The desire for a more natural lifestyle is prompting many to turn to alternative healing therapies instead of relying on Western medicine. The interest in natural health treatments ranges from traditional Chinese medicine and homeopathy to Indian Ayurvedic cures.
Ayurvedic treatments, believed to have originated some 5,000 years ago, seek to restore and maintain the body's metabolic equilibrium and promote a healthy lifestyle. The treatments include a range of measures to ward off illness, as opposed to treating specific ailments.
According to Ayurvedic belief, man is a composite of three humours or doshas, seven basic tissues (lymph, blood, muscles, body fats, bones, bone marrow and semen), and waste products. Health depends on a balanced state of the body and its functions.
Three texts, collectively known as the Brihasttrayi, are a compendium of Ayurvedic treatments covering eight specialised areas. These are internal medicine, paediatrics, psychiatry, otorhinolaryngology (ear, nose and throat) and ophthalmology, surgery, toxicology, geriatrics, eugenics and aphrodisiacs.
The diagnosis of disease and the use of herbs and minerals are covered in another three texts, the Laghutrayi.
