Category Archives: ayurveda

People say Ayurveda medicines are slow! What is the truth?!

Most of the people who have some experience or knowledge of Ayurveda commonly say that Ayurveda medicines/treatments are slow in action! Is it true? If yes, why are they so? If not, then what is the truth?20120929-123955.jpg
Actually slow and fast action depends on various factors. Also, it is not always necessary and good to have ‘fast’ actions! Before I go into those reasons I may have to explain a bit about the concept of Ayurveda therapy and medicines to make it more clear.

Ayurveda is basically a system of healthy living. That is, it is not merely a medical system instead, it thinks beyond and before that. Ayurveda teaches about living healthy and preventing diseases more than just treating a health problem. Moreover, it is a science based on natural concepts. It follows and adopts nature’s rhythm, cycles, natural elements, naturally occurring substances and natural processes in the universe. Hence, treatments and medicines of Ayurveda follow those rules to stay in harmony with the nature.

For example, when there is fever, it is considered as body’s effort to fight against the foreign material (unwanted substance) by burning it out, throwing it out or by creating an intolerable situation inside for that material to survive. So the medicines and treatments or even food-activity advice during fever would be aimed at supporting the body in that fight or to protect the bodily elements from the untoward effects of this battle! It won’t be aimed at masking the temperature or just to lower the temperature of the body! This is the reason it appears as if Ayurveda medicine is doing nothing or working slowly (because the body temperature is not brought down suddenly).

Another reason could be due to deep seated problem. For example, in case of arthritis, the problem is situated at deeper structures like bones and joints. Then while treating with natural medicines and therapies it is not possible to reach them in a day or two. So the medicines will take their own cycles according to the natural process to metabolise and reach there. Also, these treatments will not aim at masking the pain in the joints but aim to support the tissues there and to prevent further damage. So it is normal to feel that the medicines are not acting or acting slow when they don’t see reduction in pain immediately!

One more reason is the chronicity (duration of the problem). For example, if the arthritis was developed over a period of many years and is deeply and firmly located in the tissues, how is it possible to expect the cure/halt all of a sudden? The cure will also take its own time to correct it or to reverse the process in a natural way.

Another reason is complexity. If a disease has occurred by the influence and involvement of various matters like genetic factor, involvement of multiple tissues, wide spread in the body, bad diet-lifestyle-stress etc. and so on, it would definitely take longer time to simplify them, dissolve them, act on them and alter them in order to reverse the process and to prevent the recurrence…

This list is just an example! There are so many such other factors which decide if the medicine acts fast or slow and also, if it is necessary to act so! Moreover, masking a symptom or sign of a disease is not a cure, of course it can be a temporary relief from the discomfort. So, my personal view is an integrated approach would be ideal to relieve the discomfort initially and to cure the problem in due course.

Heal well…heal naturally! All the best… 😇


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Rationalist or narrow minded?

Different trends are creating different groups of people! A group is so much dedicated to a system of medicine that it is blind to accept its limitations. In the same way there is another group, which is so much obsessed with their own way of interpreting “science” that it can’t accept their limitations of understanding!

This is where all the fight begins and ends…

Any system of medicine and / or healing was evolved to solve human suffering. Any expert who was trained in a particular system should understand that there is no 100% answer in any system to any health problem. Instead, everybody is busy in proving their system as great and complete. That’s fine, but they move further by pulling another system down and blaming it for all the problems. Generalised statements, I believe, are indicative of narrow mindedness, childish thinking and poorer understanding of the system that they are talking about!

Why am I explaining all this to you? Not because I dreamt of something last night! It is because of a news report I read recently about AYUSH systems.

I wonder why should we jeopardise any system and its benefits to mankind just because “another science” is not finding a “proof” according to its understanding…!? The approach of Ayurveda is totally different and its basic principles are very different from the ‘lab based- evidence’ based science of the present day. However, when used judiciously, Ayurveda has given wonderful results in many health problems. Nowhere in Ayurvedic classics has been mentioned that Ayurveda has got 100% solution to all problems. They have clearly given “incurable conditions” and “palliative management” also. If someone is claiming to treat and “cure” all diseases then why don’t these “scientific people” disprove that and prove quackery practise, instead of just giving generalised statements.

