GHEE – Intelligence, Memory and Digestion
Ayurvedic health science has respected Ghee for its
digestive qualities and mind nurturing (anti-dementia)
energies. In ancient Ayurveda, Ghee is accepted as
having a special power for intelligence and memory.
Ghee is the supreme fat being agreeable with body tissue and the source of butyric acid.
Ghee does not tax the liver like other oils aiding digestion and is converted to energy
easily. Ghee decreases cholesterol by increasing the percentage of cholesterol in bile and
the amount of bile simultaneously.
Both cow’s milk and its ghee are viewed as “best among wholesome articles” by Charaka
(Ch. Su 27/9). The answer lies in the fact that its composition of ghee is very similar to
that of ojas, the body’s life force, which is the underlying basis of immunity.
Ghee’s sweet nature is responsible for it increasing all body tissues, ojas, semen, breast
milk, promoting strength, normalising the blood and lymph, as well as being beneficial
for the eyes, hair and skin. The sweet taste also produces satisfaction and contentment
in both body and mind. Ensuring a feeling of satisfaction after completion of a meal.
Charaka’s first rule for eating is that food should be warm. His second guiding principle
is that food must be unctuous (or oily) so that it is not only delicious but also provokes
agni, getting digested quickly, and also helping the downward movement of Vata
dosha. Such unctuous foods also benefit sense faculties, promoting strength and
brightening the complexion (Ch Vi 1/25). It also makes the skin soft and the voice
melodious. In contrast to ghee, foods such as rice, vegetables and pulses are not at all
oily and only considered to nourish the body and mind in combination with
ghee. Without ghee pulses are likely to cause flatulence and aggravate Vata dosha.
Ayurvedic wisdom is unequivocal that cow ghee is an important part of a healthy diet.
With the body and mind being made of food, a daily dose of ghee confers many benefits
in regards to nourishment, promoting sattva (calm and peaceful mind), digestion,
assimilation and elimination.
QUALITIES OF GHEE – Adult usage of up to 50 grams per Day.
1. Ghee has a high smoke point (250°C / 480°F) You can cook and fry with ghee and it
will not break down into free radicals like many other oils. You have to be a fairly awful
chef to scorch ghee and bring it to the point of smoking.
2. Pure Ghee has a sweet flavor and does not spoil easily. Ghee does not need
refrigeration.
3. Dairy allergy free.
Even though Ghee is made from butter, the milk solids and
impurities have been removed so most people who are lactose or casein intolerant have
no issue with ghee. A buttery sweet flavor is maintained without the allergies.
4. Ghee is rich in oil soluble vitamins, A D, K2 and E. Vitamin A and D content is higher
than vegetable fats.
5. Ghee is rich in CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid) – an antioxidant with anti-cancer
properties according to nutritionists.
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6. Ghee is rich in medium chain fatty acids, Which are absorbed directly to the liver
(like carbs) and burnt as energy. Athletes can use ghee as a consistent energy source.
Professor Manfred Junius, an accomplished Ayurvedic alchemist would lecture that ghee
is the only oil that is a digestive aid and is not taxing to the liver. Actually he stated that
ghee bypasses the liver by a special ‘prabhava’ (unexplainable power).
7. Weight Loss
The energy from these medium chain fatty acids can be used to burn
other fats in the system and reduce weight.
8. Healthy Digestive Tract
Research shows that people with unhealthy digestive tracts do
not produce butyric acid. Ghee (unlike other oils) is rich in butyric acid (3-4%), a short
chain fatty acid. Beneficial intestinal bacteria also convert fiber into butyric acid and then use
that for energy and intestinal wall support.
9. Healthy Immune System
Research shows that adequate production of butyric acid
supports the production of killer T cells in the gut, and thus strong immunity.
10. Anti-Inflammatory and therefore a preventative of cancer that is due to
underlying chronic inflammation. Researchers are using oral butyrate supplements
and butyrate enemas to treat inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn’s and
ulcerative colitis. Ayurveda uses enemas with added ghee to decrease inflammation.
11. Ghee stimulates the secretion of gastric acid, thus aiding in the digestive
process. Also ghee increases the digestion of fat by increasing bile production. Ghee
pacifies vata with softness and pitta with sweetness and in small amounts aids digestion
in kapha. Also Ghee is taken with pippali, ginger and asafetida to further improve
digestion.
12. Toxic chemicals are stored in fat. Ghee can be used to replace and dislodge those
stagnant fats. Thus ghee is part of cleansing therapy in Ayurveda. Ghee causes secretions
and liquefaction in the dhatus-bodily tissues that dissolve wastes allowing the functional
intelligences of the body-doshas to carry away toxins-ama. The soothing energetics of
ghee are accepted to be able counteract use of alcohol and drying intoxicates.
