The traditional Indian medicine known as Ayurvedic Medicine, originated over 5,000 years ago. It emphasizes on re-establishing the balance within the body through diet, lifestyle, exercise, and body cleansing, and on the health of the mind, body, and spirit. Today it is used as it has been for many years to help treat certain types of cancer - with cervical cancer being one of them.
Over the last ten years, Ayurvedic medicine has been growing in popularity in North America, due in part to the work of Deepak Chopra, M.D., an Indian doctor, writer, and speaker who has both promoted it's abilities, and influenced it's use alongside modern-day medicines to help cure cancer. However, most people have not even heard of Ayurvedic medicine, let alone actually used it.
What is Ayurvedic medicine?
Originating from India, Ayurvedic medicine (Ayurveda) has been around for over 5,000 years. It emphasizes on re-establishing the body's balance through diet, life-style, exercise, body cleansing, and on the health of the mind, body and spirit - and similar to Chinese medicine, it is a "whole medicine system." That is to say - it is based on both the theories and methods of preventing and treating health and illness.
How is Ayurvedic medicine prescribed?
In Ayurvedic medicine; it is believed that the tongue may offer certain clues to the areas of the body that may be out of balance (also the skin, lips, nails, and eyes are observed). This will allow for the practitioner to determine an individual's balance of doshas (a person's individual differences [vata - space and air, kapha - water and earth, and pitta - fire and water]) or metabolic types.
Also the patient's prakuti (the constitution and essential nature of an individual) is determined ...
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...o attack the tumor and to act on the lymph and blood tissues which help prevent metastases.
This high dosage, aggressive, and prolonged treatment (6 - 9 months) does seem to pull many cervical cancer sufferers into a state of remission (the treatment course has been successfully carried out [not meaning the cancer patient is no longer at risk from a recurrence of the disease, or has been cured]) where a noticeable quality of life and an improved survival rate has be documented.
However, there may actually be a certain amount of doubt as to whether Ayurvedic medicine can actually cure cervical cancer completely; although, there are positive indications to show it has a certain amount of ability to cure. As yet, there is still insufficient evidence to either confirm or deny Ayurvedic medicine's ability to be a suitable contender in the fight against cervical cancer.
An ancient Chinese proverb proclaims, "Nature, time and patience are the three great doctors". Nowadays more and more people choose to be treated by methods that are not based on Western systematic techniques that are the knowledge and practice of medicine which is usual in the West. These methods are known as “Alternative medicine”, which consists of homeopathy, acupuncture, aromatherapy, chiropractic medicine and others. Chinese medicine is also gaining popularity among people. The alternative way of treatment has verified its efficiency and is methodically founded, but, unfortunately, has its little disadvantages and needs a scientific base. For that reason, the alternative medicine is not generally available in all countries, and people have to pay for their individual treatment. Whereas some people consider it an ambiguity and do not dare try it because they consider it might be quite dangerous or insecure, some others just think about it as nonsense and pay little or no attention to it. People who feel anxious or doubtful of it claim that if non-traditional medicine had really worked, then appropriate doctors would have used it. Nevertheless, since the early 1980s, the alternative medicine has become increasingly popular, and although it is not officially accepted by the medical base, some doctors do accept that such methods can be effective in treating some types of illnesses. Moreover, usual medicine has its boundaries, since some illnesses are untreatable and some others which are caused by mental troubles cannot be cured by its methods (Kowalski, 1998).
According to the Hippocratic Oath, which every physician must take, each physician is expected to deliver the form of care which she considers most beneficial to a patient's health. There are a few minor stipulations guiding treatment by a physician, but for the most part, doctors have much liberty in choosing a regimen for a particular patient. If we look only at the Hippocratic Oath as the governing body of a physician's actions, then we must admit that no doctor is obligated to broaden his views and seed treatments with which he is not already familiar. However, every year doctors are required to fulfill certain requirements in continuing educatio...
The famous spiritual leader Mahatma Gandhi said, "Homeopathy cures a greater percentage of cases than any other method of treatment. Homeopathy is the latest, most refined method of treating patients economically and non-violently” (Malik). However, Homeopathy is only one of the many natural forms of treatment that patients are utilizing in an effort to avoid conventional medicine. A clinic practice model that combines conventional medicine with Naturopathic, Complementary and other forms of alternative medicine all in one setting, is the new health paradigm called Integrative Medicine. With the public’s growing concern of being over-medicated by costly and sometimes violent conventional medicine, I am going to explain the movement towards
Adams, Heather P., and Erica L. Carnright. "HPV Infection And Cervical Cancer Prevention." Clinician Reviews 23.9 (2013): 42-50. Academic Search Complete. Web. 10 Nov. 2013
The 5000 year old healing system of Ayurveda is based on the functioning of three units, namely viz three Dosha, seven Dhatu and Mala. These three units are fundamental to the proving an equilibrium of the mind, soul and body. Dosha is the physiology and psychological characteristics found in an individual, Mala is the metabolic endproduct, dhatus are the tissues present in the body.
