Panchakarma – The Five petal lotus from Ayurveda

A true blog based on Samhitas

Panchakarma is one of the most well-known treatment procedures in Ayurveda. There are a lot of misconceptions about both Ayurveda & Panchakarma. So many people ask Vaidya (Ayurvedic practitioner), can I take Panchakarma treatment? Everywhere, we could see many centers offering ayurvedic detoxification, Kerala panchakarma, etc. What is Panchakarma? What should you give attention to while doing it? Let’s dive in-depth.

In Ayurveda, treatment procedures are broadly categorized as Shodana (Cleansing) & Shamanam (alleviate).

In Shodhana Chikitsa, with the help of medication, the aggravated Dosha ( Vata, Pitta & Kapha) gets expelled from the body. The following treatments come under Shodhana Chikitsa

Vasti – Medicated Enema
Vamana – Emesis
Virechana – Purgation
Nasya – Nasal Treatment
Raktamokshana – Bloodletting

These treatments together are known as Pancha Karma (Pancha Means 5).

In Shamana Chikitsa, with the help of medication, “thri-doshas” (Vata, Pitta & Kabha) are brought to normalcy, but without expelling the aggravated doshas from the body. This includes medicines to increase the digestive fire, medications that help proper digestion, Upavasam (fasting), exercise, etc.

As we discussed already, Panchakarma involves five main procedures. Before undergoing each of these treatments, one has to follow and do certain things before and after. These help us get the desired result for that karma. All these treatments can’t be done in any season; similarly, they can’t be exercised on all kinds of people. These indications and contraindication are discussed in detail in Ayurveda.

Let’s see a few contraindications.

Vamana(Emesis) should not be exercised on pregnant women, children, people with heart disease, weak, very lean, or overweight.

Virechana(Purgation) should not be exercised on people having newly originated fever, diarrhea, less digestive fire, or any bleeding disorder.

Similarly, certain conditions are there for each treatment in the Panchakarma process. Considering nature, health condition of the person, stage of the disease, climate, and detailed observation, the vaidya (practitioner) decides which treatments have to be done.

Snehanam and Swedanam are two preparatory treatments done before starting the Panchakarma.

Snehanam: Depending on the health & diseased condition of the person, certain medicated oils, ghee, vasa, or bone marrow have to be decided and given orally every day for 3 to 7 days. The quantity consumed increases day by day, and continues still specific symptoms are observed. Strict dietary restrictions have to be followed while doing these along with enough rest, both mental and physical. During this period, you should not sleep during day time and should sleep at night, also use only warm water for all daily activities like washing your body, brushing, etc. You should not talk too much or get exposed to sunlight or heavy wind. Noncompliance to these will bring troubles and adverse effects from fatigue to fever. One should take food only once or twice a day that too easily digestible and warm. Continuous monitoring is essential to decide what to do and what not to do daily during the treatment.

Swedanam: After doing Snehanam for up to 3 days, medicated oil is applied to the body, and a steam bath is taken. These two procedures will help bring back the aggravated doshas to the koshta ( gastrointestinal tract) from the other body parts. In the course of Swedanam, specific food has to be taken based on what panchakarma treatments are decided to follow. Vaidya will fix this after observing the patient.

Snehanam & Swedanam will help the proper removal of impurities from the body. Now let’s look into the primary treatment procedures in Panchakarma which follow after this.

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Vamanam: In this process, with the aid of medicines, impurities are removed from the body through vomiting. This is important for managing increased Kapha.

Virechanam: In this treatment, with the aid of medicine, impurities are escalated from the body through stools. This is important for increased Pitta, and other conditions arise due to imbalanced Pitta.

Vasti: In Vasti, special medicated decoction or medicated oil and ghee in a specific ratio is taken, and enema is given with that for a specific time. All impurities come out along with medicines given after some time. This is important for excess Vata and related issues.

Nasyam/ Shiro Virechanam: Nostrils are the entry point to the head. For all diseases related to the head and above the shoulder, Nasyam is the main treatment procedure. Medicated oil, ghee, powder form of herbs, extracted juice of herbs will be used for Nasyam, and these will bring out the vitiated dosha through nostril. The medicine is directly poured into the nostrils. Broadly two types of treatment lines are there with Nasyam

Prathimarsham Nasyam: 1 or two drops applied in each nostril. It can be done every day to all age groups.

Marsha Nasyam: Medication is used in larger doses ( 4,8,16,32 drops) for a specific time period.

