Triphala and Detox
QUESTION:
Why should we take Triphala? (Triphala is an Ayurvedic blend of three fruits.) It is commonly used as a gentle bowel tonic and to support digestion, but there is no conclusive scientific evidence that it "cleanses the body of toxins."
ANSWER:
First, it is important to understand that many practitioners of conventional Western medicine reject the idea that toxic metabolic waste can accumulate in the body. They maintain that the body's elimination systems naturally and efficiently remove waste products without requiring any special intervention or regulation. In their view, the excretory system is sufficiently active and self-regulating.
This may be true for someone living on a fruitarian or, at the very least, a raw-food diet. However, with virtually every other type of diet, we unfortunately observe a very different reality.
Over the years, especially as physical activity declines, the body gradually accumulates stagnant metabolic waste, dead cells from its own tissues and blood, as well as contaminants from the external environment. Examples include protein fragments and their breakdown products, altered proteolipid and protein-carbohydrate complexes, and various peptides.
These substances accumulate in the body as mucus, encapsulated or diffuse pus, combine with inorganic calcium salts, and contribute to the formation of arterial plaques, areas of tissue degeneration, deposits of heavy metals, crystals of uric acid, altered sodium salts, and visceral fat that also retains various impurities. They are eliminated via lymphatic and blood circulation and through the liver and kidneys, intestines, stomach, oral cavity (appearing as the morning tongue coating), tonsils, sinuses, nasopharynx, skin, female reproductive and the bronchopulmonary systems.
The dense and viscous nature of these endogenous toxins contributes to sluggish function of the body's elimination pathways, allowing toxins to stagnate within tissues and making them more susceptible to invasion by fungi, viruses, and bacteria. These processes promote further tissue decomposition, the release of putrefactive toxins, disruption of the body's internal environment, and the development of inflammatory conditions.
Virtually every traditional natural healing system in the world is designed to facilitate the elimination of accumulated waste, remove stagnation, and clear both physical and subtle energetic blockages.
In Ayurveda, each dosha undergoes specific cleansing therapies. Panchakarma is, in essence, a comprehensive detoxification program, just as the yogic Shat Karmas and Kriyas are systems of purification. The ancient yogic sages understood the nature of impurities and developed methods to cleanse the body because they recognized these impurities as obstacles to higher states of health and consciousness. They perceived both the world and themselves from the perspective of a unified field of consciousness - very differently from today's predominantly materialistic medical paradigm.
About Triphala
The active compounds found in Triphala - polyphenols, tannins, and organic acids - help stimulate digestive enzyme secretion and activity. By enhancing digestion, they support the breakdown and processing of stagnant material within the digestive tract while also improving nutrient absorption.
In Ayurveda, Triphala is classified as both a Deepana (digestive fire enhancer) and an Ama Pachana remedy - literally, a "digester of toxins." It is traditionally believed to digest ama (toxic metabolic residue resulting from incomplete digestion) by strengthening agni (the digestive fire) and promoting natural elimination.
This action is attributed to its three constituent fruits:
Amalaki
Haritaki
Bibhitaki
According to Ayurveda, there are three primary forms of ama: Kapha Ama, Pitta Ama, and Vata Ama. We can explore these in greater detail during one of our upcoming sessions.