AYURVED And COVID 19:

Covid 19 is the illness caused by an infection with a new strain of Coronaviruses. This strain was identified first in December 2019 amid an outbreak of respiratory illness in Wuhan, China. The virus is now named officially as SARS- Cov- 2. This infection has spread to nearly all countries, has been declared a pandemic and killed lakhs of people.

Ayurved has its own unique concepts and description of Infectious diseases, their symptoms, classification, and most importantly their very elaborate and efficacious treatment regimen. The knowledge of Infectious diseases has been existent in Ayurved for ages. This fact can be checked by the presence of whole chapters written on various Infectious diseases like Jwara (fever of various types), Rajayakshama( Tuberculosis), Leprosy (Mahakushta), Cholera (Vishuchika), Filariasis( Shlipad) and so on. At present, the exact identification of the causative organism causing an infection, its morphology, classification, etc. has been done by modern medicine via technology. It is through modern medicine that we know the mode of transmission and the underlying disease process in an infection. Complex diagnostic procedures( microscopy, culture, biochemical tests, PCR based tests, etc. ) to pinpoint the exact microorganism are possible today, thanks to technology. Vaccination has been developed as a preventive tool for many Infectious diseases, thanks again to modern medicine. This has certainly changed the whole methodology in dealing with Infectious diseases. Nevertheless, unfortunately, millions of people continue to die in this modern era due to infections and the numbers are mounting up.

1. Cause of Covid 19: Coronaviruses are a group of viruses. The virus that causes Covid 19 is a novel strain. It is similar to the one that caused the SARS pandemic in 2003.

2. Knowledge of Pandemics in Ayurved: Humanity has been ravaged by epidemics and pandemics since prehistoric times. Various organisms have been responsible for such deadly massacres of large populations, for e.g Plague (bacteria), Cholera (bacteria), Yellow fever (virus), Typhoid (bacteria), Smallpox (virus), Influenza (virus) and many more. Ayurvedic classical texts have mentioned epidemics/pandemics as JANAPADODHWANS( janpad = city/village/district ; udhwans=destruction). Many Rishis and scholars used to come together to discuss the solutions for the prevention and treatments of this mass destruction.

3. Symptoms of Covid 19: Covid 19 presents with many signs and symptoms. Although these symptoms vary from patient to patient, still we can list them according to their order of frequency

a. Fever: This is the most common symptom which is seen in most of the patients during the course of illness.

b. Cough: This is the 2nd most common symptom that is also seen in many patients.

c. Fatigue: This is also seen in nearly half of the cases.

d. Loss of appetite.

e. Shortness of breath: This is an alarming symptom since such patients may require hospitalization.

This list is not all-inclusive. Covid 19 is known to present with many unusual symptoms like loss of taste/smell, sore throat, muscle aches, diarrhoea, etc. Also few patients may not present with any symptoms at all.

4. Complications of Covid 19: Covid 19 can develop severe complications in an individual. Let us have a look at them

a. Pneumonia: This is a severe complication.

b. ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome): This is the chief complication that leads to death in many cases.

c. Multiple organ failure

d. sepsis

e. Cardiovascular: Heart failure, arrhythmias, blood clots

f. Neurological: stroke, seizure, encephalitis

There are many more complications that can be caused by this virus, especially in children. Mostly major organs like Lungs, Heart, Kidneys are the most affected which can lead to death.

5. Risk group for Covid 19: The following group of people is most likely to get a serious illness from Covid 19. They are at a greater risk of dying from Covid 19 if infected

a. Old Age: people above 60 years of age

b. Pre-existing medical ailments: Diabetes, hypertension, Cardiovascular disease, Liver disease, Kidney disease, Cancer, etc.

c. Existing respiratory problems

d. Weak Immune systems: those who have chronic ailments, on immunosupressants, etc.

e. Pregnant Women

All such persons need to be very very cautious. They must ensure that they follow all precautions for preventing infection.

6. Steps to prevent Covid 19: Covid 19 is spread through close contact via droplets released into the air when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks. These droplets travel at the most 2 meters and fall on any surface within a few seconds. Touching this contaminated surface and then touching one's face can also cause infection, though less commonly. After knowing this mechanism by which coronavirus spreads, let us have a look at steps by which it can be prevented

a. Social Distancing: Maintaining a physical distance of at least 2 meters from any person(especially those who have any symptoms) is the most crucial step in preventing infection.

b. Frequent Hand Washing: We should wash our hands with soap and water (for at least 20 seconds) since this kills the virus.

