you believe what you want to believe. For me, no.

I do 'listen to my body' when it is craving for something, and try to satisfy it. This could be 'eat sour fruit', meaning I'm lacking vitamins. It seems to work for me. Other days it could be eat carbs (low energy) or meat (low antibodies or vitamin B12).

I certainly would not dismiss Ayurveda just the Dosha 'tests.' Out of curiosity I did three online tests - one came back I'm Pitta, another Vatha and a third mainly Pitta partly Vatha! Anyway it suggests I am generally eating unsuitable foods for my type!

I'd agree with Lapis that a 'little of what you fancy does you good' (within reason as long as it does not become an addiction.)

If you are dehydrated you become thirsty, anaemic you might crave liver, or low on Vitamin C munch your way through a whole fruit bowl!

I am not saying that, Winton.

I am saying that I feel that if I have a craving for something, it is usually sated by eating the appropriate food, just as thirst tells us we are dehydrated. Often, I crave for sour fruit, like oranges, which suggests to me I am lacking in vit C. After having had an orange, or something similar, I feel better again.

And I'm sure we have all suffered from low blood sugar at some time, which shows itself quite obviously.

Honing this feeling provides us with the clues as to what our bodies might need.

Sorry Lapis for any misunderstanding, but I thought I was totally agreeing with you! Just that we should listen to our body and satisfy its culinary requests!

I'm not a big fan of these so-called different diets. If someone has to follow a strict diet for health reasons then that's obviously a different matter. I think everything is healthy in moderation, with the exception of processed foods - which I try to avoid at all costs.

I'm with Lapis on the 'listen to my body' thing. If you consider that in nature human beings are just like any other animal, in the sense that mother nature designed us to stay alive and be healthy. Before we had communication and technology, what other way could mother nature ensure that we got what our bodies required in order for us to stay healthy? This is where I believe the 'listen to your body' thing comes into play. It used to be an instinct and something that kept us healthy. Then, along with communication and technology came all the disinformation and the so-called health fads.

Incidentally (without starting a new thread), do chillies have any healthy benefits? I was told by an Indian guy that chillies are good for the body because they kill off any unwanted bacteria. The hotter the chillies the better, as the milder ones contain more sugar. I love chillies and I eat the super hot ones (jolokias, nagas, bonnets and habs) about 2?3 times each week.

As I remember some reports suggest that a moderate intake of chillis inhibit the growth of certain cancers but also they act as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (antidepressant) which is why you feel great after a curry (especially one of Mamta's!)