The search for the perfect cleanse is now officially over. For thousands of years, Ayurveda has held the key to internal deep cleaning with the herbal formula, Triphala. Triphala not only detoxifies the digestive tract but rejuvenates it as well. Amazing! This is something you take everyday to get clean and stay clean. Triphala is a unique, multi-purpose Ayurvedic herbal remedy that benefits digestion, immunity, daily elimination, and more! 

No matter how well you eat, and no matter how many supplements and vitamins you might take, if your digestive tract isn't clean enough to absorb nutrients, a lot of your nutrition is going down the tubes (actually, the plumbing!). Picture trying to dye a dirty t-shirt. If the space in the fabric is clogged with dirt, there is no way the dye will take.

Same thing applies to our intestinal tract. If the villi of the intestines - those small crevices where absorption actually takes place - are clogged with old toxins (ama in Ayurveda), then the pathways for nutrients are blocked. Triphala has a unique scraping action that removes all that blockage. It is not merely a bulk laxative for good bowel movements, although it performs that function extraordinarily well and can be used for chronic constipation with great efficacy.

Just for fun, try this: Look in the mirror and stick out your tongue. Is there a whitish or even yellowish coating on your tongue? If there is a coating, is it thin or thick? According to Ayurveda, the tongue coating reflects how much toxic material is clogging your intestines. The thicker the coat, the greater the blockage to optimal absorption. As you take Triphala regularly and follow a nutritional program appropriate for your constitution, you will notice the tongue coating getting thinner and cleaner. Some people try to scrape the coating off with a tongue scraper. It doesn't get rid of the coating. In the Ayurvedic tradition, tongue scrapers are used as part of the daily hygiene routine to remove bacteria from the mouth. In addition, tongue scraping serves to massage and awaken all the internal organs that have corresponding points on the surface of the tongue. So it is a good idea to scrape the tongue each day, but the internal cleansing is primarily achieved with Triphala.

Ayurveda teaches that there are many causes of the accumulation of ama (remember, old toxins in the GI tract). Among them are eating foods that are wrong for your constitution, eating too late in the evening, eating under stress, chemicals and pesticides in the environment and in food, and eating foods out of season. We can try very diligently to modify and improve our diet and our habits around eating, yet it is reassuring to know that by taking Triphala regularly we are constantly cleaning our digestive tract and our absorption pathways.

In addition, Triphala is an excellent rejuvenative for the intestines as well. Its name actually means "three fruits" and its three ingredients are the Ayurvedic fruits amalaki, bibhitaki, and haritaki. Amalaki is very high in Vitamin C, and the combination of these dried fruits is nourishing and tonifying to the intestinal wall. Whereas there is some legitimate concern that bulk laxatives and colonics are too depleting to the intestines, Triphala gently scrapes and cleanses while rejuvenating the organs at the same time.

There are several ways to take Triphala. It comes in powder or tablets and can be taken after every meal or just before bed, depending on your needs. Ayurveda teaches that every taste yields an action, and therefore it is important to taste the herbs. Even if you are taking tablets, chew them up a bit before swallowing them. Triphala contains 5 of the 6 Ayurvedic tastes - all except salty. Interestingly, Triphala tastes differently to everyone. To some it tastes bitter, to some sour, and to some pungent. It is common for people to taste whichever flavor they lack most in their diet.

Triphala is unique in its detoxifying and rejuvenating action on the digestive tract. It is truly one of the greatest gifts Ayurveda has to offer in this modern age of toxicity, on the planet and in our bodies. Internal cleansing is something that we should be doing on a daily basis, and Triphala makes it possible to do that with the confidence inspired by its use for thousands of years.