13. Positive Food
Within Ayurveda, ghee is considered one of the most sattvic foods
which unexplainably (prabhava) promotes expansion of consciousness. After all ghee is
refined mothers love in essence and burns a golden clear flame in a ghee lamp. Burning
of a ghee lamp eliminates the viruses and bacteria in the house. It may be noted that no
Vedic rite or ceremony may be performed without ghee, thus marriages, births and
deaths as well as sacrifices to the Lord of the universe can only be complete with the
inclusion of ghee. God himself Sri Krishna is known as Makhana Chora or butter thief
thus ghee and butter are a supreme substance of Vedic (knowledge) civilization.
14. Ghee brings out flavor.
Many of the medicinal properties of herbs and spices can
be absorbed, potentialised and transported to targeted areas of the body with
ghee.
Herbs in ghee (grhitam) are considered the most profound medicine in Ayurveda.
Herbs in Ghee cross the blood brain barrier.
15. Some poorly informed individuals believe Ghee is unhealthy because it is
saturated, but recent sobering research has found no evidence that saturated fat
found in meat, butter and cheese is associated with a greater risk of heart disease.
‘Cambridge and Harvard universities analysed data from 72 studies with 600,000
participants and found no association between saturated fat consumption and heart
attacks’.
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16. Ghee is the Controller of Metabolism, Inflammation and Stress being 3-4%
Butyric Acid: Dr. Jianping Ye's group recently published a paper showing that the
harmful metabolic effects of a high-fat diet (lard and soybean oil) on mice can be
prevented, and even reversed, using a short-chain saturated fatty acid called butyric
acid. The butyrate-fed mice remained lean and avoided metabolic problems. Butyrate
increased their energy expenditure by increasing body heat production and modestly
increasing physical activity. It also massively increased cellular metabolism. Butyrate
lowered their blood cholesterol by approximately 25 percent, and their triglycerides by
nearly 50 percent. It lowered their fasting insulin by nearly 50 percent, and increased
their insulin sensitivity by nearly 300 percent*.
The investigators concluded:
Butyrate and its derivatives may have potential application in the prevention and
treatment of metabolic syndrome in humans.
Butyrate Suppresses Inflammation in the Gut and Other Tissues
In most animals, the highest concentration of butyrate is found in the gut. That's because
it's produced by intestinal bacteria from carbohydrate that the host cannot digest such
as cellulose and pectin (insoluble dietary fiber). The lining of the large intestine
consumes butyrate as its primary source of energy. Butyrate feeds the bowel, and has a
potent anti-inflammatory effect and therefore prevents the many diseases, which are
due to chronic inflammation.
Butyrate supplements and butyrate enemas are used to treat inflammatory bowel
diseases such as Crohn's and ulcerative colitis. Some investigators are also suggesting
that inflammatory bowel disorders may be caused or exacerbated by a deficiency of
butyrate.
Butyrate, and other short-chain fatty acids, have a remarkable effect on intestinal
permeability. In tissue culture and live rats, short-chain fatty acids cause a large and
rapid increase in intestinal integrity of the mucous membranes. Butyrate, or dietary
fiber, prevents the loss of intestinal permeability in rat models of ulcerative colitis. This
shows that short-chain fatty acids, including butyrate, play an important role in the
maintenance of gut barrier integrity. Impaired gut barrier integrity (leaky gut) is
associated with many diseases, including fatty liver, heart failure and autoimmune
diseases. The integrity of the gut mucosa plays a major part in jatharagni (digestionmetabolism) and the production and absorption of Ama (undigested material) Ama
which permeates these damaged mucosa barriers is the underlying cause of most
pathologies according to Ayurvedic understanding. In other words impaired gut barrier
not only hampers jatharagni but also produces Ama.
Butyric from Butter The name of butyric acid comes from the Latin word for butter,
butyrum (or buturum), the substance in which butyric acid was first found.
