Ayurveda: Easy ways to keep fit

 It gives me a sense of patriotism when I start writing this hub, as Ayurveda originated from the Indian subcontinent more than 5000 years ago. It is now being practiced all over the world, but little do we know about its immense possibilities. The word originated from two Sanskrit words, the combined meaning of which is 'The knowledge of life'. Ayurveda has its roots during the Vedic period. So advanced was it in its times that it also included surgical procedures. Ayurveda was considered to be as a gift from God and the Hindus used to worship God Dhanvantari as the God of Ayurveda. A knowledge so old and of mythical origin was buried under the sands of time until a few hundred years when it again regained its true potential.
Life is what we see around us. Nature is Gods gift to any living being for its survival, and that is exactly the philosophy behind Ayurveda. Ayurveda believes that the universe is made up of 5 elements namely earth, water, fire, air and ether, and we are all a part of it. As a metaphysical concept it states that there is a connection of each one us with the universe.
However this hub is not about the internal details of Ayurveda, nor does it detail the philosophy behind. I will be writing about a few very common health disorders and there Ayurvedic cure.

1) Acne: This is a disorder of the skin caused due to the secretion of an oily fluid by the sebaceous gland. The oil accumulates causing eruptions on the skin. There are other factors which can cause this disorder, but majority of people suffering are due to the above cause. The most common variations are pimples, blackheads, whiteheads.

Ayurveda Cure: To be very honest, acme does not have a permanent cure in any school of medicines. Ayurveda can considerably control the situation, but cannot remove it 100%. To reduce any kind of acme, follow the below steps. You do no need to do everything given below. You can choose any one or two methods that suits you. Each of these methods independently do wonders.

• Sandalwood paste on your skin is a very effective way to keep your skin healthy. The antimicrobial property of sandalwood has a soothing effect on the skin. It acts as a cooling agent. Believe it or not it is a wonderful medicine for the skin. I would suggest no to use sandalwood lotions available in the market. Make sandalwood paste at your home instead. Use it on the affected areas and keep it for 20 minutes before rinsing it with water. Rosewater with sandalwood is also a very powerful combination which you can use.
• Mix cider vinegar with a pinch of salt and apply on your skin. Cider vinegar is full of vitamins and minerals essential for a healthy skin. Apply it on the affected areas and rinse with water after 20 minutes.
• Mix honey and cinnamon powder in a 3:1 ratio and apply on your skin. Do this exercise before going to sleep. Well, I understand that this is a bit inconvenient, but mark my words, you will not repent after one week.

There are other Ayurveda treatments available for acme, but I give you the most effective ones. The other treatments available are equally good, but these are my personal favourites.

 2) Asthma: This is a chronic disorder and can happen to you either by environmental or genetic factors. In simple words the main symptom of asthma is difficulty in taking breath. This happens due to the muscle constriction, swelling and irritation inside our airways thereby narrowing the passage for air into our lungs. Here is how Ayurveda takes on this disorder.

Ayurveda Cure: Like acme, asthma also does not have a permanent cure. However through Ayurveda asthma can be minimised to such a large extent that it is as good as getting cured. Again I give a few ways, it is for you to choose at your convenience.

• Dilute garlic juice with warm water and take 250 ml per day. Use 5-7 cloves of garlic to prepare the juice.
• Mix ginger juice with one cup of fenugreek extract. You may or may not add honey for taste. The result is one of the finest known natural expectorants to mankind. Regular consumption of this combination reduces asthma to a bare minimum.
• Another wonderful natural expectorant is the combination of onion juice, grated black pepper, garlic juice and honey. Mix these in the ratio of 5:1:3:2 and have it once a day. You will be surprised to feel the difference.

3) Obesity: This cannot be characterised under a disease, rather it is the cause of a handful of diseases. Obesity in simple words means excessive fat. It is the phenomenon of gaining body weight due to unwanted accumulation of fat in certain areas, particularly stomach, thighs, waist, breast, buttock. Obesity untreated leads to all sorts of diseases like diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension etc.

Ayurveda Cure: This has less remedies and more diet /exercise disciplines. However you can balance between the two so that you have not stripped yourself from your favourites. I provide you the best combination of health and taste.

• Once a day drink a mixture of honey and lime juice with grated white pepper added to the solution. This helps to burn fat.
• You may still eat meat, but be sure to boil them well before eating. Try to fit in boiled cabbage to your regular meal (at least while eating meat). The idea is to restrict the conversion of sugar by our body from fat (from the meat) by eating cabbage, since it has a natural ability to metabolize foods the fat.
• Always drink boiled water after meal. Boiled water has the property to trim fat.
• It is essential to do exercise for all obese people. Exercise means loosening the already gained fat as well as not letting extra fat settle in your body. Patience is a big factor when you are fighting with obesity. All I can say is that the end result will be sweet.

 4) Insomnia: Again, this is not a disease, it is a symptom. It is chracterised by the difficulty to fall asleep. The exact reasons for insomnia have not been found by medical science yet. Statistics say that this symptom is marginally female dominated. Each one of us experience this sleeping disorder from time to time, but when it repeats frequently, things get serious. We all need good sleep to give rest to our senses, to our nervous system, to our body as a whole. 

Ayurveda Cure: The 'cure' has not been appropriate for obesity. So is it not for insomnia, as I stress upon the fact that it is not a disease. There are many sedatives availaible in the medicine shops for you to fall sleep, but none are without side effects. But  Ayurveda has its own side effect free ways.

• Make fine powder of calamus root and add to milk or warm water. Consume this 3 times a day. For 200 ml milk or water you need one teaspoon of this powder. The root in powdered form is available in the market. You will have to wait a few days to feel the difference. Always use American calamus root.
• For relaxing your senses before going to sleep you can rub the combination of calamus powdered, warm water, sesame oil on your forehead. The easiest way to make this combination is to boil the powder in hot water, take out the filtrate and add sesame oil to it.

5) Migraine: This is characterised with intense headache, acute vomiting tendency, repulsion from noise and light. It is a neurological syndrome and is more common in women than men. In most of the cases it is genetic whereas there are cases otherwise. The headache lasts for an hour to a number of hours and often a good night sleep is the only cure.

Ayurveda Cure: The cure involves a few remedies as well as diet and prevention technique. Avoiding of direct sunlight, frequent temperature change (from AC to non AC environments) can reduce the initiation of migraine headache. Avoiding of oily food has also given relief to a lot of patients. The below points can be followed as remedy.

• Ginger is a wonderful migraine suppressor. Consumption of ginger in any form gives help. Ideally one should intake ginger in powdered form with water.
• Reduction of sugar in diet and drinking of more water and vegetable stock also decreases the frequency.