What is Gara Visha in Ayurveda? Causes, Reasons, More

  • Do you eat healthy food, still you are feeble and frequently fall ill?
  • Were you diagnosed with food poisoning inspite of avoiding outside or contaminated food?
  • Does your appetite or thirst increase and decrease for no specific reason? Why does seasonal change affect your skin or metabolism adversely? 

Well, these questions do bother most of us but are left unanswered because the answers are within us and the way we treat our bodies. Do you know that poison also forms through the wrong combination of even healthy foods? 

Wondering How?

Chat on The Mat With Dr Usha Vaishnava About Gara Visha

Let’s know about it in detail with Dr. Usha Vaishnava, a renowned ayurvedic physician, and alumni of Gurukul Kangri (Kanpur University). Dr. Usha, an expert in Ayurveda and Herbal Medicine has been associated with reputed Ayurvedic centers and institutions as chief consultant, lecturer, and teacher trainer in yoga and Ayurveda.


hmy: What is Gara Visha?

Dr. Usha: Gara Visha is the wrong composition of food, they create poisoning in the body but if taken individually they can be poisonous or non-poisonous also.

hmy: What causes Gara Visha?

Dr. Usha: The wrong food combinations or taking food against our body type/prakriti or eating food at incorrect times

hmy: What are the symptoms of Gara Visha?

Dr. Usha: Following symptoms can occur due to Gara Visha:

  • Heaviness in the body,
  • Lack of energy,
  • Swelling in the body,
  • Indigestion,
  • Coating on the tongue,
  • Improper digestion & evacuation,
  • Bloating, gas,
  • Tuberculosis,
  • Fever,  etc.

hmy: Are Gara and Dushi visha connected?

Dr. Usha: Gara Visha are the poisons caused by two different types of food articles when taken together that react as poison while

Dushi Visha are the poisons that vitiate dhatus. Usually, they are inactive due to digestion & remain in the body for years but under unfavorable conditions with respect to: 

  • Desha (Habitat),
  • Kala (Time),
  • Ahara (Diet),
  • Nidra (Sleep)

They come out & show their effect on the body but are not fatal.

hmy:  What is the ideal combination of different types of food to keep Gara Visha at bay?

Dr. Usha: Actually as per Ayurveda, the food combinations differ for different body types. In general, eating food according to our body type, eating at proper hours & adopting a good lifestyle will prevent the formation of gara visha.

hmy: What precautions should we take during changing seasons to avoid Gara Visha?

Dr. Usha: During changing seasons chances of get sick are the most, so fasting, taking light food, drinking around 2 liters of water & doing panchkarma, or mild detox according to our body type can help. That’s why we have the autumn & spring Navaratri concept in our culture.

hmy: Does imbalanced prakriti stimulate Gara Visha?

Dr. Usha: Yes, it does cause. Whenever our prakriti is not in balance it means we are more prone to get sick, it can be physical, mental or emotional or of any other kind.

hmy: Do quick meals stimulate Gara Visha?

Dr. Usha: Yes, actually in Ayurveda what to eat is important but how to eat is equally important. If you do not chew food properly & not take the proper gap between 2 meals then the digestion will not be proper & automatically the half-digested food will cause toxic accumulation in body which can cause gara visha.

hmy: What natural herbs help in providing immunity and healing the effects of Gara Visha?

Dr. Usha: The different body types of people can have different herbs. But some common herbs for different body types are as follows:

  • Vata body type can take ashwgandha, triphala
  • Pitta body type can take avipatikar churana, chirayata, kutaki, mulethi
  • Kapha body type can take guduchi, mulethi, tulsi, vasa

Note – Most of the time, it is decided according to a person’s Prakriti