Feature

By Ambika Behal

Ayurveda, an Alternative Medicine for the Mind, Body and Soul

"I call upon the herbs and plants with shoots, those with stalks, with branches and those derived from Gods, the ones that provide life to men." -Atharva Veda 1.8.53

South Asian mothers are known for feeding their families a healthy assortment of freshly cooked food with a variety of spices and telling their daughters to wash their faces with milk and honey to make their skin glow. When cold winter weather sets in and chronic coughs start sounding, they hand their children glasses of warm milk with a pinch of turmeric.

Why, we ask.

Ayurveda, that’s why.

This ancient discipline of healthy living evolved in India over 5000 years ago. Ayurveda, a Sanskrit term composed of ayus (life) and ved (science), is the science of life. As ayurvedic practices gain popularity in the western world, this science is now being studied as a viable form of alternative medicine.

“One practices ayurveda to bring back the balance of mind, body and soul,” says Smita Patel, who has degrees in both pharmacy and ayurvedic medicine. “This balance of energy throughout the body heals the body naturally.” Patel owns and operates Smeeta’s Integrative Pharmacy in Highland, Md.

“Ayurveda basically serves to maintain the health needs of each individual’s unique genetic code, known as the Prakruti, through maintaining a balanced health and diet plan,” she says. In fact, people in India have practiced this way of natural living for centuries to take care of their many needs – beauty remedies, recipes for balanced meals, herbal medicine and meditation for spiritual and physical well-being.

As a form of living, ayurveda rarely provides instant cures, but rather maintains the overall health and wellness of the body. “Pharmaceuticals can only band-aid the problem for a while.” Patel says. “To heal the body properly, one must get to the root of the problem.”

Many of Patel’s clients, who have not found answers through traditional medicine, come to her for ayurvedic remedies, which she dispenses in the form of food recipes, herbal tablets and breathing techniques. Her clientele is made up of “everyone.” According to Patel, people see her for “a variety of reasons, from curing asthma and allergies to resolving stress-relief to reproductive problems and for diet advice and lifestyle modification.”

Along with meditation, yoga and other forms of exercise, diet is a major aspect of ayurvedic healing, and relies primarily on the proper use of herbs, fruits and vegetables to maintain and restore the body’s natural state of balance. Patel recommends the intake of vitamin C (through oranges or orange juice) as good for keeping allergies to a minimum. In the summer, she suggests eating watermelon or drinking aloe juices to keep the body cool. In winter, glycerin soap prevents the skin from becoming over-dry by sealing in moisture. Patel also is a big proponent of using ghee (clarified butter) in cooking, in place of oil. Its molecular structure helps deliver herbs and spices’ healthful benefits to various parts of the body.

Many traditional practitioners also advise eating fresh food whenever possible and not taking shortcuts like microwaving vegetables or using canned and processed foods, which can be depleted of up to 80% of their nutritional values. Eating cooked food cold also is not ayurvedic-friendly, philosophically speaking, because cold food has no energy and therefore the body remains hungry even after consuming it. Ancient Vedic texts instruct practitioners to put a lot of positive attitude and affection into balancing their diets through cooking. “All the effort is worth it,” says Patel. “It all shows through glowing, healthy skin and a well-functioning body.”

Those who have read a bit about ayurveda have also probably heard of the elements Vata, Pitta and Kapha. These are the elements that comprise the doshas (biological modes) and need to be fed to maintain good health, according to ayurveda. Vata is the combination of air and earth, which gives movement within the system and is associated primarily with the intestines. Pitta is the combination of fire and water, and governs the digestion of physical, mental, and emotional elements of the liver, spleen, gall bladder, stomach and pancreas.

Finally, the combination of earth and water gives Kapha, the governor of sinuses, nostrils, throat and bronchi. Although each individual has a unique constitution — as determined through skin and breathing characteristics — keeping all of the aspects of the body healthy is an important part of daily life.

Although South Asians have practiced ayurveda for years, new waves of patients looking for natural remedies and treatments for their ailments have brought ayurveda into western homes. The British began eating “curry” and “lentil-soup” when they realized that both served as healthy meals that kept their bodies warm in the damp British winter. Ongoing studies at the University of Texas have reported that turmeric, a spice used in curries, fights cancer cells and inhibits tumor growth.

Traditional medicine has some roots in ayurveda as well. Of the few supplemental treatises that have survived from Vedic times, the Charaka Samhita, which focuses on internal medicine, and the Sushruta Samhita, which focuses on surgical procedure, have influenced the basis of modern medicine as it is practiced all over the world today.

Despite its recent popularity surge, ayurveda is really nothing new. But the practice only works when mind, body and spirit are working together. Just ask your mother.

Ambika Behal is a freelance writer based in Washington D.C.

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