Just like there is no 100% cure in Ayurveda, there are so many instances where Ayurveda has treated chronic illnesses, acute conditions and given surprising results to patients. It’s not just ‘lab based evidence’ but clear cut clinical improvement seen in conditions like asthma, allergic rhinitis, Psoriasis, Paralysis to name a few. So, why don’t we accept the usefulness irrespective of the system and make it popular for the benefit of patients? I know it’s for the sake of so many lobbies…drug company, health sectors etc etc. That’s the tragedy.

Alright, do you know how this so called ‘evidence based science’ works? They undertake lab experiments, find out a molecule/procedure, try it on a healthy group, study the effects on body, try on animals, try on small number of patients, study on large number of patients, release in the market, keep a watch, collect reports, withdraw from the market (if harmful) or continue until it is “looking safe”…!!! What is the evidence they are talking about? All those known direct or indirect observations in the lab, clinics etc which can be perceived by our senses directly or by using machines, chemicals etc. Do you think they are 100% accurate? No…they can mislead or they can prove to be wrong due to various “unknown” reasons. Then, how do they think that “evidence-based medicine” is the only solution and it is a “perfect answer”? Who will be responsible for the unknown or incompletely understood effects of the drug/treatement which will be given to millions of people around the world until they discover that it was harmful? It is the limitation of the “science”…right? Then, why can’t they accept the limitations of other sciences also and adopt whichever is useful?

Come on people…..grow up! Grow big, grow broad….

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Home remedies for various ailments as per Ayurveda

Courtesy: Surendra & Raghurama Shenoy

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Professional rivals or unprofessional approach?

I remember the words of Dr.Prakash – Director of CFTRI, Mysore, who is into the “Nutrition” research… he always said “our ‘scientific researches’ are still in infancy of understanding the basics, where as sciences like ‘Ayurveda’ are so advanced and have made understanding of the nature very simple and practically proven. So, don’t underestimate the strength of your Ayurvedic science”.

On the contrary there are some “nutritional experts” who say the following…

1. Ayurveda and Nutrition are ‘professional rivals!!!

2. An Ayurveda person is totally from a different field and should not talk about nutrition, about which he/she has “no idea”.

3. Nutrition relies upon research data and they are published in scientific journals, which is like ‘ultimate truth’.

What this means is “sciences are not rivals, some ‘professional people’ see them as rivals…!”

They say that Ayurveda and Nutrition are professional rivals! They claim nutrition is only “their field” and Ayurveda experts should not talk about it! This shows their ignorance about other sciences. Ayurveda has nutrition as its main concept. The principles of understanding is different, that’s all.

Also, in Ayurvedic studies in India, it will be taught as an integrative system where subjects ranging from anatomy to medicine including preventive medicine, nutrition, pathology, laboratory studies, scientific research methodology, bio-statistics etc etc plus basics of many systems of medicine like naturopathy, homeopathy, unani, siddha are studied along with the classical texts of Ayurveda. The problem here is not for the Ayurveda person but the other way around where “they” don’t understand the concepts of Ayurveda!!!

Our culture says “let noble thoghts flow to us from all the corners” and so called “Nutritional right holders” have closed their windows for any such in-flows. They want all of us to agree to what their “researches” say. They don’t even keep their senses open to see the limitations of such “researches”. They don’t see that the research which recommends ‘drinking alcohol is good’ at one point of time, recommends the total opposite in the next year. They claim that it is because, it accepts changes in the concept+observed facts! Facts can be misleading sometimes…

Experimental animal!

eg: 1. As per research, cure from cancer in 1 patient among 50 treated, is insignificant. But, to that one patient who survived, it is highly significant! Don’t you agree to this???

2. Research says take medicine “A” for disease “D” and millions of people use it. After 2 years it says that medicine can result in death because of disease “H”, so stop using it. What those millions of people who used it for 2 years should do?!!! This means, research has its own limitations and all that comes through the filter of “scientific research” is not the ultimate truth!

Regarding the data published in “journals”, I read many of those journals on a regular basis and I find many articles as stereotype and many a times biased and seem to be influenced by some kind of lobbying! Above all, the articles are based on the same kind of research which I gave examples above. So, they are not ultimate verdicts in anyway.

Conclusively, I am not saying that research is bad and we should stop believing in it. All I mean to say is “Open your hearts, senses and brains to study from other sciences also and accept good practices & advices from them with an ultimate goal of helping the mankind, instead of rivalry between professional people. No science belongs to a single person or group of people, it belongs to all. If there is controversy in the concept/belief then subject it to reviews again and again”.

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