Using an alcohol-based sanitizer will also do.

c. Covering the mouth and nose while coughing or sneezing with a tissue paper(with the inside of elbow when tissue is unavailable).

d. Face Masks: This can be done with a simple homemade mask or available masks in the market.

e. Quarantine: This is recommended for those people who have symptoms or are suspected to have come in contact with a known/suspected Covid 19 patient.

This list is also not all-inclusive. In addition any measures that help in preventing infection that are recommended by concerned authorities from time to time must be followed.

7. Ayurvedic treatment of Covid 19: Ayurved has its own unique concepts, nomenclature, understanding, and most importantly very efficacious medicinal treatment of Infectious diseases. How does Ayurved treat Infectious diseases? The treatment of any Infectious disease is done via multiple regimens. Ayurved offers medicines in many forms like decoctions (kaadha), Churna( powder), Vati(tablets), Asava/Arishta, Avaleha(linctus), Siddha Grhita(medicated Ghee), Siddha Taila(medicated Oils), etc. for the patient which can be used depending on the clinical presentation and his physical status (age, strength, constitution, etc). But the most celebrated medicine that Ayurved offers in treatment for infectious diseases is RASAUSHADHI. These are complex Herbo -mineral preparations that form the chief arsenal of medicines in Ayurved. These can be used in very small doses, they don’t require a detailed analysis of the various aspects of the patient(which is a must while using decoctions, etc), they can be used anytime and in any clinical presentation. These advantages impart a RASA VAIDYA (an expert in using Rasaushadhis) a very superior position as compared to his professional counterparts.

Now the main question is which Rasaushadhis are indicated in Covid 19? According to Ayurvedic principles, the answer is those Rasaushadhis which are indicated in the treatment of Jwara(Fever) will be the drug of choice to be administered while treating Covid 19. Why? This can be understood only by an Ayurvedic expert. The expert has a whole list of such medicines to select from. Also, it must be remembered that other forms of medicines like decoctions, etc. are also extremely useful and are used accordingly. At the same time medicines indicated for other symptoms like cough etc. are also beneficial in the treatment of Covid 19. The choice of medicines depends on the exact clinical presentation. In complicated cases too, many such therapies have been mentioned which are not much in practice today. This mostly depends on the competence of the Ayurvedic expert. It is the duty of concerned authorities to explore the possibilities of Ayurved in tackling Corona disease.

8. SPECIAL NOTE: The main difference in Ayurved and modern medicine is the overall approach in treating infectious diseases. What is that difference? Modern medicine targets the organism involved and hence their medicines are chiefly antimicrobials, antibacterial, antiviral, antiprotozoal etc.). These medicines target the infection causing organism and by various mechanisms try to kill them. This has definitely proved to be very beneficial in the short term. The real problem is the side effects of these medicines which range from mild to very severe resulting in many complications which can cause long term, irreversible damage to the patient's organs/systems and even ultimely death. The sad part is that modern medicine doesn't have satisfactory treatments for these side effects which are caused by these medicines. The second most important problem is RESISTANCE to these drugs which has been emerging as a menace for many decades. Modern researchers have to continuously find new drugs to treat such drug-resistant strains. Many microbial strains and species no longer respond to treatment with common antimicrobials. We at amoghsanjeevani have dealt with myriads of such drug-resistant cases where the patients are left with no choice except to come to Ayurved.

Ayurved on the other hand has always dealt with infectious diseases taking a multiple approach. Many such drug combinations, especially RASAUSHADHIS have been formulated to deal with various types of infectious diseases. The best advantage of this is that RESISTANCE is never going to be a problem in Ayurved. Ayurvedic literature has an abundant range of such medicines (the count goes in thousands) with so many diverse combinations that it is impossible to get short of medicines for a particular disease. Also side effects are nearly absent in most of the drugs, even when used for a very long time(in proper doses of course).

We at amoghsanjeevani can only hope that the world accepts the importance of Ayurved. If it doesn't it is at loss.