Elemental design: Vata, Pitta, Kapha explained

Dr. Shivani Gupta comes from a family of people with diabetes, generation by generation, where she's seen the after-effects of suffering with chronic metabolic disease.

Her new book, The Inflammation Code (launching, distills 20 years of studying Ayurveda into simple pillars you can apply to prevent the level of inflammation and disease we see today. When people tell her, "I have brain fog, I'm tired, my sleep is off, my digestion's off, I have stubborn weight gain…I guess this is just aging," her reply is, "No, it's not aging, it's inflammaging."

We had a really excellent, in-depth conversation that covered a lot of ground, from black pepper and the blood-brain-barrier to our detox experiences in India. I hope you enjoy the podcast!

In this podcast, Dr. Gupta and I discuss:

• Her study of Ayurveda, a 5,000-year-old system from India that taught us the circadian clock, modern science discovered what Ayurveda taught 5,000 years ago about living in rhythm with nature

• The three doshas or constitutions of Vata (air/ether), Pitta (fire/water), and Kapha (earth/water)—understanding your constitution helps customize your self-care practices and diet

• The circadian clock in Ayurveda teaches that 10:00 to 2:00 PM is Pitta (fire) time, when you're most focused and energetic, and meant to eat your biggest meal

• 10:00 PM to 2:00 AM is the most important time to be asleep, when Pitta fire cleans and clears inflammation, the lymphatic system, and the glymphatic system (lymphatic system of the brain)

• Vata people are always in motion and prefer jobs where they don't sit still—they're endurance athletes who can run through the day on coffee, green juice, and crackers (but their homework is three square meals)

• Pitta people are fiery, passionate leaders who tend to crave hot, oily, spicy fried food…but that's the one thing they shouldn't eat because their digestive fire is already like a bonfire!

• Kapha people are sturdy, strong, and very grounded, but can struggle with sluggish metabolism, low mood or depression, getting stuck, or not wanting to create change

• Black pepper increases curcumin absorption by 2,000%—scientists at MD Anderson Cancer Center discovered this, which is why traditional Indian cooking always uses turmeric with black pepper

• What it feels like to experience a Panchakarma detox in India: "massage that feels like abuse" with paper thongs—Dr. Gupta says, "I can't believe you're allowed to do this to me and I'm paying for it" (both she and I had this experience!)

• Mental inflammation is the stress we create when forcing ourselves to be healthy; if you force workouts, force protein, force intermittent fasting, the stress alone causes the inflammation you're trying to prevent