Almost 5,000 years ago, Ayurveda was born and it brought a very drastic change to healthcare. With the use of natural herbs and minerals, ayurvedic medicines have been treating millions. The term Ayurveda took birth by combining two words - “Ayur”means life and “Veda” means knowledge and it is all about life-rejuvenating practices. Though ayurvedic medicines have its roots in sacred historical books, the science has evolved over the ages to become even more operative and integrated than before. It is the science of life as well as a holistic system of medicine that guides the body to live harmoniously with a perfect balance between the body, mind, and environment. Ayurveda classifies the five elements as the building blocks of all matter i.e. air, space, water, fire and earth.According to the science, these 5 elements are energetically represented in the human body and the body the combination of these elements lead to one’s Ayurvedic identity i.e. Dosha. The three doshas are - Vata (space & air),Pitta (fire & water) and Kapha (earth). Here are some health benefits of adopting an Ayurvedic lifestyle and how it helps dealing with all chronic to daily health issues:

1. It is all about your doshas: While many may scoff at this idea, the three doshas define a person’s health and personality. An Ayurvedic practitioner can tell what disease a person is suffering from just by taking a patient’s pulse and understanding the balance of the doshas. A Kapha imbalance may lead to ailments like congestion, swelling, lung problems, and lethargy while a Pitta patient may experience inflammation of joints, tissues and organs or migraines,neck stiffness, etc.

2. No specialist in this field: Ayurveda doesn’t have a specialist for different diseases.  The different systems of the body are strongly connected to each other, curing one dosha imbalance helps pacify another as well and that is the essence of Ayurveda. The science looks at the body as a whole and focuses on bringing in harmony between the body, mind and soul to allow a person to feel healthy.
3. No Side Effects: This is one of the best facts about ayurvedic medicines.The medicines are mainly obtained from of pure herbs and minerals. The science basically uses what is available in nature’s bounty and thus is not known to have any side effects. The chemicals in allopathic medicines have grave side effects and that is why people assume that Ayurvedic medicines also have side effects but this is not true. Having said this, anything in excess can be harmful. 

4. The factors of diagnosis: Ayurveda uses the Astavidha rogi pariksha or eight method system to examine a patient. These methods involve checking a person’s pulse, urine, stool, voice, tongue, skin, eyes and body build. This helps a doctor to understand which humor could be imbalanced and give medicines according to the need.

5. Your health attunes to your atmosphere: It might be a little difficult to believe but according to Ayurveda what a person eats, drinks, how a person feels can also affect your health. These environmental conditions mitigate your doshas and hence if a person’s environment isn’t good, the dosha is mostly aggravated and this results in health issues.

6. Kills the cause, not the symptoms: Ayurvedic medicine treats a disease by attacking the root cause. This may take longer to action but results in a long lasting result too i.e. removing ‘ama’ (ailment) from the body and thus allowing the body to function properly.

7. It has specialties: While Ayurveda doesn’t have specialists for every health issues, it does have specialties or different branches of treatment. Rasayana (rejuvenation), Shalya-chikitsa (surgery), Agadtantra (toxicology), Shalakya(diseases above the shoulder), Kayachikitsa (internal medicine), Kaumarabhritya (pediatrics), Vajikarana (aphrodisiacs), Bhuta Vidya (psychiatry) are some of the specialties of Ayurvedic medicine. These approaches treat every complication encountered by the human body in a different manner and thus give effective results.

Ayurveda is the science of life. Thus, it is a lifestyle that one shall undertake to feel a difference in their body rather than just curative medicine. Ayurveda is a holistic union of mind, body and soul that involves ingestion, digestion, absorption, assimilation and metabolism to create the perfect balance of the body.