, minerals and vitamins. Eat at least...

Learn more about 'Few leafy greens'.

Refined flours

Refined flours are heavy, gooey and cause congestion. Bread, although it looks crunchy, becomes a bowl of goo after it is chewed.

Learn more about 'Refined flours'.

Wheat

Wheat is generally difficult to digest, very heavy, gums up the digestive tract, and causes mucus.

Learn more about 'Wheat'.

Refined sugar

Refined sugar consumption has increased exponentially. The average American consumes over 150x the amount of sugar eaten just 100 years ago. Refined sugar is highly processed, and, like a drug, wreaks havoc with our metabolism, causing a sugar high,...

Learn more about 'Refined sugar'.

Soda / corn syrup

Whereas 3-4 sodas with sugar would be nauseating, corn syrup bypasses our natural appetite suppressing hormones leading to weight gain and diabetes.

Learn more about 'Soda / corn syrup'.

Burgers/Hot Dogs

Burgers and hot dogs combine meat and wheat, two difficult to digest ingredients. These heavy, gooey, difficult to digest ingredients often cause heaviness and stagnation in the stomach, and gas and bloating in the colon.

Learn more about 'Burgers/Hot Dogs'.

Sandwiches

Sandwiches are generally a bad food combination, dry, heavy and cold. Sandwiches were invented by the earl of sandwich, a british lord who was also a compulsive gambler. He would gamble for many days and nights together without stopping to eat or...

Learn more about 'Sandwiches'.

Burritos

Burritos are a bad food combination. They generally contain rice and wheat (two types of grains), beans and meat (two types of proteins), sour cream and cheese (two types of dairy), nightshades (tomatoes, chilis) and fatty avocados.

Learn more about 'Burritos'.

Pizza

Let's face it: Pizza happens. Growing up, one of my favorite memories was when my dad would take my sisters and I to Brother's Four Pizzeria. We would have so much fun picking out toppings, watching the cheese become stringy as we pulled up a slice,...

Learn more about 'Pizza'.

Beans

Beans are difficult to digest, high in soluble and insoluble fiber, and high in potassium (drying). They feel cold and heavy in the digestive tract. See more...

Learn more about 'Beans'.

Peanuts

Why do we love nuts? Humans have a long history of eating nuts. Nuts were the primary source of fats and proteins prior to the agricultural revolution. Unfortunately, peanuts...

Learn more about 'Peanuts'.

Tomatoes

Tomatoes aggravate Vata and Pitta. They are difficult to digest and acidic. Like most members of the nightshade plant family, they have a funkiness that irritates the liver.

Learn more about 'Tomatoes'.

Dairy/milk/cheese/ice-cream

Dairy creates heaviness, cloudy thoughts, bloating and constipation for many. It provokes weight gain, mucus and Kapha dosha. Although adult humans have adapted to milk, it was originally intended for babies. Lactose intolerance may be quite natural.

Learn more about 'Dairy/milk/cheese/ice-cream'.

Alcohol 2+ times / week

Alcohol is also a medicine when used in the right dose. Alcohol is recommended in Ayurveda during winter months as a remedy to blood stagnation. Two (2) tablespoons of wine represent a daily medicinal dose of alcohol during the month of January and...

Learn more about 'Alcohol 2+ times / week'.

Drink coffee 3+ times a week

Coffee is like a metabolic credit card. By suppressing exhaustion, coffee prevents you from learning how to build and restore vitality naturally. It enables people to live at a superhuman pace for years, and by stimulating the mind can even prevent...

Learn more about 'Drink coffee 3+ times a week'.

Chocolate

Chocolate is difficult to digest and hot. Bitter chocolate is Kapha pacifying. Since chocolate is often mixed with sugar and cream, it aggravates all three doshas. Chocolate stimulates the reproductive organs in women, which explains why chocolate...

Learn more about 'Chocolate'.

Candy

Tobacco Cigarette Smoker (Current)

Many people smoke without thinking, leading to addiction. As a first step to quitting, Ayurveda recommends smoking slowly and with full attention.

Learn more about 'Tobacco Cigarette Smoker (Current)'.

Chew Tobacco

Drink lots of water

Everyone should monitor their water intake. The first sign of dehydration is a dry palate. If the palate is already adequately moistened, additional water could create heaviness and indigestion.

Learn more about 'Drink lots of water'.

Water after meals

Water before the meal is nectar. Proper hydration improves digestive function up to 24%. Water during the meal is honey if taken in small sips. Water after meals dilutes the acids in our stomach, and leads to digestive problems.

