COVID AND AYURVEDIC MANAGEMENT

 

As pandemic continues to rage all over the world medical fraternity is looking towards alternative therapies like Ayurveda to prevent, treat and rehabilitate patients of covid.

Ayurveda has a branch called “Rasayana” which can be roughly translated as geriatric medicine; to be precise it is more of a preventive therapy applicable to all age groups.

The medicines used in ‘Rasayana’ can be taken in two ways, one is taking smaller quantity (dose) of medicines for an extended period of time; say three months.

Second one is taking “Rasayana” medicines in controlled doses under the supervision of a doctor for a shorter period of time. This is a combination of “Panchakarma’ procedures, followed by intake of medicine; followed by a strict regimen (daily routine) and diet.

 

To treat an infection of covid patients the ayurvedic way is mostly symptomatic as Ayurveda does not have medicines with sudden action on viruses.

 

Unlike other infectious diseases covid does not have a uniform pattern of infection or post-covid complications; mostly it affects our respiratory system but other systems like gastroenteric system is also affected, which is often missed in diagnosis. Rarely the complications can be to cardiovascular system and excretory system.

 

One feature of covid infection that baffled medical professionals was its ability to kill persons with good immunity due to stronger immune response. In such cases conventional immune booster can sometimes cause negative result, so need of the hour is immunomodulators which acts in a metered quantity.

 

Here also immunomodulators like Chyavanprash can help in the rehabilitation of post covid patient. If there is a gastrointestinal complication panchakarma therapy can also be availed; but most importantly yoga practices have been found effective especially the pranayama (the breathing techniques) section of yoga. A regular practice of pranayama along with rasayana medicines are the best possible alternative therapies that will go places in the management of post-covid complications.