NUTRITIONAL GUIDE BEFOFE & AFTER
AYAHUASCA CEREMONIES
DIETARY PREPARATION
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In preparation for an ayahuasca ceremony your diet plays an important role. You might have heard
about the so called ‘Dieta’ that people do before they consume ayahuasca. There are a lot of
traditions when it comes to preparing and it can get a little confusing when you try to find out what
food you actually can eat, what you should not eat and what you must avoid.
Through eliminating certain foods from your diet, you prepare your body physically for your
journey and it could also have an effect on the amount of purging during your ceremony. This is a
viable step in cleansing your body before and keeping it clean after your ceremonies. In addition
to the physical aspects, by showing your commitment and determination to ayahuasca and the
master plants, you are creating the foundations of your relationship with them and offering them
the respect which is essential for this work. We would like to help you through this process and
summarized some basic nutritional guidelines. You MUST contact us if you are taking
medications or supplements.
First, the suggested diet is light and healthy with minimum to zero products of animal origin.
At any cost you must avoid pork and alcohol!! The simplest guideline in preparation is to eat
light vegetarian food one week before and one week after with low levels of salt, sugar, fat and no
hot spices. Eating raw or just vegetable soups is advised for the day of ceremony.
You must start the diet at least 24 hours before you drink ayahuasca; however, we strongly
recommend you start at least three to five days before – better encourage you to prepare for 2
weeks. We also ask that you use your common sense and please do not become neurotic about
the diet – so do not think you completely messed up and have to reschedule if all you did is
accidentally end up consuming some salt/sugar.
If you really want to get the most out of your ayahuasca experience, we recommend avoiding the
following foods and activities preferably 2 weeks prior to coming. In the Amazonian jungle, the
foods that are ok to eat before consuming ayahuasca are very limited to mostly plantains, potato,
yucca, rice, some chicken and fish
SOUL QUEST recommends to avoid the following foods, products and activities
Two weeks prior
• Pork
• Alcohol
• Cannabis
• All street drugs like cocaine, amphetamines (please note we do drug testing on property
to ensure the safety of our guests)
• Spices like chilly, peppers
• High amounts of sugar, corn syrup
• Processed foods (Nothing in a box or can with ingredients you can’t pronounce)
• Processed/Refined sugar
• Please also avoid synthetic soaps, perfumes, toiletries
• Sexual stimulation, including masturbation
One week prior
• Red or heavy meats (pork & beef)
• Fish like tuna and eel
• Fermented food like pickles, old cheese, anchovies, kombucha
• Caffeine like coffee, tea, soda and other stimulants like guarana
• Refined sugars
• Junk food
• Pepper and Salt (if absolutely needed, low amounts of sea or Himalayan salt)
• Oils (if needed olive oil or coconut oil)
• Animal fats like butter, lard
• Carbonated drinks like soda (including diet soda), energy drinks, non-alcoholic beer
Last 24 hours
• Fermented food like soy sauce, tamari, miso, tofu, beer, vermouth, wine, aged/moldy
cheese (cheddar, Parmesan, blue cheese), curd
• Yeast
• Avocado
• Eggplant
• Figs
• Grapes
• Pineapple
• Plums
• Broad beans
• Lentils
• Peanuts
• Sour cream
• Buttermilk
• Chocolate
• Vegemite
• Sauerkraut
MUST avoid the day of ceremony
• Overripe fruits like bananas, mangoes
• Dried fruits
• Vinegar
• Spices like garlic, turmeric
• Nightshades like tomatoes, spinach
• Eggs
• Dairy (exceptions are yoghurt and kefir)
• Heavy sweets
• White bread
WHY AVOIDING GENERALLY HEALTHY FOODS THE LAST 24 HOURS?
There are some foods that are generally considered as healthy like avocados, eggplant and certain
fruits that are strongly suggested to avoid the last 24 hours before consuming ayahuasca. This is
important because Ayahuasca is an MAOI inhibiter which interferes with certain foods that contain
tyramine. The MAOI in the Ayahuasca vine blocks an enzyme called monoamine oxidase breaking
it down to a high amount of tyramine in your body. Tyramine is for example responsible to regulate
your blood pressure. If you now have excessive amounts of tyramine in your system, your blood
pressure could increase and even reach dangerous levels leading in worst cases to stroke, brain
hemorrhage and death.
For this reason, it is very important to avoid any food that is high in tyramine at least the last 24
hours before consuming Ayahuasca. However, it is very unlikely to die from an interaction of
ayahuasca and tyramine but there have been many cases of severe headache reported
You CAN eat
• Fresh and cooked vegetables including potatoes, sweet potatoes, yucca, yacon, beets,
jicama, carrots, broccoli, arugula, lettuces, cucumber, powdered maca root, carrots,
celery, cauliflower
• Grains + legumes like rice, buckwheat, oats, barley including quinoa, brown rice,
amaranth, beans, and lentils. Wheat, kamut, spelt, etc.
• Nuts and seeds including raw almonds, raw cashews, raw walnuts, chia seeds, and raw
shelled hemp seeds (except peanut).
• Seasonings including fresh herbs (basil, thyme, oregano, dill, etc.)
• Moderate amounts of olive oil or coconut oil
• Hummus without garlic and moderate salt
• Root vegetables like sweet potato, parsnips, turnips (ideal in a soup)
Although we strongly advise you to follow a clean, plant-based diet prior to coming to get
the most out of your experience, if you are absolutely not able to follow a vegan diet for
whatever reasons, we suggest the following as an alternative.
• Animal proteins such as eggs (hard-boiled, poached, or scrambled), organic free-range
chicken, or light, wild-caught fish such as sole, tilapia, bass, trout, halibut, or snapper.
Please drink plenty of water and electrolytes such as coconut water to prepare for your
ceremony. You may want to bring electrolytes with you for your retreat. Examples are
coconut water, Gatorade zero, power aid zero, Pedialyte... any that do not contain added
sugar.