Learn more about 'Water after meals'.

Fruits with meals/yogurt

Fruits digest quickly. Other foods, such as yogurt, meat, peanuts and other heavy foods digest more slowly. While the body is trying to digest these other foods, bacteria quickly ferment the fruit, causing gas, bloating & toxic buildup. Fruits...

Learn more about 'Fruits with meals/yogurt'.

Dessert after meals

Consuming food soon after a meal forces the stomach to process partially digested and undigested foods at the same time, disturbing the rhythm of digestion. Desserts especially challenge the stomach due to their heaviness. The stomach produces...

Learn more about 'Dessert after meals'.

Artificial sweeteners

Iced/cold drinks

Digestion demands alot of blood to function properly. Cold drinks cause blood vessels in the stomach to shrink. A warm drink expands blood vessels in the stomach, much like the cheeks become red and flushed on a hot July afternoon.

Learn more about 'Iced/cold drinks'.

Canned/frozen food

Canned, frozen food may be nutrient deficient, and lack taste. Taste is important to help the body choose the best foods for the season.

Learn more about 'Canned/frozen food'.

Fatty fried food

If you ever asked why fried food is bad for you, you're not alone. We understand your concern. After all, the sizzle of french fries in a deep fryer or the sight of a funnel cake at your local fair can be hard to resist. These foods...

Learn more about 'Fatty fried food'.

Frequent Leftovers

A Fresh Look At Leftovers It's undeniable - fresh food has a "je ne sais quoi" about it - something special even if you can't detect the difference in a lab. There's something bright, juicy and colorful about fresh food. Classical Ayurveda...

Learn more about 'Frequent Leftovers'.

Fast food 2+ times / week

Fast food isn't all that fast in the digestive tract. We've had clients burp up the flavor of a big mac more than 48hrs after consumption. If you have acid reflux, bloating, feel tired, or your thoughts become cloudy after eating, the fast food has...

Learn more about 'Fast food 2+ times / week'.

Spicy food

Spicy food stimulates digestion, blood flow and sweat. Spicey food liquefies mucus in the digestive tract, lungs, and anywhere mucus is found. Spices can irritate the digestive tract.

Learn more about 'Spicy food'.

Taking 3+ Supplements

Supplements include herbs, extracts, vitamins, minerals, and any other item you ingest as an addition to your everyday meal. Occasional use of supplements may be beneficial - during a busy week, when you are pregnant or having so other short...

Learn more about 'Taking 3+ Supplements'.

Taking Enzyme Supplements

No matter how much you love digestive enzymes for saving you from embarrassing gas or tummy discomfort, digestive enzymes could magnify the real...

Learn more about 'Taking Enzyme Supplements'.

Which boxes best describe your 'Eating Habits'?

Incomplete Chewing

Chewing & Your Health 50% of digestion begins in the mouth. So if you have digestive problems, you can usually fix it with your teeth! The most powerful tools you have to digest and absorb nutrients well are your teeth. Your...

Learn more about 'Incomplete Chewing'.

Poor diet

In Ayurveda, beliefs govern behavior. Behavior governs routine. Routine governs diet. Diet rules digestion. Digestion creates the blood. Blood rule the organs.

Learn more about 'Poor diet'.

Eats quickly

If you lead a hectic lifestyle and find yourself always running from place to place, it can be hard to switch gears and slow yourself down. The first step might be in planning, long before the meal. Have you carved out enough time in your schedule...

Learn more about 'Eats quickly'.

Eating while driving/TV/hurrying

Studies show over 1/5 of all eating happens in a car. The flavor curve of food changes with every bite. When you are distracted, you may not be aware of how the taste of food is changing. Distractions make it impossible to listen to your body's cues...

Learn more about 'Eating while driving/TV/hurrying'.

Stress affects my digestion

Frequent snacking

Fasting between meals gives the digestive organs a chance to rest, and improves the ability of the body to digest fat, a stable source of energy. Although recommended by western medicine, frequent snacking causes blood sugar instability and leads to...

Learn more about 'Frequent snacking'.

Skip meals more than 2x/week

Some people skip meals because of a lack of routine. It's okay to skip a meal, however, if you aren't hungry. It is normal for Kapha people to skip breakfast, for example. Irregular mealtimes create metabolic instability, magnify food cravings, and...

Learn more about 'Skip meals more than 2x/week'.

Irregular meal times

Irregular meal times create unstable blood sugar levels which can lead to binging on junk foods. Skipping meals aggravates Vata as well. If occaisonally you must eat off schedule, choose easy to digest, nourishing foods. For example, an almond milk,...

