Ayurveda’s invaluable secret to perfect health, beauty and balance.

A regular habit of drinking boiled, hot or slightly warm water throughout the day strengthens digestion, relieves heartburn, aids weight loss, eases symptoms of cold, cough, fevers and detoxes the body.

The stronger the digestive fire, the stronger the mental and physical stamina, the stronger the immune system, the stronger the health and the brighter the glow of the skin.

Ayurveda recommends that you drink your water warm as cold foods and fluids can weaken your digestive fire (agni). Cold water slows down the digestive process that has just started by diluting your digestive juices so they cannot do their job as effectively. Thus requiring the energy used for digestion to be used to bring the temperature of the resultant liquid in your stomach to body temperature.

The result is partly or undigested food that moves through the digestive system and that may or may not be eliminated properly. You may also feel heavy, tired and bloated. Proper elimination is important to prevent the build up of waste material in the intestine because such a build up creates toxins and stops nutrients from being assimilated into the body.

Hot water kindles hunger, helps in good digestion, sooths throat, cleanses bladder, reduces hiccups, and alleviates increased vata and kapha. It eases symptoms of cold, cough, fevers and breathlessness. It removes and flushes ama, the metabolic toxin of body.

Caution: if suffering from GERD, hyper acidity, inflammations, gout, pitta fevers etc. one should not drink warm water. In such cases boiled and cooled water is best.

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Water for Cleansing

Sometimes people have dry skin and unquenchable thirst even though they drink lots of water. The deeper physiology is not getting enough moisture. This occurs when the person’s agni is low and ama blocks the microchannels (shrotas) which carry water to the cells.

In order to cleanse the channels and enhance moisture absorption, ayurvedic texts recommend boiling the water for various lengths of time, creating a therapeutic water called ushnodaka. Another method is to add spices or herbs to the water after boiling.

How does it work?

Boiling water changes its nature, making it lighter and changes its potency (virya) from cold (sheeta) to warm (ushna).

The `deepana’ property of warm water causes expansion of strotas (microchannels) carrying digestive juices, thus increasing their flow, resulting in proper digestion of food.

When the water boils, it gets charged with heat, becoming sharper in quality 

By boiling the drinking water for five minutes the intelligence of the element of fire is incorporated, which magnifies the properties of the water. This sharpness (sookshma) allows it to cleanse the channels and penetrate deeper levels of the physiology to hydrate the tissues, and thus it becomes easier for the body to flush out toxins and impurities.

Spices create an added therapeutic effect by interacting with the water on the molecular level.
Spices create different effects on the body through aroma and taste.

It becomes easier for the body to flush out toxins and impurities because of the sharpness of the agni (heat) in the water and because of the sharpness of the spices. Over time, it cleanses the channels so the water is unobstructed as it travels into the body to hydrate the tissues, and travels out carrying waste.

Ancient texts state the difference in the rate of absorption of regular water vs. boiled water:
• regular water – takes about 6 hours if every channel is clear
• boiled and cooled water – takes about 3 hours to be absorbed, and helps open the channels
• hot herbalized water – takes about 1 1/2 hours, due to sharpness of agni and herbs and spices

How much?

Ayurveda recommends sipping warm drinking water with a moderate mineral content. How much water you should drink depends on your age, how much physical work or exercise you do, the weather, your diet, your stress levels, your herbal food supplements, and your body type.

The warm Pitta types usually are thirstier than the watery Kapha types. Vata types are often constipated or have dry skin and thus need to drink more water. Drinking six to eight large glasses of boiled water per day is a profound therapy for hydrating the skin and body and keeping toxins under control. Do remember, it is the frequency rather than the quantity that is important here.

At meals

It is an Ayurvedic digestion rule that drinking cold water during and after a meal is not good for the body. Water at meals can be room temperature or hot, but should never be ice-cold, as that would douse the digestive fire.

Forty-five minutes after the meal, you may drink a lot of water as the body needs it for digestion. The water can be sipped during and after meals, but not on an empty stomach.

How to boil?

Boil a sufficient amount of un-chlorinated tap water or (still) mineral water in an open saucepan, for at least ten minutes. Keep this water in a thermos flask and take a few sips (or more, if you are thirsty) every half-hour throughout the day.

To increase the positive effect you can add 1-2 slices of fresh ginger (or a pinch of ginger powder) to the water when boiling it. Once this is done you have “ushnodaka”, or warm (boiled) water. You won’t need to re-heat the water after it cools as its nature is now warm.

Ayurveda prescribes three different temperatures for drinking boiled water, depending on the body type.

  • Kapha can sip the water hot. This reduces the toxic build-up to which kapha type skin is prone.
  • Pitta types should cool the boiled water to body temperature and drink with or after meals. Pitta types must be careful to avoid hot temperatures.
  • Vata types can drink the water warm, avoiding hot and cold. Their cool, dry skin needs warm-temperature water for hydration and to clear the channels and burn ama.

Boiled water can be used throughout the day but should not be saved overnight, since its therapeutic properties expire.

Sources:
Ushnodaka Therapy by Omved Pure Natural Living,  March 11th 2010, Omved Lifestyle Pvt Ltd, 2009-2012
Healing Waters: Ayurvedic Digestive Drinks by vpk by Maharishi Ayurveda

This text is  for informational purposes only. Before making changes to your diet or lifestyle, please consult your physician.