Butyric acids have been found to;
• Help digestion, maintain the integrity of the gastrointestinal mucosa
• Block the growth of bad bacteria in the gut and interfere with highly toxic bacteria
• Help the growth of beneficial bacteria like Bifidobacterium
• Helps loose bowel function and regulates abnormal bowel movements
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• Helps adjust water and electrolyte concentration in the intestinal tract
• Lowers inflammation in the intestinal tract
• Helps adjust water and electrolyte concentration in the intestinal tract
• Increases insulin sensitivity
• Increases energy production and efficiency of energy utilization
• Supports healthy levels of both good and bad cholesterol
• Reduction in fatty tissue
• Reduction in hunger levels
• Boosts killer T cell activity
• Increases thermogenesis in the body
The Medha Connection – Fat and Intelligence Inseparability
In Ayurveda medha dhatu refers to fat tissue one of seven tissues of the body. Medha
also refers to finer facilties, intelligence. Ghee is said to feed medha, intelligence. Ancient
classics eulogise ghee for its memory enhancing and brain feeding qualities. Thus fat is
understood as the underlying source of nutrition for the intelligence.
Dementia is growing at such a rate that Dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, was
the second leading cause of death in Australian women in 2012, according to figures
released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics today. Dementia remained the third
leading cause of death among all Australians, behind heart disease and Cerebrovascular
diseases, according to the report. More than 332,000 people have dementia in Australia.
A coincidence? In the 1950’s Butter factories close and margarine and hydrogenated oils
become the household oil, as the decades roll by dementia becomes a pandemic.
Many Uses of Ghee Body Massage-Abhyanga. Apply ghee all over the body, rubbing
into head, chest, limbs, joints and orifices. This will bypass the digestive system and
allow the qualities of Ghee to penetrate directly into the deeper tissues. It is said that
60% of what is placed on the skin is absorbed into the body. We literally “eat” what we
put on our skin. Western science has discovered that massaging the skin creates
endorphins, which enhance the body’s immune system. Peptides are thought to be the
vehicle that the mind and body use to communicate with each other, a literal chemistry
of emotion. According to the Charak Samhita, regular Abhyanga slows the aging process.
Ghee is used in purification where a small amount is taken first thing in the morning
in hot water to oleate the internal organs and “dissolve” the ama or toxic wastes in the
tissues, allowing them to be carried to the digestive tract for elimination.
For soothing the nerves at bedtime two spoonfuls of Ghee in warm (non-homogenized)
milk and lubricates the intestines to facilitate a morning bowel movement.
Ghee is excellent for cooking and sautéing or stir-frying.
Ghee is excellent for a gargle-gandush, to improve the health of the teeth and gums.
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Ghee can be used as a bath oil. Take two tablespoons of Ghee and mix with several
drops of an essential oil of your choice.
Ghee is excellent for scrapes and both chemical and heat or fire burns. Ghee can be
used in the eyes for tiredness or fatigue.
Ghee is an exquisite facial moisturizer.
In India it is said that if a few drops of ghee are placed in the nostrils then nosebleed
can be checked. If this is done twice in a day, then headache can be relieved.
Why is DHARMA GHEE called Certified Pure Ghee
Dharma Ghee is regularly tested for integrity to be the required 100% pure cow’s ghee.
In Australia, India and the USA unscrupulous operators are using different oils that are
hydrogenated, coloured and flavoured that mimic ghee. Basically palm oil or other oils
are processed via a margarine process. These so called ghee products do not give the
same benefits as pure cow’s ghee but rather are quite damaging due to high transfats TF.
Times of India Health Me Up | Apr 13, 2013, 12.00AM IST
‘Are all kinds of ghee unhealthy? What's the difference between pure ghee and
vegetable ghee’?
Ms Pallavi Srivastava, Nutritionist at Evolve Medspa explains the difference in the types of
ghee. She breaks down the barriers around pure ghee and says "Cow's ghee is full of
nutritive qualities. Pure ghee contains only those fatty acids or saturated fats that are
primarily (89%) short chain fatty acids. It is the longer chain fatty acids that are
associated with blood clotting and thrombosis."
She goes on to explain how pure ghee is healthier than vegetable ghee, "Short chains are
not only easier to digest, but help hormone production and strengthen cell membranes.
Ghee's short chain fatty acids are also metabolized very readily by the body. Lab studies
have shown pure ghee to reduce cholesterol both in the serum and intestine. This is done by
increasing the secretion of biliary lipids."
So what about vegetable ghee? Is vegetable ghee healthy?
Pallavi says, "Indian restaurants and some households may use partially hydrogenated
vegetable oil (also known as vanaspati or Dalda or 'vegetable ghee') in place of ghee
because of its lower cost. The purity of ghee is uncertain. This vegetable ghee may contain
trans fat. Trans fats are said to cause serious health conditions.
In fact, since vegetable ghee is so high in trans fats, it is considered extremely harmful for
people, especially those who live sedentary lifestyles.
"When comparing Ghee and Butter, the former has 25% more medium- and short-chained
fats than butter, and it is better as the chances of them causing cardiovascular diseases are
nil."