Rakta Mokshanam: Draining impure blood from our body. This is done in two ways. One way is using leeches to suck blood, and the other through draining at specific quantities through blood vessels using needles.

Once the whole treatment is over, the vital energy levels and digestive fire will be slow & low. So one has to be careful with the strict diet, physical exertion and should follow guidelines prescribed by vaidya after observing your condition. After a few days, you can resume normal daily life and routines.

The treatment is more personalized for each individual, depending on Prakriti and health conditions. Which and all treatments are to be done? When to do it? What medicines to use? Which food to take, all these are decided by the Vayida after keen observation. Improper treatment may bring more trouble to the patient than any benefit. So one must understand the treatment and take it seriously. Make sure you undertake it with proper guidance and with experienced practitioners.

Not just diseased, a healthy person could also take Panchakarma. Our improper daily routines and climate will bring imbalance to our body, and Panchakarma will help restore balance by properly eliminating impurities and keeping you healthy and immune to diseases.

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Are you Diabetic? Be free from Diabetes through Ayurveda

Be free from Diabetes through Ayurveda

Give your health some priority; consider spending some time reading this exclusive content. It is like an investment, how you seed a plant – It needs time to grow and show results. The whole world is like a fast food store now, everyone needs quick one-shot solutions, but our body doesn’t work that way all the time.

Namaste,

This blog is part of a three-part series on Diabetic and Ayurveda. Here we throw some light on understanding the disease, how modern treatment works, does to your body, and how, with Ayurveda, you could completely cure the disease.

Here we try to understand what is diabetic and how you developed diabetes. It is essential to know that because once you get cured, you should not be inviting it again.

Before getting to details, let me answer your curious mind. Is diabetes completely curable with Ayurvedic treatment? The answer is YES, it is. Type 2 diabetes is completely curable, and we could effectively manage Type 1 diabetes with treatment, all these if you are ready to follow certain things. We will see more in detail soon.

In a healthy body

Once the food digests, the glucose from food gets into our bloodstream. As the sugar level in blood increases, it triggers the pancreas to start secreting insulin hormone. So now you have insulin also in the blood. The liver, muscles, and adipose tissues absorb glucose from blood with the help of this insulin. Thus our cells get enough sugar, and the body gets energy. As the sugar gets absorbed by cells, sugar levels in the blood come to normal, and insulin production gets reduced.

The disease

In the so-called diabetic condition cells fail to absorb enough glucose from the bloodstream; without sugar, our cells can’t function properly, which will affect all the organs and overall functions of our body. It invites so many troubles.

Why can’t cells absorb glucose?

There are two probable pieces of knowledge we have

a) Insulin resistance of Cells (Type 2 Diabetic): Our cells need insulin to absorb glucose from blood; what if cells can’t absorb enough insulin? They can’t get enough glucose too. This is the most commonly observed diabetic condition.

b) Less insulin in the bloodstream (Type 1 Diabetic): What if enough insulin is not getting produced by your pancreas. Without enough insulin, cells can’t absorb glucose. Type 1 diabetic condition is not that prevalent.

Why you should treat it early.

Type -2 Diabetic is the most common diabetic condition comparatively easy to manage; on the other hand, Type – 1 Diabetic is hard to reverse. But improperly treated type 2 diabetes converts into Type – 1 diabetes over time and becomes hard to reverse. So you have to take proper treatment as early as possible.

Are you diabetic

When you have diabetes, your cells are not consuming glucose from the bloodstream, and sugar levels in your blood increase. Naturally, the body tries to wash out excess glucose in the blood through urine. So now, to throw out excess glucose, the body will increase the urine output, for that more body fluid are used and cause dehydration in the body. This gets expressed as excessive thirst and dryness of the mouth.

As we know, glucose gives us energy, and when cells can’t absorb glucose, it makes cells starve, and the person feels fatigued.

In the next blog in this series, we will discuss how modern medicine treats diabetes and its impacts on your body and health. Also please do share your comments and and questions, so that we could address them in the upcoming blogs.

Kiran on Diabetes – Reversal Or Just Relief ?16th August 2022
Great article Informative Insights into the root cause and remedy
George on Are you Diabetic? Be free from Diabetes through Ayurveda14th January 2022
Congratulations
Lakshmi N on A Journey from Cervical Spondylosis to Vata Vyadhi17th June 2021
Very much informative. Thank You
Sajith Thotton Karakkadan on Ayurvedic Home Remedies – Series 123rd January 2021
Great…Thank You for Sharing
Sowmiya on Ayurvedic Home Remedies – Series 17th January 2021
Thank you for such a valuable information mam…it is very helpful for us …

Discovering the Diversity of Indian Medicine: A Guide to Traditional Healing
In this blog series, we’ll explore different types of traditional Indian medicine. It’s important to know that not all traditional Indian healing methods are the same. Ayurveda, for example, is just one of many.
AHARA, The Dietary Regimens of Ayurveda
If you know which Doshas are contributing to your discomfort, you could easily decide which food you can have and what to avoid with this simple idea of taste. Ayurveda classifies the basic six different tastes based on their effects on Tridosha.
Diabetes – Reversal Or Just Relief ?
Sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy food habits, stress, improper sleeping habits, etc results in the accumulation of fats over cells, and slowly cells become insulin resistant.
Are you Diabetic? Be free from Diabetes through Ayurveda
This blog is part of a three-part series on Diabetic and Ayurveda. Here we throw some light on understanding the disease, how modern treatment works, does to your body, and how, with Ayurveda, you could completely cure the disease.
Kalyani, The beautiful woman.
Women undergo lots of physical and mental changes in their life like puberty, menstrual cycle, pregnancy, menopause, and so on. In all these stages, she needs certain care, nourishment, and support. But in our new lifestyle, we ignore those aspects. It affects her health- the mother.

12th January 2022/1 Comment/by arogyaniketan_in

Awareness, Blog

Kalyani, The beautiful woman.

Kalayani represents every woman in us. She is Beautiful; Auspicious; Blessed; Blissful and Fortunate

Why do we focus on Women’s health? They are the ones who are least bothered about their health. They have lots of excuses like they don’t have enough time, nobody takes care of their wellbeing, not enough financials, and the list never ends. Because of the negligence, even the easily curable diseases become incurable or end up in complications. We are trying to educate them, make them aware of the magic hands of Ayurveda.

Compared to men, women undergo lots of physical and mental changes in their life like puberty, menstrual cycle, pregnancy, menopause, and so on. In all these stages, she needs certain care, nourishment, and support. But in our new lifestyle, we ignore those aspects. It affects her health- the mother.

Their emotional and physical imbalances affect our kids in many ways; it reflects personal, social relationships and society. So for a healthy generation, we should shift our attention to women’s health, among other things.

We are focusing on issues like PCOD, PCOS, obesity, thyroid problems, hormonal changes, and also we urge to bring back the traditional wisdom on caring women and her health, to bring back the smile in her,

Be Responsible for your health. We can help you in that path of yours, holding your hand in every step – to regain the true beauty in you. Kalayani represents every woman in us. She is Beautiful; Auspicious; Blessed; Blissful and Fortunate

Discovering the Diversity of Indian Medicine: A Guide to Traditional Healing
In this blog series, we’ll explore different types of traditional Indian medicine. It’s important to know that not all traditional Indian healing methods are the same. Ayurveda, for example, is just one of many.
AHARA, The Dietary Regimens of Ayurveda
If you know which Doshas are contributing to your discomfort, you could easily decide which food you can have and what to avoid with this simple idea of taste. Ayurveda classifies the basic six different tastes based on their effects on Tridosha.
Diabetes – Reversal Or Just Relief ?
Sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy food habits, stress, improper sleeping habits, etc results in the accumulation of fats over cells, and slowly cells become insulin resistant.
Are you Diabetic? Be free from Diabetes through Ayurveda
This blog is part of a three-part series on Diabetic and Ayurveda. Here we throw some light on understanding the disease, how modern treatment works, does to your body, and how, with Ayurveda, you could completely cure the disease.
Kalyani, The beautiful woman.
Women undergo lots of physical and mental changes in their life like puberty, menstrual cycle, pregnancy, menopause, and so on. In all these stages, she needs certain care, nourishment, and support. But in our new lifestyle, we ignore those aspects. It affects her health- the mother.

17th October 2021/0 Comments/by arogyaniketan_in

Awareness, Blog

Exercise Tips for Managing PCOD

Truthful Words, Healthy Food, Selfless Actions

That is the key to your health

Proper exercise is a crucial element for curing PCOD. In people with PCOD, insulin resistance and decreased metabolic rate are commonly observed. Doing Regular Exercise will bring visible changes in you in no time. When we say exercise, it is not only physical but mental too. Here, we will help you get started with a few exercise patterns that benefit people suffering from PCOD.

