When the food goes into the body, it becomes mineral substances. All the food which we are 
taking should have a taste. Whenever we have food, we should check whether food has all 
6 tastes together for a long and healthy life. In Tamil, we call it as “Arusuvai”. It means 
six tastes.

Ok, Are we having six tastes in our daily life? Definitely No. All six tastes will be available 
only in the feast or party. But, Ayurvedic recommend to have all six tastes in our regular diet for a healthy life. 

Six tastes are Astringent, Sour, Salt, bitter, Sweet, Spicy. Astringent needed for blood 
production. Sour taste needed for producing saturated fat. Salt is required for our bone 
strength. Bitter taste is important for our nerve system. Sweet needed for healthy 
flesh/muscles. Spicy required for production of our Saliva. 

Hence, all 6 tastes provides six types of mineral substances to our body. These six tastes 
must come from our food. So, we need to check whether our food has these 6 tastes.

For Example: We are having Rice cake/Idli/Dosa in the morning. Are we having 
Astringent? No. Sour - Yes we have. During fermentation sour taste is getting added in the 
batter. Salt - Yes we have. Bitter - No. Sweet taste, Yes we do have. All rice items are 
carbohydrate and it has sweet in it. Spicy - yes we do have. All our 
chutneys are spice. Hence, we don’t have astringent and bitter taste in the morning diet. We 
should have all six tastes in our food. We might take food once a day or five times a day. It 
does not matter. Whenever you have food, these 6 tastes should be there. So what we can 
have for the astringent and bitter?

For the astringent, we can have any banana flower recipe or little bit fenugreek seed 
powder. We can make this powder with spice and salt and store it. For bitter taste, we can have little bit honey. Don’t beget shock. Actually 
when you taste you will feel sweet taste from the honey. But when it goes inside the body 
and becoming metabolism, actually it will be a bitter taste. That’s why this 
is very good medicine. So, we have to check these six tastes in our diet properly.

At max, we should have Living food. That means, we have to eat more 
fruits. Example, we are picking matured raw mango or banana and storing in the 
home. After 3 to 4 day it still becomes fruit and getting ready for us to eat. So, 
all fruits are live until we are consuming. 

In our diet top priority is given to fruits. Then, the food that gave life. All sprouted 
grains. Example: Until green gram stored in a tin nothing will happen. But if 
you soak overnight and keep it in wet cloth for a day, it will become sprouted 
grain. These are the food that gave life. 

The third category is deadly food. This is our regular food. When we cook or boil all 
vegetables like brinjal, ladies finger, potato are become deadly food. 


The fourth category is killed food. All meat comes in this category. So, we should 
consider food in the order Living food, The food that gave life, deadly food, killed food. we 
should try to avoid the fourth category until unless required. 

Try to use banana leaf for eating food instead of plastic or paper plate. Because while eating 
hot food in the banana leaf, you will get Chlorophyll from it. It is very good for our health as 
it has many essential substances for our body. 

Have the water which is stored in the Brass, Copper, Bronze pots and energized by 
sunlight. Taking water from plastic bottle is not good for health.

Try to take two soups per day. This will make you hungry and active. 

Eat at least one fruit daily. Don’t consider banana only as fruit and take daily. We 
have different fruits available in the market like apple, orange, grapes, guava, papaya, 
water melon etc. Daily take one type of fruit. Make it this as a habit. 

Also try to have 5 different color vegetables in your daily diet.
Spend time for your food and give respect for the food. Then this food will definitely make 
your long life and healthy life.