Learn more about 'Irregular meal times'.

Restricting Food Intake

Eating after 8pm

Eating late at night provokes Kapha. When a person goes to bed with undigested food in the stomach, the food tends to stagnate both in the intestines and the blood, leading to weight gain. Sumo wrestlers in Japan gain weight by eating late at night....

Learn more about 'Eating after 8pm'.

Eating after midnight

Learn more about 'Eating after midnight'.

Currently/recently on a diet

Your diet is the 'religion' of your body. It's what your body believes will help it survive. In many ways, because of deep subconscious patterns, it's easier to change your religion than to change your diet. Medical studies show that 90% of...

Learn more about 'Currently/recently on a diet'.

Trying to lose weight

Trying to lose or control your weight is exhausting and often empty process. Let your body decide what weight to be and focus instead on establishing balance in your body and your life. When you desire or try to be a weight that is unhealthy for...

Learn more about 'Trying to lose weight'.

Feel underweight

A low body weight may cause an unsettling sense of lightness, ungroundedness, or weakness. It is important to determine the cause of weight loss. Unexplained weight loss can be serious - please see a doctor if you have chronic weight loss issues....

Learn more about 'Feel underweight'.

Feel overweight

In Ayurveda, excess weight is considered a symptom of something deeper. You might feel physically heavy, puffy, or sluggish; perhaps there is a feeling of discomfort in overly tight clothing or a shame about the number on the scale that makes you...

Learn more about 'Feel overweight'.

Rarely cook

Cooking your own food is the first step towards knowing the relationship between food and your body. Cooking is an essential first step in Ayurveda.

Learn more about 'Rarely cook'.

No time to cook

Don't know how to cook

Don't enjoy cooking

Use microwave

Restaurants 3+ times / week

Restaurant food is prepare to entice and seduce the consumer. Salt, fat, sugar, and animal proteins are irresistibly employed for your delight. At least 80% home cooked meals are essential to establishing a healthy lifestyle.

Learn more about 'Restaurants 3+ times / week'.

Eat out on work days

Eat out when traveling

Variety in food is fun

Food is a necessary distraction

Food is comfort

Food builds strength & endurance

Food is romantic / passionate

Food is a sensual experience. When you eat, you are touching, tasting, smelling, seeing, and perhaps even hearing your food. It engages your whole body with each of your senses, on a visceral level. There is something about the act of eating that...

Learn more about 'Food is romantic / passionate'.

Food exists for health

Not breastfed as a child

Irregular schedule / eating times

Routine is the first pillar of health. It creates structure and the ability to monitor and plan, putting you in the driver's seat of your health. An irregular meal schedule scrambles your biological clock. Your digestive organs may not be ready for...

Learn more about 'Irregular schedule / eating times'.

Overeat more than 2x/week

Feasting and overeating are not new phenomena. For thousands of years, celebratory feasts have been commonplace in cultures around the world as a way of bonding, enjoying the fruits of the harvest, and as symbols of generosity & wealth. Your body is...

Learn more about 'Overeat more than 2x/week'.

Binging more than 1x monthly

Bingeing is a common and serious symptom of bulimia and binge eating disorder. A binge involves a short period during which the binger consumes abnormally large amounts of food and feels a complete loss of control. This can be followed by a period...

Learn more about 'Binging more than 1x monthly'.

Can't stop eating once I start

Food Restrictions Lead to Overeating Deprivation often leads to a lack of control around food. If you feel like you cannot stop eating once you start, observe your daily habits. Are you eating regularly throughout the day?...

Learn more about 'Can't stop eating once I start'.

Uneasy when food unavailable

Food creates an illusion of security. An abundance of food can represent opulence, wealth, and well-being, while a scarcity of food can mean poverty, instability, and unsatisfied hunger. A history of yo-yo dieting, eating nutrient deficient foods,...

Learn more about 'Uneasy when food unavailable'.

Eating without realizing it

Eating happens. Food calms you down when you feel overwhelmed, stressed, or hazed, which can create an almost instinctive impulse to reach for a snack, even when you're calm, when life and your diet are going swimmingly well for you. Two...

Learn more about 'Eating without realizing it'.

Distress when sweets unavailable

Sweets have a calming, sedating effect on the body and mind; they can serve to bring you comfort and ease when you're feeling stressed or ungrounded. Yet, if you are becoming distressed when sweet foods are unavailable, this is an indication of...

Learn more about 'Distress when sweets unavailable'.

