Ayurveda

‘Ashwagandha’ (Withania somnifera), commonly known as ‘Indian winter cherry’, is a traditional Indian herb that boosts energy, reduces stress and makes the immune system stronger. It is an easily accessible, over-the-counter nutritional supplement in the U.K. and has a proven safety profile. The positive effects of ‘Ashwagandha’ have been observed in Long COVID, which is a multi-system disease with no evidence of its effective treatment or management.

In an interesting development, a team of scientists at the Government of India’s Department of Biotechnology (DBT)’s National Brain Research Centre (NBRC), has identified Mulethi, a commonly used herb, as a potential source for the development of a drug against COVID-19.

India has foiled a major bio-piracy bid on the use of Ashwagandha — India’s wonder plant in the treatment of a range of illnesses including depression, diabetes, insomnia, convulsions and gastritis.

To boost export of AYUSH products, the ministry is also providing incentives to AYUSH drug manufacturers for registration of AYUSH products with US Food and Drug Administration, European drug regulator EMEA, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency-UK, Natural Health Products Directorate of Canada and Therapeutic Goods Administration of Australia and other international regulatory agencies abroad for the purpose of export, Rijiju said

The notification dated November 19 listed the procedures that will be included in the PG training of Ayurveda doctors by amending the Indian Medicine Central Council (Post Graduate Ayurveda Education) Regulations, 2016. It stated that the amendments were being made with the sanction of the central government.

WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus made the announcement in a video message at an event in which PM Modi inaugurated two future-ready Ayurveda institutions in Jaipur and Jamnagar

The Prime Minister will dedicate two future-ready Ayurveda institutions to the nation at the 5th Ayurveda Day on 13th November, 2020. These are the Institute of Teaching & Research in Ayurveda (ITRA), Jamnagar and the National Institute of Ayurveda (NIA), Jaipur.

If you have come across the recent spate of news stories about the terrible effects of long-term sleep deprivation and are worried about you yourself missing out on the recommended 7 to 8 daily hours of shut-eye, there is some re-assurance coming your way from India’s traditional healthcare wisdom. The broad area of study called ‘anidra’ in Ayurveda deals with sleep-deprivation and related conditions, and it offers some time-tested solutions.