Ayurveda treatments and H1N1

[Why Syzygy]

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Government-looks-at-Ayurveda--Unani-medicine-to-prevent-flu/501538
Anupam Chakravartty , Amrita Didyala
Tags : swine flu, health
Posted: Thursday , Aug 13, 2009 at 1728 hrs
Vadodara/Ahmedabad:

In a bid to combat the deadly H1N1 virus, state health officials are looking at alternate therapies such as Ayurveda and Unani to be used as preventive medicine. Sale of ayurvedic/unani medicines have picked up with even SMSes advocating their use as protection against swine flu.

The state government is now accepting ayurvedic combinations for their preventive capacities to control the viral outbreak, and will officially promote them. The state Director of Ayurveda is presently in New Delhi to meet the Director of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Naturopathy, Siddha and Homoeopathy).

State Health Secretary, Ravi Saxena, said: “The government has accepted some ayurveda recipes that have certain preventive capacities but not curative capacities. The Health Department will check with the Department of AYUSH and come out with an official version after consulting the Centre. A statement from the government to use ayurvedic combinations as preventive medicine will be issued thereafter.” (...)

http://blog.seattlepi.com/naturalnotes/archives/176577.asp?from=blog_last3

The tradition of Ayurveda offers us yet another natural, herbal approach to stave off flu and "swine" flu.

Next to the Lotus, Basil is perhaps the most sacred plant of India. Basil opens the heart and mind. Basil gives the protection of the divine by clearing the aura and strengthening the immune system.
Indian herb: Tulsi (basil) can help keep swine flu away: Ayurvedic experts


Lucknow, May 27: Wonder herb Tulsi can not only keep the dreaded swine flu at bay but also help in fast recovery of an afflicted person, Ayurvedic practitioners claim.

"The anti-flu property of Tulsi has been discovered by medical experts across the world quite recently. Tulsi improves the body's overall defence mechanism including its ability to fight viral diseases. It was successfully used in combating Japanese Encephalitis and the same theory applies to swine flu," Dr U K Tiwari, a herbal medicine practitioner says.

Apart from acting as a preventive medicine in case of swine flu, Tulsi can help the patient recover faster.

"Even when a person has already contracted swine flu, Tulsi can help in speeding up the recovery process and also help in strengthening the immune system of the body," he claims.

Dr Bhupesh Patel, a lecturer at Gujarat Ayurved University, Jamnagar is also of the view that Tulsi can play an important role in controlling swine flu. (...)


http://www.ptinews.com/news/225978_MCD-to-provide-medicinal-plants-to-tackle-swine-flu

MCD to provide medicinal plants to tackle swine flu

New Delhi, Aug 12 (PTI) Taking a cue from yoga guru Baba Ramdev, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi today said it will provide tinospora and 'tulsi' plants free to the citizens to help strengthen the immune system against swine flu virus.

The announcement came a day after the influential yoga exponent asked people to go the ayurvedic way to combat swine flu and said consumption of the extract of 'giloi' plant (tinospora) along with 'tulsi' leaves can help strengthen the respiratory and immune system to keep the disease away.

"The MCD, through the municipal councillors, will provide branches of giloi and tulsi plants to people free-of-cost," Leader of MCD House Subhash Arya said.

He said the decision was taken at a meeting chaired by him in which MCD Garden Committee Chairman Dharamvir Singh, Vice-Chairman Rajesh Yadav and Director (Horticulture) S S Kandpal were present.


http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&rls=ig&resnum=0&q=Ayurvedic&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wn

[tabatha]

1. Oh no, oh no, oh no ....

alternative medicine.

:sarcasm:

[Why Syzygy]

4. While their government

is giving them tree branches, ours built a multi-billion dollar facility to produce hazardous toxins.

[Cleita]

2. I used to eat an Ayurveda style diet at one time and stopped doing it a few

years back when I had to cook a special diet for my husband because of his medical condition. However, I was slimmer and more energetic when I followed the diet. If I had combined it with Yoga, I probably would have been even healthier.

