Buttermilk: A perfect drink for Summer

Buttermilk: A Perfect Drink for Summer 

Sultry summer is here! Everyone is looking for ways to stay cool and hydrated. A glass of homemade buttermilk can be your ideal go-to-drink, to hydrate, refuel and cool down the body naturally from the scorching heat of shining sun.

How do our bodies change over summer?

As the summer heat rises, the body tries to balance its temperature by facilitating sweat evaporation and bringing down heat generating functions like digestion. It results in dehydration and natural depletion in the ability of the body to digest food, which makes you feel tired, have reduced appetite, perspire more and crave lighter, more hydrating foods.

According to Ayurveda, the summer season is Greeshma Ritu, wherein the strong and powerful sun takes away all the cooling qualities of the earth, and in response, in human body there is gradual decrease in kapha and consequent increase in vata along with pitta. These changes impair the basic digestive ability and affect the absorption of nutrients from the food we eat and deplete the strength of the body.

How to cope with changes in summer?

Making changes to your lifestyle and diet at the start of summer, in order to cool and balance the naturally aggravated doshas can help you stay healthy during the season. Keeping yourself away from direct sunlight, exercising less, staying cool and hydrated with refreshing drinks and having easily digestible food to enhance the digestive fire are the essential things to do.

For quenching thirst or refreshment in summer, everyone long for soft drinks with ice cubes, iced tea, fruit cocktails etc. But these drinks that are ice cold and with alcohol and large amount of sugar and calories in it, can make the body work more to balance its temperature. Hence, it better to avoid such drinks in summer.

Buttermilk, a curd based drink is the perfect choice as a cool and refreshing drink in summer that can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike. It is naturally cooling, hydrates the body, helps to replenish the electrolyte loss and aids in enhancing the diminished digestion.

Buttermilk

Buttermilk has been widely used since centuries as a daily drink for its nutritional and health benefits. It is known to be a good source of calcium, potassium, phosphorous, riboflavin and vitamin B12. Moreover, it is a natural probiotic with friendly bacteria which facilitates proper digestion and absorption process, maintains proper metabolism and therefore effectively cures digestive disorders.

Ayurvedic Buttermilk 

In Ayurveda, Buttermilk is called Takra.

It is said that “He who uses takra daily does not suffer from diseases, and diseases cured by takra do not recur; just as amrita (divine nectar) is for the gods, takra is to humans.”

Takra is astringent and sweet in taste along with little sourness. It is tridosha samaka; pacifies Vata and Kapha dosha and does not vitiate pitta dosha due to its sweet post digestive effect.

 Takra has a unique role in treating conditions associated with the imbalance of Agni. It is easy to digest, promotes digestion, clarifies the channels of circulation and effective in treating digestive problems and diseases associated with digestion like diarrhea, hemorrhoids, ascites, irritable bowel syndrome etc.

Benefits of Butter milk as a summer drink

Reduces body heat: As it is naturally cooling and alleviates pitta, it helps to cool down the body temperature.

Hydrates the body : As it is light and easy to digest, treats dehydration effectively.

Moreover, it replenishes the body for its lost electrolytes.

Aids in digestion: Due to its appetizer (agni deepaka) and carminative (vata anulomaka) properties it helps in digestion and metabolism, and probiotics of buttermilk helps to replenish the intestinal flora and makes the gut healthy.  

Boosts Immunity: Probiotic property and the nutrients in buttermilk strengthen the immunity and protect against common cold and infections.

Detoxifies the body: Daily intake of buttermilk helps to remove toxins or intermediate metabolites (ama) from the body due to its srotosodhaka and agni deepaka property.

Ideal drink for diabetic patients: Low glycemic index and tridosha samana property makes it ideal for people with diabetes.

Relieves Constipation: Hydrating, easily digestible, vata anulomana and agni deepaka properties makes it effective in relieving constipation which is common in summer.

Treats hot flushes in pre and post-menopausal women: Hot flushes can become worse in summer and buttermilk helps to cool the body.

Method of Preparation

Buttermilk is prepared by continuous churning of curd in water. Different methods of preparation have been explained in Ayurveda. The kind of curd, amount of water and the quantity of butter alter the properties of the buttermilk. Most widely used method is by churning curd and water in the ratio of 1:4.

Ingredients

·       Fresh natural curd (not too sour) – 1 part

·       Water – 4 parts (room temperature)

·       Roasted Cumin Powder – 1/4 teaspoon

·       Rock Salt: As per taste

·       Fresh and finely chopped - Coriander / Mint leaves

Method

1.     Blend the curd and water in a blender until the fatty froth rises to the top. Remove the fatty froth.

2.     Add rock salt, cumin powder and ginger juice and mix well.

3.     Garnish with coriander leaves or mint leaves

‘Spices add on the digestive property of buttermilk.’

Buttermilk for different constitutions

Vata Prakriti    : Sour buttermilk mixed with rock salt and ginger powder

Pitta Prakriti    : Sweet Buttermilk mixed with sugar or rock candy

Kapha prakrti  : Sweet Buttermilk with black pepper, long pepper and dry ginger

When to take buttermilk.

• At the end of meals especially lunch. It ensures proper digestion of the meal and helps to curb the desire for more food and keep the system feel light and prevent gut issues.

• A glass of buttermilk after returning home on a hot summer day can refresh the body and soul. 

• As a mid-day drink, it can refuel and refresh the body.

Key Points.

• Always better to prepare fresh buttermilk at home rather than getting conventional buttermilk from stores

• Fresh curd should be used to prepare buttermilk (between 1 – 3 days)

• It is better not to use ice cold curd to prepare buttermilk

• Use less sour curd to prepare buttermilk in summer

• People with high blood pressure, should be cautious about the salt added.

Dr Aneesia Satheesan
BAMS, MD(Ay), MSc
Ayurveda Doctor

BAMS, University of Health Sciences Kerala

MD Dravyagunavijnan (Ayurvedic Pharmacology and Materia Medica)

MSc, Drug Discovery & Development, UCL London