What the texts say
The verse that follows, 7.62, names what a lover of curd risks by ignoring these rules: fever, raktapitta (bleeding from different parts of the body), visarpa (erysipelas), kushtha (skin disease), anaemia, giddiness and severe jaundice. The Ashtanga Hridaya makes the same rule in a separate line (Sutra 5.31): curd is not to be eaten at night, and not in spring, summer or autumn either.[1][2][3]
The modern view
The closest study we found is an adjacent one. In a randomised crossover trial, 15 adults with type 2 diabetes each spent three days with a bedtime yogurt snack, three with a bedtime egg snack and three with no snack. Fasting and night-time blood sugar differed between the two snacks, but neither snack differed from no snack. The trial measured blood sugar over a few days. It did not look at the illnesses the texts warn of, so it neither supports nor tests the rule.[4]
From the classical texts
Questions people ask
Can I eat curd at night if I add sugar or honey?
Charaka gives the night rule and the accompaniments (ghee, sugar, green gram soup, honey or amla) as separate points in the same verse. The accompaniments are how to eat curd, and the night rule stands on its own.[1]
Related
Curd in summer (garmi mein dahi)
The Ashtanga Hridaya says not to eat curd in spring, summer or autumn, and the same line says not to eat it at night or hot.
FoodHeating curd (dahi garam karna)
Charaka says curd should not be eaten hot, and the Ashtanga Hridaya says the same in its passage on curd.
FoodCurd and honey (dahi aur shahad)
Charaka names honey as one of the things curd should be eaten with, alongside ghee, sugar, green gram soup and amla.
FoodCurd and sugar (dahi-chini)
Charaka names sugar as one of the things curd should be eaten with. Dahi-chini is on his list of accompaniments, not his list of things to avoid.
Sources
- Charaka Samhita, Sutra Sthana 7.61 (Naveganadharaniya Adhyaya).
- Charaka Samhita, Sutra Sthana 7.62 (Naveganadharaniya Adhyaya).
- Ashtanga Hridaya, Sutra Sthana 5.31, GRETIL e-text.
- Abbie E, Francois ME, Chang CR, Barry JC, Little JP. A low-carbohydrate protein-rich bedtime snack to control fasting and nocturnal glucose in type 2 diabetes: a randomized trial. Clinical Nutrition. 2020;39:3601-3606. PMID 32204977.
Updated 4 November 2026