[truedelphi]

3. I am contacting Johns Hopkins later this week abt

A total treatment for any flu that costs only sixty cents per application (One application per person.)

It just knocks the flu out of your system.

[Why Syzygy]

5. Do tell? nt

[truedelphi]

6. I will put up the situation such that

Anyone on DU who wants to know about it can, if the suggested treatment is received with enthusiasm over at JH. It's taken two years to find someone, anyone in the USA who is open to this type of med for purposes of disease destruction.

[Orrex]

7. Well, if people can't get access to actual healthcare, I guess they'll go for something else

If it leads to a generally healthier diet, so much the better.

However, since the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi was a transcendental nut-job, and since he "reconstituted" much of ayurvedic medicine, I suggest that the buyer beware.


Generally speaking, the dreaded swine flu is an illness with a pretty simple arc of sick:sicker:sickest:less-sick:least-sick:healthy. It runs its course and then the sufferer can go about her business. However, someone who invests in unsubstantiated alternative treatments is likely to credit that treatment for their recovery, even though recovery is the normal end of the disease's progression, except in a minority of cases.

It's the standard routine: If you don't take the alternative treatment, your cold will last about seven days. But if you do take the alternative treatment, your cold will last about a week.

[Why Syzygy]

8. So you're saying India doesn't have "actual health care".

:eyes:

The immune system cures everything that is cured (colds/flu/etc).
Some things are of benefit to the immune system. Tandem.

[trotsky]

9. "The immune system cures everything that is cured"

Yup, except the things it doesn't, which generally kill you.

WTF kind of a statement is that, anyway? Woo magic is a funny way of thinking.

[Orrex]

11. Who are you replying to? Your post has nothing to do with mine.

I'm not addressing India's healthcare system, since I have no knowledge of it.

Instead, I'm referring to America's troubled situation, in which which people without access to actual healthcare are apt to pursue other avenues of treatment for H1N1 even if these have no basis in epidemiology nor viral pathology nor reality. Surely you must have had the US in mind when you posted your OP, or else why would you post it here? The likely progression is that fans of alt-med will look to this magical ayurvedic medicine when they can't get access to an H1N1 vaccine; I am addressing those people, rather than the people of India.


And the immune system most certainly does not cure everything that is cured, unless you consider surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, bone marrow transplants, blood transfusions, prostheses, antivirals, and antibiotics to be part of the immune system, for example.

[Why Syzygy]

14. I have one comment

and then I will move along. I have no desire to converse with someone who won't use a modicum of reason.

If it were not for the healing abilities of the body, surgery would result in lifetime stitches. The body mends the layers of the skin. If the body could not mend bones, there would be no point to setting them. Glue or screws would be needed in every instance. Antibiotics work the same as the body's own antibodies, just in stronger amounts and when the immune system is too weakened. Blood is part of the body, so of course transfusions help when there has been a great deal of loss. Radiation and chemo destroy good tissue and bad. They are not considered "healing". They are killers. The body must rebuild itself once the killing has been completed.

Again. I do not care to discuss with you since you obviously don't care to use reasoning.

EOM

[LeftishBrit]

13. In fact, health care in India is very limited.

There isn't a universal health care system; most people can't afford private medicine; and according to the most recent statistics that I could find, only 10% of people in India have health insurance. Rural areas are particularly badly off with regard to health care.

According to hte same statistics that place America 37th (and the UK 18th) for life expectancy, India comes in 148th place. As with all developing contries, lack of health care is only part of the reason, with poor nutrition, poor sanitation, and unregulated pollution being also important factors. However, there's no doubt that lack of affordable health care causes a lot of premature deaths.

I realize this isn't really the topic of this thread, but it's an important one.

[trotsky]

10. How DARE you utter a word critical of this H1N1 cure?

It's almost like you require FACTS and EVIDENCE instead of magical thinking! HERETIC!

[Orrex]

12. Well, as a well-paid shill, I can't just stand by while people undermine Big Pharma's profit margin

What kind of corporate mercenary would I be if I allowed something like that?!?