...nd can cause a variety of serious health problems if not treated. Health complications that are produced by HPV include genital warts, “cervical cancer” and other serious cancers such vulvar, vaginal, uterine, and ovarian all of which are characteristics of gynecological cancers. Starting with a young target audience will allow young women to be conscious and aware of what can lead to cancer. The saying “one thing leads to another” in this aspect is true, knowing details and what triggers cancer is what all women should to know. Based on the concept of this campaign I have a better understanding of gynecological cancer, the five main types of cancer and the risk factors. Through this campaign I am also able to deliver the message to female family members ensuring every woman in my family are aware of gynecological cancer given through the Inside Knowledge campaign.
There are various health traditions and customs in Indian culture. Our traditional lifestyle is oriented towards herbal medicines. Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Herbal medicines, and Yoga are some other health tradition used in treating diseases. Indigenous or traditional medical practitioners continue to practice throughout the country. The two main forms of traditional medicine practiced are the ayurvedic (meaning science of life) system, which deals with causes, symptoms, diagnoses, and treatment based on all aspects of well-being (mental, physical, and spiritual), and the unani (so-called Galenic medicine) herbal medical practice. A vaidya is a practitioner of the ayurvedic tradition, and a hakim (Arabic for a Muslim physician) is a practitioner of the unani tradition. These professions are frequently hereditary ("Health Care in India", n. d.). Traditional healers used herbal medicine to prevent and treat diseases. Yoga is an ancient art of healthy living practiced by saints in India. Yoga is the integration of body, mind, and soul. Practicing yoga regularly helps peop...
Modern medicine is in a period of profound change. Everyday, more and more ideas from other cultures are being transferred and integrated into our society. Many treatments that people are now familiar with have come from other traditions. Aspirin and quinine are two familiar examples of treatments that have been “westernized” by science. Alternative medical traditions will not replace western medicine, but instead are adding a new dimension of treatment that will only strengthen modern medicine. Western medicine is the clear leader in infectious disease, some cancers, heart disease, surgery, emergency medicine and trauma care. However, for the ordinary complaints of everyday life, the aches and pains of joints, bones and muscles, alternative medicine is the best choice of remedy.
Ayurveda is a consciousness-based approach to health. With Ayur meaning life and Veda meaning knowledge or science, Ayurveda is about the science or knowledge of life. It promotes a lifestyle for achieving optimal overall health or “holistic health”. It is an ancient system of healing that originated in India, and is the oldest practiced health care system in the world that is still being used until this day. Ayurveda helps us live in balance with the rest of the earth in the most harmonious way possible.
...lementary and Alternative Medicine. (2012). Acupunture: An Introduction. Retrieved on July 12, 2014 from http://nccam.nih.gov/health/acupuncture/introduction.htm
In today’s world, many people assume that the latest medical technology and treatments are always the best option. However, all over the world, different techniques for curing diseases and aliments are being used. These methods fall under the category of complementary and alternative medicine.
Every year, approximately 230, 000 to 400. 00 deaths are caused by iatrogenic deaths ( in other words, these are deaths caused by wrong medical treatments). Two of the prominent yet some what contrasting types of medicine are, Ayurveda, the Indian traditional medicine, and Modern (aka western) medicine. Both of these have their own processes and methods of healing, which over the years have created their own followers. While Ayurveda addresses the root causes of the disease through identifying the imbalances in the elements, called “Doshas”, it also emphasizes on a spiritual lifestyle which for most people in today's world is a sea change. On the other hand, western medicine addresses the symptoms and provides instant albeit temporary relief for suffering. Needless to say there are more followers of the western medicine due to its immediate impact on subsiding the pain. Out of lack of awareness to the significance of traditional medicine, especially Ayurveda, many doctors and researchers are against the use of Ayurvedic and traditional medicines, which limits the potential of curing certain ailments of patients without additional side effects.
Over the centuries, several treatment methods have been utilized by humans for remedy diseases when they caught. Two of them are modern medicine and traditional medicine. Traditional medicine, which is also called alternative treatment, is older than modern medicine. This effective treatment had been used for many centuries before modern medicine was found. On the contrary, modern medicine has been used since the 1900’s (Lyons). In this system, drugs’ tests are carefully done in the safe laboratories, and their side effects are identified before they are given to the patient. Moreover, the effects of the pills are written on the leaflets which are found in the drug packages to warn the patients for these effects. However, sometimes the side effects are not blocked, so people have to take another pill to get better. It makes people take more chemicals into their bodies. Even traditional medicine, give its place to the modern medicine when its beginning times, it is used efficaciously like modern medicine at the present time. In course of time, people will gain reliance on traditional medicine again, since alternative medicine is more efficient and powerful in order to get better and soothe the diseases than modern medicine. In fact, in traditional medicine, there are fewer drugs, side effects, holistic therapy that people can be availed.
Herbal remedies’ qualities are widespread availability, lower cost, effective for chronic conditions. Herbal remedies are the use of plants or plant extract to treat a person’ overall health. Herbal treatments are prominent for developing countries for instance, “in Africa up to 90% and in India 70% of the population depend on traditional medicine to help meet their health care needs” (Wachtel-Galor & Benzie, 2011), due to their low cost and availability. Herbal remedies have gained attention in the past decades, and expanding their uses due to the increased interest of natural therapies (Wachtel-Galor & Benzie, 2011). Herbs used on the remedies grow in the wild throughout the world, therefore making it easy to
Modern medicine is finally starting to accommodate traditional medicine, though traditional medicine is still overlooked or regarded as a primitive form of treatment, providing nothing but placebo effects. According to the American National Cancer Institute, modern medicine is: