Dairy · Classically cited

Cream

Santanika·सन्तानिका

Also called: malai, sahne, heavy cream, fresh cream

Rich, sweet and cooling — deeply nourishing and grounding for Vata, soothing for Pitta.

How Cream affects your doshas

In Ayurveda a food's effect depends on your constitution. This is the lens the app uses to suggest what to favour and ease off.

Effect of Cream on each dosha
DoshaSuitabilityNotes
Vata Balancing Calms Vata — favour it when Vata runs high.
Pitta Balancing Calms Pitta — favour it when Pitta runs high.
Kapha Use sparingly Can raise Kapha — go easy when Kapha runs high.

Taste: Sweet  ·  Potency: Cooling (śīta)  ·  Post-digestive: Sweet  ·  Qualities: Heavy, Oily

When to go easy

Very heavy and oily, so it strongly adds to Kapha.

Traditionally balanced with

Classical pairings that make Cream easier to digest or more balancing for the doshas.

In the classical texts

Cream is attested in the Charaka Saṃhitā (Sutrasthana 27) — Unsweetened dairy cream / milk-skin (Santanika); whipped/sweetened cream modelled separately..

Classically cited. Directly attested in the classical Ayurvedic corpus.

More dairy