Ghee, a staple in Ayurvedic cooking and healing, is gold. Equally important, when it comes to environmental health – ghee is a magic golden elixir for healing our internal environs.
Ghee and Your Microbiome
Specifically, this golden oil holds an extremely high concentration of butyric acid. And this is food for your colon! Butyric acid is responsible for feeding colon cells and boosting immunity. As a matter of fact, 70% of your immune system is housed in your gut where ghee does its’ best work. Additionally, butyric acid supports better digestion, assimilation and elimination, all while maintaining a healthy microbiome.
Ghee as Medicine
You can certainly use ghee like any culinary oil, or where you might otherwise use butter. For example, I use it to sauté my veggies or I’ll add a teaspoon to your rice or pasta. Once in awhile I’ll drizzle it over popcorn along with a shake or two of nutritional yeast or curry powder for a little extra kick. However, ghee truly excels as a medicine. Because of its’ subtle qualities, ghee is considered an excellent carrier (called anupan) to transport medicinal herbs into the various layers and tissues of the body. This brings me to one of the classic formulas: Bitter Ghee. Without a doubt one of Ayurveda’s classic recipes. This medicinal oil reduces inflammation, clears and cools the GI tract, and stimulates the liver’s natural detoxification process. A true golden elixir!
Ghee + Cleansing = Winning
Bitter Ghee is a key player in my 10-Day Ayurvedic Community Cleanse. A traditional Ayurvedic cleanse is divided into three categories or phases. During Phase II, you’ll begin each day with increasing amounts of bitter ghee melted into hot water. Drinking this on an empty stomach (in addition to sticking to a non-fat monodiet of Kitchari) stimulates fat metabolism, oleates the body internally, and pulls toxicity from the organs and tissues. Through a process called chelation, this funk is then pushed to the colon for evacuation. It’s truly remarkable and the highlight of the Community Cleanse.
#bottomsup