Pure Ghee is clarified butter whereas Vegetable Ghee is used in restaurants . This ghee is
cheaper but has high amount of trans-fats. Pure cow Ghee on the other hand does not
contain oxidized cholesterol or transfatty acids and tastes great too."
"Ghee does have multiple benefits, but the catch is to consume it in moderation. Preferably
one teaspoon of melted ghee, twice a day will do the job.
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Read the full article on Personal Health, Diet & Fitness stories on www.healthmeup.com
Sad Story Of Trans Fats And Vegetable Ghee by Dr Charania
Trans Fats (TFs) are risk to human health:
Shortenings used in cooking and Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (PHVO), also called
Vegetable Ghee (VG) in many countries, is a major source of Trans Fats (TFs). In this
writing, we will use TFs or VG for all PHVO. The TFs are recognized as a source of risk to
human health for over four decades. They clog arteries in body, cause heart attack, stroke,
gangrene etc. It is also shown related to diabetes type 2 and cancer by some. The evidence
is lately stronger from scientific trials. TF causes increase of LDL or bad cholesterol and
help building the plaque in arterial wall.
FDA becomes activated:
It seems that Food And Drug Administration (FDA) is now taking definitive action of
banning them. FDA started in 2003 by mandating that TFs must be listed on the food label.
This action alone reduced the intake of TFs in Americans to about one gram a day in 2012,
down from 4.6 grams in 2006, because the food companies got the message of FDA
thinking and scientific results. They started reducing the TFs content in their products. For
example many cookies that contained a lot of TFs have reduced their TFs content and Oreo
has announced to eliminate TFs completely.
At the end of 2013 FDA proposed to remove TFs from their GRAS (Generally Recognized As
Safe) category list that is maintained and amended from 1958. Once removed, it will turn
into a policy and hence FDA destines to ban TFs from food. Food companies will then need
to prove that TFs are safe to eat, which is almost impossible because the scientific
literature overwhelmingly points to the contrary. So much so that The Institute of Medicine
now says that there is no safe level for consumption of artificial TFs. The World Health
Organization (WHO) and American Heart Association (AHA) are both not in favor of
consumption of TFs although they recommended in the past that TFs should make less
than 1 per cent of energy intake. This amounts to 2.2 grams for someone consuming 2,000
calories a day and with the amount of naturally occurring TFs we eat daily, industrially
manufactured TFs like VG or shortenings have no place left.
Benefits of TFs elimination:
FDA’s commissioner Dr. Hamburg says that elimination of TFs from food could
prevent 20,000 heart attacks and 7,000 deaths from heart disease every year. Many
strokes, gangrene and their complications may add to save many more fatalities and
morbidities. Should every country interested in the health of their citizen also follow the
suit? Definitely, yes. Will they? Unfortunately, probably not. Here is the story:
Let us look at types of fats that we eat in our food:
1. Saturated Fat (SF): These were considered to be bad. However, the views are changing
recently. SF from ruminant animals seem to contain useful Omega Fatty Acids and are not
as bad as they were thought in causing Cardio Vascular Diseases (CVD).
2. Unsaturated Fat (UF): These consist of:
• Monounsaturated fat (MUFA)
• Polyunsaturated fat (PUFA)
• Trans fat (TFs)
• Omega Fatty Acids (OFA):
• Omega 3
• Omega 6
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•
Omega 9
MUFA is considered best fat, next best is PUFA. OFAs are also essential fatty acids,
particularly Omega 3. SF and TFs are generally considered the worst. However, some early
evidence is emerging that some animal and vegetable SFs may be good for body.
Trans Fats (TFs):
TFs are now considered to be the worst because they increase bad cholesterol and
promotes plaques formation and blockages in the arterial tree in body. This is most
worrying in the coronary or heart arteries, because it results in heart attack, which has
become number 1 cause of death in the US. Aside from that the blockage elsewhere may
result in stroke or gangrene and other complications.
Few Trans Fats (TFs) exist naturally; we produce most of them by Partial Hydrogenation
of Vegetable Oils (PHVOs). Such PHVOs are cheaper, remains solid at room temperature
and does not require refrigeration, does not rancid quickly and hence prolonging the shelf
life of food and gives a particular taste and texture to the food items. Most cooks like such
properties. Hence TFs are used for many decades as shortening in food.
