Send This Page to a Friend

The Maharishi Ayurveda Approach to Beauty and Skin Care

The Three Pillars of Beauty


Maharishi Ayurveda (MAV), the modern, consciousness-based revival
of the ancient Ayurvedic medicine tradition, considers true
beauty to be supported by three pillars; Outer Beauty, Inner
Beauty and Lasting Beauty. Only by enhancing all three can we
attain the balanced state of radiant health that makes each of us
the most fulfilled and beautiful person we can be.

Outer Beauty: Roopam

The outer signs of beauty - your skin, hair and nails - are more
than just superficial measures of beauty. They are direct
reflections of your overall health. These outer tissues are
created by the inner physiological processes involved in
digestion, metabolism and proper tissue development. Outer beauty
depends more on the strength of your digestion and metabolism,
the quality of your diet, and the purity of your blood, than on
external cleansers and conditioners you may apply.


General Recommendations for Outer Beauty

As we will discuss, the key to skin care is matching your diet
and skin care routine to the specific skin type you have.
Meanwhile, there are some valuable recommendations for lustrous
skin, hair and nails that will be helpful to everyone, regardless
of skin type.

1. Diet: Without adequate nourishment, your collagen layer thins
and a kind of wasting takes place. Over time, your skin can
shrivel up like a plant without water from lack of nourishment.
To keep your skin plump and glowing:

A. Eat fresh, whole organic foods that are freshly prepared.
Avoid packaged, canned, frozen, processed foods and leftovers.
These foods have little nutritional value and also they are often
poorly digested which creates impurities that localize in the
skin. The resulting buildup of toxins causes irritation and
blocks circulation depriving the skin of further nourishment and
natural cleansing processes.

B. Favor skin nourishing foods.
1. Leafy green vegetables contain vitamins, minerals (especially
iron and calcium) and are high in antioxidant properties. They
nourish the skin and protect it from premature aging.
2. Sweet juicy fruits like grapes, melons, pears, plums and
stewed apples at breakfast are excellent for the skin in almost
everyone.
3. Eat a wide variety of grains over different meals and try
mixed grain servings at breakfast and lunch. Add amaranth,
quinoa, cous cous, millet and barley to the wheat and rice you
already eat.
4. Favor light, easy to digest proteins like legume soups
(especially yellow split mung dhal), whole milk, paneer (cheese
made from boiling milk, adding lemon and straining solids) and
lassi (diluted yogurt and spice drinks).
5. Oils like ghee (clarified butter) and organic, extra virgin
olive oil should be included in the diet as they lubricate,
nourish and create lustre in the skin.
6. Use spices like turmeric, cumin, coriander, and black pepper
to improve digestion, nourish the skin and cleanse it of
impurities.
7. Avoid microwaving and boiling your vegetables. They lose as
much as 85% of their antioxidant content when cooked in this way.
Steaming and sautéing are best.


Caring for outer beauty through knowledge of skin type

Besides these general recommendations the key to Outer Beauty is
to understand the difference in skin types so you can gain the
maximum benefit from your individualized skin care regimen. MAV
identifies three different skin types based on which of the three
main metabolic principles (doshas)- present in everyone, but to
different degrees- is most dominant in your body.

Vata Skin

* Description: Vata is composed of the elements of air and space.
If you have a vata skin type, your skin will be dry, thin, fine
pored, delicate and cool to the touch. When balanced, it glows
with a delicate lightness and refinement that is elegant and
attractive. When vata skin is imbalanced, it will be prone to
excessive dryness and may even be rough and flaky.

* Potential problems: The greatest beauty challenge for vata skin
is its predisposition to symptoms of early aging. Your skin may
tend to develop wrinkles earlier than most due to its tendency to
dryness and thinness. If your digestion is not in balance, your
skin can begin to look dull and grayish, even in your 20’s and
30’s. In addition, your skin may have a tendency for disorders
such as dry eczema and skin fungus. Mental stress, such as worry,
fear and lack of sleep, has a powerful debilitating effect on
vata skin leaving it looking tired and lifeless.

* Recommendations for care
With a little knowledge, you can preserve and protect the
delicate beauty of your vata type skin. Since your skin does not
contain much moisture, preventing it from drying is the major
consideration. Eat a warm, unctuous diet (ghee and olive oil are
best) and favor sour, salty and sweet tastes (naturally sweet
like fruits, not refined sugar) as they balance vata. Avoid
drying foods like crackers. Drink 6-8 glasses of warm (not cold
for vata types!) water throughout the day and eat plenty of
sweet, juicy fruits. Going to bed early (before 10 PM) is very
soothing to vata and will have a tremendously positive influence
on your skin. Avoid cleansing products that dry the skin (like
alcohol-based cleansers) and perform Ayurvedic oil massage to
your whole body (abhyanga) in the morning before you shower.
Pitta Skin.

* Description: Pitta dosha is composed of the elements of fire
and water. If you have a pitta skin type your skin is fair, soft,
warm and of medium thickness. When balanced, your skin has a
beautiful, slightly rosy or golden glow, as if illuminated from
within. Your hair typically is fine and straight, and is usually
red, sandy or blonde in color. Your complexion tends toward the
pink or reddish, and there is often a copious amount of freckles
or moles.

* Potential problems: Among the many beauty challenges of pitta
skin types is your tendency to develop rashes, rosacea, acne,
liver spots or pigment disorders. Because of the large proportion
of the fire element in your constitution, your skin does not
tolerate heat or sun very well. Of all the three skin types,
pitta skin has the least tolerance for the sun, is
photosensitive, and most likely to accumulate sun damage over the
years. Pitta skin is aggravated by emotional stress, especially
suppressed anger, frustration, or resentment.

* Recommendations for care
Avoid excessive sunlight, tanning treatments and highly heating
therapies like facial or whole body steams. Avoid hot, spicy
foods and favor astringent, bitter and sweet foods which balance
pitta. (Again, naturally sweet, not chocolate and refined sugar!)
Sweet juicy fruits (especially melons and pears), cooked greens
and rose petal preserves are especially good. Drinking plenty of
water helps wash impurities from sensitive pitta skin. Reduce
external or internal contact with synthetic chemicals, to which
your skin is especially prone to react, even in a delayed fashion
after years of seemingly uneventful use. Avoid skin products that
are abrasive, heating or contain artificial colors or
preservatives. Most commercial make-up brands should be avoided
in favor of strictly 100% natural ingredient cosmetics. And be
sure to get your emotional stress under control through plenty of
outdoor exercise, yoga and meditation.

Kapha Skin.
* Description: Kapha dosha is composed of the elements of earth
and water. If you have a kapha skin type your skin is thick,
oily, soft and cool to the touch. Your complexion is a glowing
porcelain whitish color, like the moon, and hair
characteristically thick, wavy, oily and dark. Kapha skin types,
with their more generous collagen and connective tissue, are
fortunate to develop wrinkles much later in life than vata or
pitta types.

*Potential problems If your skin becomes imbalanced, it can show
up as enlarged pores, excessively oily skin, moist types of
eczema, blackheads, acne or pimples, and water retention. Kapha
skin is also more prone to fungal infections.

* Recommendations for care
Kapha skin is more prone to clogging and needs more cleansing
than other skin types. Be careful to avoid greasy, clogging
creams. Likewise, avoid heavy, hard to digest foods like fried
foods, fatty meats, cheeses and rich desserts. Eat more light,
easy to digest, astringent, bitter and pungent (well-spiced)
foods as they balance kapha. Olive oil is the best cooking oil
and a little ginger and lime juice can be taken before meals to
increase your characteristically sluggish digestive fire. Take
warm baths often and use gentle cleansers to open the skin pores.
Avoid getting constipated and try to get some exercise every day
to increase circulation and help purify the skin through the
sweating process.

Inner Beauty: Gunam.

Happy, positive, loving, caring individuals have a special beauty
that is far more than skin deep. Conversely we all experience the
quick and deleterious effect on our skin from fatigue and stress.

Inner beauty is authentic beauty, not the kind that shows on a
made-up face, but the kind that shines through from your soul,
your consciousness or inner state of being. Inner beauty comes
from a mind and heart that are in harmony, not at odds with each
other, causing emotional confusion, loss of confidence, stress
and worry. Inner peace is the foundation of outer beauty.

Maintain your self-confidence and a warm, loving personality by
paying attention to your lifestyle and daily routine and
effective management of stress (I highly recommend the TM
technique for its scientifically-verified benefits on mental and
physical health and reduced aging.) You will also be healthier
and feel better through the day if you eat your main meal at
midday and make a habit of going to bed early (by 10 PM is
ideal.)

Remember, kindness, friendliness and sincerity naturally attract
people to you. On the other hand, being uptight or tense makes
people want to walk the other way, regardless of your facial
structure, body weight, or other outer signs we associate with
attractiveness.

