Arthritis should be flagged along with BP and diabetes: Experts

Even though there are 60 million arthritis patients in India the disease is yet to be considered a major noncommunicable disease NCD by the authorities experts said at a global conclave in Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala on December 2This was highlighted during a session at the ongoing fifth edition of Global Ayurveda Festival WAF on challenges posed by diseases which are not spread by humantohuman contact but pose major health problems such as diabetes blood pressure and heart ailmentsDr Arvind Chopra Ayush Distinguished Chair for Public Health and Epidemiology said a national survey on musculoskeletal pain had shown that those affected by arthritis are 032 per centBut that number when multiplied by the Indian population figures shows there are 60 million people affected by it Moreover many people affected by the problem do not seek medical help until it aggravates to a serious level said ChopraDiseases like arthritis and diabetes can be controlled effectively if Ayurveda treatments are given in combination with other treatments the experts said at the fiveday conclave which began on SaturdayProfessor Anup Thakar director of the Institute for PostGraduate Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Jamnagar Gujarat and Valdis Pirags professor of Medicine University of Latvia presented evidence from different studies to show that the use of Ayurveda in combination with yoga can effectively control and even reverse diabetic conditions in peopleThakar said a global study done in 2021 found that 532 million people were suffering from diabetes and the number was projected to hit 783 million by 2045ldquoWhat is more scary is that 266 million people identified as diabetics in the survey didnt know they had a health problemrdquo he saidPirags who has translated some works on Ayurveda into Latvian presented a detailed study to show how the hypothalamus area of the brain that controls endocrine systems affects diabetics and presented evidence about the benefits that Ayurveda treatment brings to such patientsHe said combining the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda and modern methods of western medicine is the way forwardProfessor S Gopakumar Government Ayurveda College Kannur Kerala presented case studies from his experience to show how Ayurveda provided effective treatment even in aggravated diabetic and respiratory casesHe pointed out that the modern medical methods were not having the desired effect on the patients forcing them to seek his helpHe also said the recent spike in air pollution levels in New Delhi emphasised the need to improve immunity at the community level rather than approaching it at an individual levelThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever