Thursday, November 19, 2015

Food as Medicine: Part 4 - India

Food as Medicine:
Part 4 - India
India

India has had a long history with medicine, and is home to perhaps the oldest form of medicine as well. There are some schools of thought that believe it was the Indus Valley civilizations that first began to make strides in the field of medicine, but the proof of Indian medicine is much more solidly proven once the Vedic civilizations came around in 1,000 B.C. In fact, while Vedic medicine branches off in a few different schools, the Ayuveda train of thought is still referenced today for those in search of alternative medicine. 

After exploring ancient healing in China and Greece, India is the final nail in the "these theories are all really similar" coffin. Like Hippocrates and scholars in the Han Dynasty, Vedic medicine postulates that five elements make up all things and have a quality.

Earth is heavy and dry.
Water is cold and wet.
Fire is hot and light.
Wind is light and dry.
Space is light.

All of these elements must be kept in balance in the body according to ancient Ayurveda medicine. Aside from employing methods of heating, moistening and drying, the medicine also used food to counter the combining effects of the elements.

One of the most influential doctors was Mana Bajra Bajracharya. He based his practice on the hereditary knowledge of his patients, prescribing them specific diets based on their family history and after calculating their constitution through specific aspects of their body. He employed three diets: Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Vata covers movement, Pitta governs heat, and kapha encompasses structure; all three make up a healthy body.

For example, to stimulate the Vata, one would eat salty, fatty and hot foods to increase blood flow and stimulate everything from better skin to a better spring in your step. 

Ayurveda is incredibly in-depth and still remains as in-depth and as in use today as it was in ancient times, making it one of the longest lasting forms of medicine. Whether it works as good as modern medicine, that is a debate that holistic supporters and scientific supporters must mince out amongst themselves.
 

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