John Douillard's LifeSpa | Ayurveda + Natural Health
Ancient Wisdom meets Modern ScienceAyurveda + Natural Health News
Could your mood, memory, + psychology be affected by lymph? In the early 1900s, a prominent psychiatrist named Dr. Henry Cotton ran the world’s most prestigious mental institution based on the premise that depression and insanity were linked to a deep underlying infection of some kind.1 Dr. Cotton was famous for pulling infected teeth out of
Listen Your Way to a Healthy Brain In a study published by the Journal of American Medicine (JAMA), researchers studied nearly 2,000 seniors in an attempt to link age-related hearing loss to cognitive decline.1 Until now, there was no known link between hearing and cognitive function. After following these seniors for 11 years, the folks with hearing loss had accelerated brain atrophy and a 24% decrease
There is a stark contrast between how little attention is given to lymph in the West and how highly it is revered in Ayurveda. The lymphatic system is considered one of the seven body tissues in Ayurveda, the first to become compromised under stress. The Sanskrit for lymph is rasa, which is also the word
Ayurvedic Anatomy of Psychology According to Ayurveda, we feel emotional impressions in the emotional heart. This is called sadaka pitta—the aspect of pitta that feels everything. These impressions are then transported to the brain through the carrying channels of prana vata—the emotional aspect of vata. Emotional impressions felt by sadaka pitta are carried and written
Ayurvedic medicine is rich in time-tested wisdom, backed by good science, which we would now call life hacks. Some of these ancient health-promoting strategies are on the top of my list to helps us live longer, healthier, and happier during our stay here on earth. Here are my top ten! Dr. John’s Top 10 Ayurvedic
Ever experienced a migraine? It can be a debilitating experience, and, frustratingly, sometimes its onset a total mystery. I have investigated the Western science and the Ayurvedic perspective to get some insight into this painful phenomena. Migraines are pressure headaches, much different than tension headaches. They come as a result of vasodilation of cerebral arteries,
A good night’s sleep is one of our circadian rights. Unfortunately, for many reasons, sound sleep on a regular basis is easier said than done, at least for ~30% of Americans. Science links poor sleep to a host of health concerns, such as weight gain and cardiovascular health. But impact on brain, mood, and cognitive
Nasya is considered one of the five most powerful therapies in Ayurveda. What is nasya? The nasal inhalation of herbalized oils into the sinuses, which has many benefits. In my opinion, the most unique benefit is supporting cleansing of lymphatic vessels in the brain called the sagittal sinus or tarpaka kapha. The saggital sinus is
Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) + Brain Lymphatics (Glymphatics) The brain and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) are crucial to our health and happiness. Read on to learn more about how they work and how to keep them healthy. Did you know that your brain has its own lymphatic system (called glymphatics) and that there are easy ways to
How often do you resist the impulse to pass gas, burp, yawn, or sleep? Or suppress the desire to pee, poo, or shed a tear? Habitually and often unconsciously, we commonly find ourselves suppressing natural urges such as these, thinking nothing of it. According to Vāgbhata (one of the most influential classical writers of Ayurveda),
The seventh sense, as proposed by Jonathan Kipnis, a professor of neuroscience at the University of Virginia, may be our most important sense—as it may be the one keeping us alive! (1) We all know about the five senses, taste, touch, smell, hearing, and sight. The sixth sense is said to govern movement, position in