Physical Exercises

Cardio
High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)
Strength Training

When you have Active PCOD, you have to do exercise daily for a minimum of 30 min. HIIT needs to be done once or twice weekly. Rest of the days, you could do Cardio and Strength Training Exercises. Below is an effective and simple workout session schedule which spans 30 minutes.

5 Min	Warmup
10 Min	Cardio/ HIIT
5 Min	Cool Down
5 Min	Breathing Exercise (Pranayama)
5 Min	Meditation

Make your workout sessions fun and enjoyable

Now let’s see in detail about HIIT Workout.

HIIT – High-Intensity Workout Followed By Moderate or Low-intensity Recovery. Where you perform a 60 second workout followed by a 60 second recovery, it is called 1-to-1. When you begin with a HIIT for the first time, you can start with a 1-to-3 work to recovery ratio. As your Fitness Level improves, you can increase the workout to recovery ratio and aim it to 1-to-1.

A 20 min HIIT session schedule below

5 Min	Warm up
10 Min (15 sec workout followed by 45 sec rest * 10)	You could select 5 to 6 workout plans and repeat them. Each one will take 1 minute. Do 10 such workout plans. So it will take 10min
5 Min	Relaxation

It is better to work out early in the morning or late evening, on an empty stomach.

Mental Exercise are equally important as Physical Exercises

People with PCOD suffer from sleeplessness, depression, and anxiety. So Mental exercises are important. In your 10 Min schedule for mental exercise, do Pranayam (properly guided breathing exercise) for 5 minutes followed by Meditation for 5 min.

The above workout schedule session is perfect for a person with PCOD and also it is apt for Obesity. Once you are free from PCOD, you should continue doing exercise regularly to maintain your health. Do at least 2 to 3 days a week. Physical activities are as important as Food for healthy body and mind.

Note: During Menstrual days, one must avoid Physical Exercises.

Discovering the Diversity of Indian Medicine: A Guide to Traditional Healing
In this blog series, we’ll explore different types of traditional Indian medicine. It’s important to know that not all traditional Indian healing methods are the same. Ayurveda, for example, is just one of many.
AHARA, The Dietary Regimens of Ayurveda
If you know which Doshas are contributing to your discomfort, you could easily decide which food you can have and what to avoid with this simple idea of taste. Ayurveda classifies the basic six different tastes based on their effects on Tridosha.
Diabetes – Reversal Or Just Relief ?
Sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy food habits, stress, improper sleeping habits, etc results in the accumulation of fats over cells, and slowly cells become insulin resistant.
Are you Diabetic? Be free from Diabetes through Ayurveda
This blog is part of a three-part series on Diabetic and Ayurveda. Here we throw some light on understanding the disease, how modern treatment works, does to your body, and how, with Ayurveda, you could completely cure the disease.
Kalyani, The beautiful woman.
Women undergo lots of physical and mental changes in their life like puberty, menstrual cycle, pregnancy, menopause, and so on. In all these stages, she needs certain care, nourishment, and support. But in our new lifestyle, we ignore those aspects. It affects her health- the mother.
Exercise Tips for Managing PCOD
When we say exercise, it is not only physical but mental too. Here, we will help you get started with a few exercise patterns that benefit people suffering from PCOD.
These foods can help you take care of PCOD
In Ayurveda, food has classification based on its quality to affect tridoshas (Kabha, Vata, and Pita) and other vital body functions. Most of the time, properly evaluating your health condition as per Ayurveda and adjusting your food based on that can bring the cure.
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An Ordinary Man with an Extraordinary Effort!
Let’s Meet Mr. K G Ramesh, who is sitting in the tree shades at ‘Lakshmis Attall’, a forest that hosts more than 1500 species of medicinal plants which he and his family raised in the land adjoining their home.
Old is Gold – Swarnaprashan
In a 5000 years old Classical Ayurvedic text there is a preparation of medication that has GOLD as the main ingredient and administered to newborn up to 16 years old kids. It is called Swarnaprashan. Swarna means GOLD & Prashan means consume.

22nd September 2021/0 Comments/by arogyaniketan_in

Panchakarma – The Five petal lotus from Ayurveda

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Are you Diabetic? Be free from Diabetes through Ayurveda

Kalyani, The beautiful woman.

Exercise Tips for Managing PCOD

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Panchakarma – The Five petal lotus from Ayurveda

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