Not all saturated fats and TFs are bad. Natural forms in the milk and meat of ruminant
animals, such as cattle, goats and sheep, may even improve health, according to a 2012
study by researchers at the University of Alberta’s metabolic and cardiovascular diseases
laboratory. More and more nutritionists seem to support eating animal fat (butter and
ghee) and coconut oil, both of which contain saturated fats. SF from coconut is now
claimed to be useful to prevent Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s through its medium chain
triglycerides and ketones supply for brain energy consumption in place of glucose. Many
studies are being done.
Story of margarine:
Margarine was invented to take place of butter by French scientist Mège-Mouriès in 1870s
and won a prize for that from Napoleon. His invention involved mixing processed beef
tallow with skimmed milk. It was not easily accepted because of its pearly white color and
texture. After improvements in consistency and coloring it yellow to replace butter by
Unilever, many European countries started using it for shortening. In the next phase it was
made from vegetable oil, like cottonseed and others. This was first generation of “solid oil
at room temperature”. This is commonly known in British India and its Commonwealth
as Ghee, most popular being Dalda of Lever Bros.
In the USA, Procter & Gamble researchers found a way of easier and fuller extraction the
oil, refining it and partially hydrogenating it from cottonseeds in 1911. This shortening
product was solid instead of liquid oil at room temperature and will not go bad for many
months. They marketed the product as Crisco and Jif.
Soybeans and Rapeseeds (now commonly known as Canola oil) were the next crops to be
used for oil extraction and turned into solid by the partial hydrogenation process.
In olden days people liked Butter and Ghee (animal products made from butter by boiling),
as pure products from dairy. However, early in 1900s vegetable oil started becoming easily
available because of successful crops of oily seeds like, cottonseeds, peanuts, canola, palm,
sunflower etc. The use of such oil instead of animal fat started becoming more prevalent
since then because of its easier availability. Poor people started using it due to its lower
cost. It also became known in studies that vegetable oils are good because they contains
very little Saturated fats, which was considered to be a cause of coronary artery diseases.
Psychological and social issues promoting Ghee and hurting health:
Socially the use of oil was considered to be “cheapish” and inferior to use of butter and
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ghee particularly in developing country like India in early 1900s. Unilever experimented to
see how oil could be made to look like ghee to satisfy such public sentiments. One successful
and cheaper way of turning liquid oil into solid Ghee at room temperature was by passing
hydrogen through the oil as mentioned above. That process will solidify the oil at room
temperatures. Lever Brothers in UK and Procter and Gamble in USA were the pioneers of
this in early 1900s. In Indian subcontinent with a large population and where the
perception has a large place in social life, this product, called Vegetable or Vanaspati or
Banaspati Ghee caught on very quickly and used in large quantities, which is continuing to
date. Similar product became popular in Europe and the US for usage as shortening. Ghee
was brought into use for shortening in place of lard.
The bad cholesterol TFs supplies and the gunk that it deposits in all the arteries in the body
were reported since 1970s. These resulted in heart attacks, strokes and gangrenes.
General Ziaul Haq of Pakistan:
This reminds me of General Ziaul Haq of Pakistan. In mid 1970s said (paraphrased by me),
“We must be foolish to spend money to turn vegetable oil into Ghee and at the same time
increase its harmfulness (by increasing its TFs content) and suffer from heart attacks”.
Despite this known to the government not much happened because Pakistani citizens were
already feeling negative about governmental intervention in businesses and industry and
the reason for such apathy was the Nationalization of many businesses and industries by
immediately preceding Bhutto regime in early 1970s and one of them was of Banaspati
Ghee industry. In India, where this product is more in use because of almost ten fold
population, there does not seem to be as much awareness as of yet. Here is a recent article,
from many others, published in India “Reformulating partially hydrogenated vegetable oils
to maximize health gains in India: is it feasible and will it meet consumer demand?”
Reading this and other similar articles, it seems there is very little awareness about the
risks associated with Vanaspati Ghee and it may take several decades before TFs will be
banned from food in India.
In fact I wonder how FDA could have accepted something like TFs as part of GRAS until
after year 2000, when it was known to be harmful through many studies in medical
literature since 1970s. Even a layperson like General Ziaul Haq could understand that in
mid 1970s. This is perhaps an example of the lobbying power of the food industries, which
needs to be curtailed in the interest of public health all over the world. WHO needs to take
a lead in such an obvious initiative.
I hope now that authorities in Indo Pakistan subcontinent also takes cue from this FDA
decision and ban all Trans fats from the food items in those countries to improve on the
heart and arterial health of people.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=We0gIi748Sc shows the margination of palm oil
into ghee.
And finally the greatest atheist of India Carvaka Muni has said,
‘Beg, borrow or steal, just bring ghee, because with ghee you will enjoy life’.
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That of course refers to authenic natural cow’s ghee!
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