BENGALURU: One of the most common chronic diseases of the respiratory system, asthma affects more than 300 million people across the world with around one-tenth of them in India. While the prevalence of asthma is higher in developed countries, the burden of asthma-related deaths is much higher in developing countries like India. In fact, according to a report published by the World Health Organisation, over 80 per cent of asthma deaths take place in developing countries.
While environmental allergens like dust, pollen, insects and domesticated animals are the leading triggers of asthma, outdoor air pollution has also emerged as a problematic trigger. With rising environmental pollution, the incidence of respiratory disease is increasing in India, particularly among children. It is important therefore to introduce a holistic approach towards the management of this condition through the use of naturopathy and yoga. Evidence suggests that a naturopathic approach can offer long-term health benefits to people with asthma by reducing the intensity of the disease, improving symptoms and lung function while significantly reducing drug requirement.
Bronchial asthma and its triggers
Bronchial asthma is a condition that causes inflammation in the airways of the lungs. This results in narrowing of the air pathways and excess mucus cause wheezing, cough and difficulty in breathing. The disease is chronic and interferes seriously with daily life. If not treated properly, this chronic inflammatory disease is not just debilitating but can even turn fatal.
Naturopathy, yoga to treat ashthma
Naturopathy is holistic rather than a compartmental way of treating and managing a condition. While modern medicine works in a reactive approach to manage symptoms when they arise, naturopathy works to eliminate the cause and reduce the severity of the disease. The alternative system of medicine believes that all diseases are caused due to an accumulation of toxins in the body and negative vibrations in the mind.
To establish the efficacy of naturopathy, a significant study was conducted at Jindal Naturecure Institute, Bangalore between 2003-2006 and a total number of 60 patients between 25 years to 70 years of age was treated for bronchial asthma for 21 days as part of their research programme. Their treatment procedure was divided into three therapy sections – Nature cure therapy, Diet therapy and Yoga therapy.
Nature Cure therapy consisted of chest pack applied from 30 minutes to an hour once or twice a day depending upon the clinical condition of the patient. This was accompanied by a combination of hot foot and arm bath, partial massage therapy to upper back and chest, fomentation, Asthma Bath, Oxygen Bath, Steam and Sauna Bath, Enema, Steam Inhalation and Drainage therapy.
Under the Diet therapy, patients were prescribed nutritionally calcium-rich, non-mucus and non-acid generating food-items along with herbs such as tulsi, pudina tea etc and lots of water. All
foods which are traditionally known to increase the production of mucus were avoided and the foods which are allergic in individual cases were identified and avoided.
The takeaways
With a high burden of asthma affecting our country, we will do well to use some of our traditional knowledge in dealing with this menace. Modern medicine has so far failed to find a cure for chronic diseases such as asthma. Their treatment protocols focus mostly on relieving symptoms without doing anything to address the root cause of the disease. Naturopathy, on the other hand, incorporates a holistic and individualistic approach for treating different diseases and uproots the disease from its core. This implies treating the individual rather than the disease.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Jindal Naturecure Institute