STORAGE VESSELS

Containers or vessels in which foods are stored, served or eaten also have the potency to alter the qualities and benefits of the stored substance. They may enhance the properties or at times bring about change, which could be detrimental to the health. Traditionlly there were different materials used to make vessels like iron, gold, silver, mud, wood, stone etc. With modernization many variety of materials have been developed and are being used in our day to day lives such as plastic, glass, different metal alloys etc. Using such containers may either enhance or deteriorate the quality of the Ahara dravya (food substance). Eg: Vessels made of gold and silver enhance the quality with their germicidal property, iron vessel is used for Rasayanas (rejuvenating substances).

Water stored in mud pots or earthern vessels is cooling and balances all the doshas and tissues. It improves potency, immunity and cleanses out all the bodily wastes. However, same water stored in iron vessel is unfit for consumption. Metal vessels should not be used to store pickles and curd should not be stored in copper vessels. Chutneys made grinding on the stone tastes much better than done in a mixer. We can also understand the importance of storage vessels in today’s context, as with the globalization of food industry, packed and canned foods are used extensively. Safe packaging and storing materials have thus become the demand of today’s food industry. The adulteration and toxicity of food due to bad  packaging materials is a huge concern these days. With an understanding of  the positive and negative health effects of different vessels and materials and applying it in day to day life is important. It is extremely important to prevent conditions such as heavy metal poisoning and cancer and also to enhance the nutritional value of the edible substance.

These days drinking water stored in copper vessels is a health rage. As much as it has its pros, there are equal cons to it and one needs to exercise caution. Benefits of drinking water stored in copper vessels:

• Serves as a natural antioxidant
• Has antimicrobial properties
• Improves digestion

Disadvantages of drinking water stored in copper vessels:

• Drinking water stored in copper vessels over a long time can lead to copper toxicity.
• It can cause severe nausea, vomiting, dizziness and abdominal pain.
• Can result in liver and kidney failure.