Search for perfect bite

Rebel against food limitations

The fire in the human spirit does not like to be repressed or told what to do. When you have limitations placed on the amount of food or the types of food you are "allowed" to eat by yourself, your parents, your friends, or even society, it is often...

Learn more about 'Rebel against food limitations'.

Indiscriminate eating

Eating indiscriminately feels like living in a cloud; you may be unable to think clearly or find some perspective on your appetite, making it nearly impossibly to avoid the temptation to eat haphazardly. Often indiscriminate eating is marked by a...

Learn more about 'Indiscriminate eating'.

Eat when abdomen painful

Overeat because of spouse / kids

Trauma-induced overeating

Trauma involves loss of control. During a traumatic event such as a car accident, a natural disaster, or any physical, sexual, or emotional abuse, you often feel powerless, frozen, and terrified because your personal safety and sense of control has...

Learn more about 'Trauma-induced overeating'.

Eat when lonely / depressed

Part of what makes loneliness unbearable is the aspect of mystery in it. When you are alone, you may not know how and where you can find human connection, and feel your self-esteem quickly wither before the enigma. When you feel like you are unloved...

Learn more about 'Eat when lonely / depressed'.

BECOME AN AYURVEDA HEALTH COUNSELOR

Register for only $250/month! Receive an advanced, clinically focused Ayurvedic education. In these rigorous online Ayurveda courses, you will study Ayurvedic medicine, digestive tract pathology, pulse diagnosis, tongue diagnosis, diet, lifestyle, herbal formulations, and much more. No travel required.

Yes, I'd like to know more about the course.
No, thank you.

SUBMIT YOUR ANSWERS NOW

Step 2 of 3: You are almost done!

Please complete the following information if you have not registered or sign in to continue.

Want our top Ayurvedic recipes and health tips? Click YES to subscribe to our newsletter!

(find out more).

Frequency: You'll receive our most popular Ayurvedic health tips every day for a week, and then 1-2 emails a week ongoing.

After clicking above, you will be taken to your page.

Joyful Belly offers free assessment tools for registered users. Registration is free! After you complete an assessment you will see the results from your answers and the information will always be available through "My Account". These results will help guide you through the process of finding the best recipes on a personal, individual basis.

e-mail address*

confirm your e-mail*

enter a password*

name

Want our top Ayurvedic recipes and health tips? Click YES to subscribe to our newsletter!

(

find out more

Frequency: You'll receive our most popular Ayurvedic health tips every day for a week, and then 1-2 emails a week ongoing.

).
Yes No

I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its

User Agreement

The materials in this site are provided 'as-is' and without warranties of any kind either expressed or implied. Joyful Belly does not warrant or make any representations regarding the use or the results of the use of the content or other materials in this site in terms of their correctness, accuracy, reliability, or otherwise.

and

Privacy Policy

We respect your privacy. We will NEVER sell, rent or share your email address. That's more than a policy, it's our personal guarantee. Click here to view our privacy policy. Thank you!

SUBMIT YOUR ANSWERS NOW

back

About Joyful Belly

Signup is easy and takes only one step. It includes access to the entire website with detailed ayurvedic descriptions. Our goal is more than just a fabulous recipe collection; we aim to teach the underlying principles of ayurveda. That way you have the tools to heal yourself.

ABOUT AYURVEDIC DIETS:

Personal diets on Joyful Belly are filled with yummy treats just for you. Your diet plan includes a whole online book of tasty, healthy recipes. Your diet plan also includes your personal grocery list and spice cabinet so you won't need to think about shopping. Don't know what to eat? It's easy to create a diet plan using the dosha quiz. Plus, our advanced search tool highlights contraindicated recipes making searching easier. Can't eat wheat? Get a list of grains matching your ayurvedic diet. Search other foods types too.

ARE YOU A PRACTITIONER?

Clients want variety in their diet. They want detailed explanations. Joyful Belly makes ayurvedic diets easier to follow. It takes less than a minute to create a diet for your client and saves you time explaining recipes. Just go to the 'Create a diet' page after signing in! Joyful Belly is a valuable, advanced diet research tool. Add your name to our online directory!

Join Joyful Belly.

Want our top Ayurvedic recipes and health tips?
Subscribe to our free newsletter!

Name

If you are already a member please sign in here. Forgot your password?

* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The information and products on this website are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Home
About
School
Tools for Clinicians

Recipe Library
Ingredient Research
Symptom Finder
Wellness Topics
Quizzes

My Account
My Recommendations
My Body Type
My Recipe Book
My Course History

Using this Website
Privacy Policy
Refunds & Exchanges

[email protected]
+1 828-307-3281

Asheville, North Carolina