Premal Patel, MD

Wellness Director, Family Practice Physician


Premal Patel, MD, is a Family Practice physician who has also studied Ayurveda and Acupuncture. She serves on faculty for the Ayurvedic Institute and facilitates the Ayurvedic module for the University of Arizona Integrative Medicine Fellowship. She has also served as the Wellness Director at Banyan Botanicals. Premal appreciates the support of her husband, many close friends, and two golden retrievers. She splits her time between India and the US and offers private consultations.
Follow Premal Patel, MD
-
- Routines and Rhythms
- October 10, 2022
Read ArticleWho doesn’t like a fresh start? It’s an opportunity to clear out accumulated junk from the past, release stagnation, and rebuild a healthy foundation. This is exactly the idea behind Ayurvedic rejuvenation.
-
- Routines and Rhythms
- August 19, 2022
Read ArticleHowever the student in your life feels about school, Ayurveda can illuminate unique learning styles and make learning a more enjoyable process for everyone.
-
- Holidays
- December 08, 2021
Read ArticleThe hustle and bustle of the holidays can leave us feeling stressed and overwhelmed. Here's how to nurture your mental well-being through this season and beyond.
-
- Holidays
- December 22, 2020
Read ArticleWith the holiday season in full swing, the spirit of the festivities can be felt in homes across the land. Traditions abound, passed from one generation to the next. These traditions have also been found in most ancient cultures, including the one in which Ayurveda was born and still thrives. Fundamental to most cultures and traditions is celebrating the richness of life, the pursuit of spirituality, and the irreplaceable nature of connections made in person with those you love.
-
- October 03, 2019
Read ArticleFall is the season for transition and change. In keeping with this phenomenon in nature, the Ayurvedic dosha that is predominant at this time of the year is vata. As one becomes more familiar with Ayurveda, as a practitioner or otherwise, it is easy to give only a passing thought to the doshas, forgetting how integral and central an understanding of the doshas, their key qualities, and the subdoshas can be in an Ayurvedic perspective of health.
-
- Spring Health & Recipes
- May 10, 2016
Read ArticleSpring is the season for a lighter, cleansing diet in Ayurvedic practice. This is because the foods that nature provides during these months, just before summer, are all of the lighter variety.
-
- April 20, 2016
Read ArticleHealthy sugar metabolism requires optimal functioning of numerous organs and tissues. Bringing Ayurveda into the picture, kapha must primarily be balanced, supplying relief to any imbalanced vata and pitta, allowing for proper digestion, usage, and production of glucose in the body.
-
- March 30, 2016
Read ArticleThe body uses sugar, in the form of glucose, as a key source of energy, and particularly for certain tissues such as the brain. While there can be multiple nutritional sources for the body’s glucose, what we want to focus on in this article is the body’s optimal ability to process and use the glucose.
-
- March 04, 2016
Read ArticleTriphala, one of the most widely used Ayurvedic formulations, is quite well known for its use in keeping bowel movements regular and healthy. In this article, we will look at the benefits of Triphala related to one of its other major functions: rejuvenation.
-
- Food and Cooking
- January 15, 2016
Read ArticleAyurvedic healers believe that our levels of stress are directly connected to our diet. They hold out the promise that if we improve our diet, we can reduce our stress. At the heart of this conviction is the critical principle of Ayurvedic medicine that many diseases can originate in the digestive system. This means that your diet is of the utmost importance to keeping you healthy. Indeed, you may even find yourself in a double bind.
-
- Holidays
- January 14, 2016
Read ArticleFresh beginnings…optimistic perspectives…renewed focus. The new year always brings a renewal to our spirit, allowing the past to slip away and re-centering us in our potential. Positive affirmations abound as we momentarily re-evaluate our lives, our purpose, and our fulfillment. In the spirit of renewal, the Ayurvedic perspective also brings hope and inspiration.
-
- Emotional Wellness
- May 27, 2015
Read ArticleThankfully, Ayurveda equips us with many helpful tools to help access feelings of contentment—including the practice of abhyanga, or self-massage with oil.
-
- October 22, 2014
Read ArticleHealthy joints are critical to our daily functioning and activity, both for smooth mobility and for integrity of structure. Ayurveda offers numerous herbal supplements to support healthy joints. The most traditional of these supplements are made with a base of guggulu, which has been used widely through the ages to promote joint strength and stability.
-
- October 21, 2014
Read ArticleCrackling. Crunching. Popping. Crisp. Hues of red. You may think that I am describing the fall/winter vata weather as the leaves change and fall to the ground. But if instead I am describing the condition of your joints (or those of many of your clients), then you will want to continue reading our discussion on joint health in this issue.
-
- September 25, 2014
Read ArticleAs nature transitions seasons and exhibits change, Ayurveda recommends cleansing and rejuvenation to help the body adapt. Of particular focus at this time of the year is balancing vata.
Education and Experience
Premal has been married for over 15 years and appreciates the support of a husband and many close friends who love Ayurveda and always push Premal towards her higher self. She also enjoys the loving warmth of her two golden retrievers, who also receive the benefits of Ayurveda. She splits her time between India and the US and offers private consultations.
Degrees and Professional Experience
- Board-certified in Family Practice
- Studied medicine at the University of Texas at San Antonio
- Residency training, Chief Resident—Waco Family Practice Program
- Acupuncture studies—Academy of Pain Research
- Residency training—the Ayurvedic Institute
- Faculty member—the Ayurvedic Institute
- Board member—NAMA (National Ayurvedic Medical Association)
- Facilitator—University of Arizona Integrative Medicine Fellowship
- Wellness Director—Banyan Botanicals
Publications
In addition to writing for Banyan Botanicals, Premal has written for mindbodygreen and authored a chapter on Ayurveda and women’s health in Integrative Women’s Health.
Premal's Point of View
How has Ayurveda changed your life?
Ayurveda is the lens through which I see the world—vata, pitta, kapha, sattva, rajas, and tamas. I have been blessed to have some amazing teachers, and am much more understanding of a world in which all the principles of Ayurveda dance. A “pitta’d or vata’d out” partner is much easier to handle when one has the principles of Ayurveda to lean on—a nice bowl of ice cream or a warm oil massage always does the trick!
When are you most likely to go out of balance and how do you bring yourself back in balance using Ayurveda?
My two dominant doshas are pitta and kapha, and those are the two most likely to go out of balance. For kapha season, when the weather is cold and wet, and my diet is heavy (like a cheesy pizza!), congestion and phlegmy wheezing show up with a vengeance—then I use pranayama, hot tea, pippali, and licorice tea to calm things down.
And if I have been out roaming around on an intensely sunny day (during the good ‘ole Texas summer), and then I add spicy food to the mix, pitta is bound to get imbalanced—and I’ll end up a little irritable and sharp, often with a good case of diarrhea; but it’s nothing a little aloe vera, Sheetali Pranayama (Cooling Breath) or a refreshing glass of coconut water can’t fix.
My first and favorite Banyan product is Mahanarayan Oil. It feels great almost anytime—stiff neck, after a workout, during meditation retreats, and even for a full body massage.
I also love Kitchari Spice Mix, as well as just plain kitchari—with cumin, salt, turmeric, and ghee—made runny and served hot!