Lasting Beauty: Yayastyag

In order to slow the aging process and gain lasting beauty there
are two additional key considerations beyond those already
discussed,

1. Eliminate toxins and free radicals in the body:

The main
deteriorating effects of aging come as toxins and impurities
(called ama in Ayurveda) accumulate throughout the body. These
toxins may begin as free radicals in the body, or over time may
become oxidized into free radicals, all of which contribute to
premature aging in the body. For lasting health and beauty it is
essential to avoid and neutralize free radicals, to prevent
impurities of all kinds from accumulating and to remove those
that have already become lodged in the body.

The most powerful cleansing therapy in Maharishi Ayurveda is
"panchakarma" therapy, a series of natural treatments ideally
performed twice yearly, that involves 5-7 days in a row of
massage, heat treatments and mild herbal enemas. Ayurveda
emphasizes the importance of undergoing this cleansing program
once or twice a year to prevent impurities from accumulating,
localizing and hardening in the tissues. Just as we change the
oil in our cars regularly for optimal performance and lifespan,
Ayurveda recommends that we cleanse the “sludge” from our tissues
on a regular basis through panchakarma treatments.

Best of all, panchakarma treatments are luxurious, blissful, and
make you feel (and look) completely rejuvenated in just a few
days time. I have had many a patient who told me that friends
asked them afterwards if they had gotten a facelift, they looked
so fresh and youthful!

Other free radical busters include: reducing mental stress,
eating antioxidant foods like leafy green vegetables, sweet,
juicy fruits and cooking on a daily basis with antioxidant,
detoxifying spices like turmeric and coriander.


2. Add rejuvenative techniques to daily living:

The daily activities of life in the modern world systematically
wear us down and speed up the aging process. Ayurveda maintains
it is crucial to practice daily rejuvenative regimens to
counteract the stressful wear and tear of everyday life.
According to Ayurveda the most important rejuvenative routines
for your life are:

a) Going to bed by 10:00 PM. This simple habit is one of the most
powerful techniques for health and longevity, according to MAV.
b) Meditate daily. Any meditation that does not involve
concentration (which has been shown to increase anxiety) can be
very helpful. I highly recommend the twice-daily deep rest and
enlivenment of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique,
whose benefits have been verified by over 700 published research
studies.
c) Eat organic, whole fresh food that is freshly prepared. There
is an Ayurvedic saying: "Without proper diet. medicine is of no
use. With proper diet, medicine is of no need." Be sure to avoid
those leftovers, processed and microwaved foods for better
nutrition and vitality.
d) Perform Ayurvedic oil massage in the morning (abhyanga).
Morning oil massage purifies the entire body, reduces anxiety and
stress, helps prevent and heal injuries and supports circulation.
It is especially helpful in creating a radiant complexion and
keeping your skin youthful. Research shows it may also help
prevent skin cancers.
e) Practice yoga asanas. Maintaining flexibility and circulation
is key to health.
f) Practice pranayama (yoga breathing) techniques. Pranayama
enlivens the mind and body. Ideally practice the following
sequence twice a day. Asanas, pranayama and meditation.

Summary

Everyone's unique beauty shines forth when they have radiant
health and personal happiness. Beauty is a side effect of a
balanced, fulfilled life. Supreme personal beauty is accessible
to everyone who is willing to take more control of their health
in their day-to-day life through time-tested principles of
natural living.

For most of us, beauty is not a gift but a choice. Every woman
can be radiantly beautiful simply by beginning to lead a
healthier life. You will be rewarded by the glowing effects you
will see in your mirror each day and the powerful,
bliss-producing effect your special beauty has on everyone in
your life.


Nancy Lonsdorf M.D. received her M.D. from Johns Hopkins and did
her postgraduate training at Stanford. She has studied Ayurveda
with some of the world's most renowned Ayurvedic physicians in
India, Europe and the U.S. Dr. Lonsdorf has 17 years of clinical
experience with Ayurveda and is currently the Medical Director of
The Raj Ayurveda Health Center in Vedic City Iowa.

Dr. Lonsdorf has authored two books on Ayurveda and women's
health:
1. A Woman's Best Medicine (Penguin/Putnam 1995 ; ISBN
0-87477-785-2) describing the Ayurvedic approach to the major
issues in women's health
2. A Woman's Best Medicine for Menopause (Contemporary/McGraw
Hill 2002; ISBN 0-8092-9335-8) describing the Ayurvedic approach
to menopause


Search Our Site For More Related Info

Web This Site

Also See:

Index of Skin & Hair Care

Women's Health & Women's Issues


      Your Health and Wellness Center