Dr. Samir Kumar Saha :
The World Health Day is observed around the world, including in Bangladesh, on April 7 to raise awareness on global health. In its First World Health Assembly in 1948, WHO decided to celebrate 7 April of each year, with effect from 1950, as the World Health Day. In Bangladesh, different programmes are held on the day.
There is no denying the fact that our health sector needs further improvement, because many people are being deprived of getting proper healthcare facilities. On the occasion, I would like to highlight the issue of Ayurveda, a traditional system of medicine, in our health sector. This system of medicine can play a significant role in the health sector, giving health benefits to our people.
Ayurveda is one of the world’s oldest holistic (whole-body) healing systems whose fundamental concept is to maintain health. It offers a body of wisdom designed to help people stay vibrant and healthy while realizing their full human potential. Ayurveda is now backed by modern scientific research and technologies and provides its gentle healing touch to millions around the world. The aim of Ayurveda is to provide guidance regarding food and lifestyle so that healthy people can stay healthy and folks with health challenges can improve their health.
It is now one of the most recognized and widely practiced disciplines of alternative medicine in the world. Some of the popular practices of Ayurveda are meditation, yoga, chanting, breathing exercises, panchakarma and herbs. Ayurveda emphasizes re-establishing balance in the body through diet, lifestyle, exercise, and body cleansing, and on the health of the mind, body, and spirit. Ayurveda is a natural health care system and its main objective is to achieve optimal health and well-being through a comprehensive approach that addresses mind, body, behaviour and environment. Its adherents strive to create harmony between every unit of body system.
Ayurveda provides a holistic concept of how people can cure diseases and lead healthy life with proper application of healthy foods, medication and exercise.
Ayurvedic medicine promotes the use of herbal compounds, special diets, and other unique health practices. Practitioners draw from more than 20 types of treatment, but the most commonly prescribed include: breathing exercises, rubbing the skin with herbal oil to increase blood circulation and draw toxins out of the body through the skin, using mantras (repeated words or phrases) during meditation combined with certain herbs to rejuvenate a person, combining pranayama, movement, and meditation and cleansing the body to purify it and reduce cholesterol.
This traditional medicinal system also has further advantages in reducing our dependency on costly imported medicines and instead uses local resources for development of cost-effective medicines. Many modern drugs have been discovered from close observations of traditional medicinal practices.
Over 300 species of plants have been reported for their medicinal properties. Focus on natural products is increasing day by day as it serves as an enormous source of new drugs. The whole world is witnessing a resurgence of interest in traditional medicinal systems evolved in different parts of the world. About 80% people in the developing countries now rely on traditional plant-based medicines for their primary health care. The formulations of Ayurveda have been used with success for treatment of diseases in the Indian sub-continent for over three millennia and are now gradually being recognized by modern science as a remarkable method of treatment. This ancient system is gaining a new specialty and dimension in our country with standardized forms of formulations and adoption of modern manufacturing methods. Traditional medicine is deeply rooted in the cultural heritage of Bangladesh.
Ayurveda has recently been recognized by western scientists for its ability to cure a number of diseases. If such diseases can be treated successfully with Ayurveda, it can not only provide a cost-effective way of treatment, but can also revolutionize the pharmaceutical and health sector of this country.
Bangladesh has a rich diversity of medicinal plants of which a large section remains unexplored. It is our time-honoured duty to explore the potential resources and use these plant species in a manner where Bangladesh people can remain healthy and free from diseases. Both India and China have shown that how traditional medicinal systems can be utilized in the proper development of the entire health sector of the countries, Bangladesh should not lag behind.
Ayurvedic doctors are gaining recognition in recent years in our neighbouring countries. Sri Lanka, India, Bhutan, Pakistan and Nepal are examples. India has recognized some of the principles and therapeutics of Ayurveda as a mode of intervention to some community health problems. Sri Lanka has a separate Ministry of Alternative Medicine. Given the continuing health challenges that countries like Bangladesh face, we have no choice but to develop and harness all system of medicine and treatment. The positive features of Ayurved and naturopathy are diversity, accessibility, affordability and wide acceptance. Ayurvedic medicine with its availability and affordability can be an alternative choice to us.
Our country is in serious crisis with shortage of allopathic medicine practitioners e.g. doctors, nurses and midwives. The dearth of this shortage in allopathic workforce can be well compensated if the Ayurvedic workforce could be utilized and recruited in our health system.
It is high time we recognize the potential of Ayurvedic medicine and its workforce. It is needed to awaken interest in Ayurveda among young generations of the country and spur new research and development. If we can develop Ayurveda and Unani, we will feel its effectiveness as a remedy for chronic and life style related diseases. We need research to establish traditional medicines in Bangladesh on a scientific basis.
A number of problems are hampering the growth of the natural system of treatment in Bangladesh. If we can take necessary steps for solving those, the system will be developed. The steps are: giving government patronization to the sector, appointment of Ayurvedic and Unani graduates (BAMS and BUMS doctor) at different hospitals and health complexes, arrangement of higher education for BAMS & BUMS graduates, establishing Ayurvedic and Unani Medical College at each division and making herbal garden at each district, ensuring production of quality Ayurvedic & Unani medicines and formation of a separate council like BMDC for monitoring Ayurvedic and Unani systems.
If we want to see the development in our health sector and ensure improved healthcare to people, we have to take the steps and implement those fully. It is high time that the traditional medicinal practices of the country play an important role in the health care system of Bangladesh and benefit its people. If we can harness its potentials, we can ensure health benefits of our people.
As many of our people are poor, they have no financial ability to continue treatment spending huge amount of money. In the traditional system, a patient can avail of treatment facilities with less spending. Besides, its drugs have no side-effect. The traditional system of treatment deserves our attention, as it has more advantages in providing healthcare to people.
If proper initiatives are taken, this system of treatment will be improved further, providing improved healthcare to our people. It is hoped that awareness among the people would be raised about the traditional system of treatment and the concerned authorities would take necessary steps for increasing its acceptance among the people.
