The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health defines ayurvedic medicine as “treatment that combines products (mainly derived from plants, but may include animal, metal, and mineral), diet, exercise, and lifestyle.” Ayurvedic medicine is a naturalistic and holistic medicinal approach with origins dating back to more than 3,000 years ago in India. Ayurveda roughly translates to “knowledge of life” and creates a connection with the body, mind, spirit, and environment. Though not typically prevalent in western medicine, it is frequently practiced in many other areas of the world. While viewed as not fully practical there are some definite benefits to ayurvedic medicine. In this essay I will explore the practicality and downsides of ayurvedic medicine in the treatment of diabetes; a metabolic disorder.
In order to examine the effectiveness of ayurvedic treatment on diabetes the backgrounds of diabetes have to first be introduced. Diabetes mellitus is a condition in which the body can not effectively produce or use insulin, a pancreatic hormone. The main types of diabetes I want to examine include type 1 and type 2. Diabetes is a very prevalent non communicable disease that affects a large group of people on a daily basis. The significance of diabetes mellitus is due to the lack of involvement of insulin in carbohydrate metabolism. As carbohydrates cannot be broken down effectively the energy source remains in the blood and exhibits hyperglycemia. The treatment of diabetes is often dependent on what type of diabetes is present. With type 1 diabetes or insulin dependent diabetes there is no production of insulin due to the destruction of insulin producing cells. This is often a lifetime disease with no cure and causing the body to require injected insulin in order to effectively metabolize carbohydrates. Type 2 diabetes or non-insulin-dependent diabetes is a relative deficiency of insulin from an inadequate secretion of insulin. This type is becoming more common, especially as sedentary and unhealthy lifestyles continue to rise. If type 2 diabetes has progressed far enough it is often necessary to supplement with insulin through promoting a healthier lifestyle is often encouraged as well.
Ayurvedic medicine refers to diabetes as Madhumeha which translates to “sweet urine” to the presence of sugar in the urine. Ayurvedic treatment aims to bring the body back into equilibrium and treat the body through lifestyle changes such as drugs, diet, and exercise. Oftentimes an intense treatment called Panchakarma is used to begin treating the disease in which the body is detoxified and cleansed. This is done through the use of massages, baths, enemas, laxatives, and dieting. Herbal remedies are frequently used along with every day dieting, with dieting it is advised to avoid foods that are high in sugars in order to reduce intake levels of glucose. As mentioned before there is also strong pressure put on daily exercise (mostly yoga) in order to heal the body along with the soul together. Tissue treatment and healing are focused on by cleansing the body, tracking what goes into the body, and moving the body. The overall idea of ayurvedic practice is finding the imbalances in the body and treating them spiritually and physically.
Comparatively western medicine encourages lifestyle changes but may not be as effective at getting individuals to implement them as ayurvedic treatment. One strong benefit of ayurvedic medicine is it focuses on creating a personal change both emotionally and physically, allowing the patient to engross themselves in the healing process. The commitment and resolve to find a source of healing emotionally for a physical disease seems to be much stronger in ayurvedic medicine over western medicine. Frequently stress can lead to weight gain and only further unhealthiness and diseases so the focus put on becoming mentally healthy may play an important role. On the other hand, western medicine has the same focus on exercise but also focuses on scientific evidence over spirituality. Western medicine promotes the providing of insulin for diabetics which is crucial especially for those with type 1 diabetes.
As a whole I think that western medicine can benefit from the more holistic approach of ayurvedic medicine, especially by focusing on mental healing along with disease treatment. That being said western medicine is still important, especially in cases like diabetes where supplemental hormones such as insulin are needed. A combination of both a naturalistic and modern approach where elements of both ayurvedic and western medicine are instituted may be the most effective method for healing, especially when looking at metabolic diseases such as diabetes.
Basu, A., & Nandy, D. K. (2021). Diabetes. AccessScience. Retrieved June 24, 2022, from https://doi-org.proxy.li.suu.edu:2443/10.1036/1097-8542.190300
Gordon, A., Buch, Z., Baute, V., & Coeytaux, R. (2019). Use of Ayurveda in the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. Global advances in health and medicine, 8, 2164956119861094. https://doi.org/10.1177/2164956119861094
Sridharan, K., Mohan, R., Ramaratnam, S., & Panneerselvam, D. (2011). Ayurvedic treatments for diabetes mellitus. The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, (12), CD008288. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD008288.pub2
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I thought the information you mentioned about specific ayurvedic treatments for diabetes was really interesting. In my research I looked at ayurveda generally and diabetes generally, but I didn't look at the specific treatments/view of "madhumeha," so reading that part of your post gave me new insight on the relationship between the two. I agree with what you said in the end as well, that western medicine can benefit from wholistic elements. Wholistic practices kept populations alive for a long time before modern medicine, so there is credibility in some wholistic treatment.
ReplyDeleteI really liked that you mentioned Ayurvedic treatments of diabetes and how these treatments are different from western medicine. I do think Western medicine should start to put a little more faith in some holistic forms of healing, instead of isolating the issues of the body and the mind.
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