The dangers lurking in Ayurveda – why the holistic therapy is doing more harm than good

Sly Saint · Oct 17, 2023

(Telegraph article from 5 months ago)

It was a surprise how many Indians were shocked by the study’s findings – drinking cow urine was found to be significantly harmful to human health.

The research carried out by the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) discovered urine samples from healthy cows contained 14 types of harmful bacteria. Escherichia coli, which causes stomach infections, was most commonly detected.

Cow urine has long been purported as having a host of health-giving benefits by those who practise ‘Ayurveda’, an alternative, holistic medicine system that derives its teachings from Hindu scriptures and can trace back its roots in India more than 2,000 years.

Involving a mixture of herbal medicines, medical oils and mineral substances, as well as adherence to a strict diet and often the practice of yoga and meditation, Ayurveda is considered a pseudoscience by many in the West.

But at least 77 percent of Indians use Ayurvedic products, according to a 2017 report, with this figure expected to have grown further since the Covid-19 pandemic.

The industry is worth £7.8 billion, and a quick Google search displays a host of major Ayurveda firms advertising products.

Patanjali, India’s largest Ayurvedic firm, sells a medicine containing bottled cow urine for 50p which promises to “cure eczema, control diabetes and cancer”. Easy Ayurveda, another brand, provides customers detailed instructions on how to distil urine, claiming it is useful against a host of conditions from leprosy to asthma.
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The dangers lurking in Ayurveda – why the holistic therapy is doing more harm than good (msn.com)

rvallee · Oct 17, 2023

But it's holistic. How can it be bad?!

Sean · Oct 17, 2023

hellisitic

Peter Trewhitt · Oct 17, 2023

The article refers to it as ‘alternative’ medicine, but surely if it has been the dominant form of medicine in India for several thousand years and is still used by 77% of Indians it is ‘mainstream’ medicine.

However simply being mainstream does not guarantee efficacy, as in the UK GET/CBT was for a number of years the go to treatment for ME/CFS despite evidence of harm.

JemPD · Oct 18, 2023

Peter Trewhitt said: ↑

However simply being mainstream does not guarantee efficacy, as in the UK GET/CBT was for a number of years the go to treatment for ME/CFS despite evidence of harm.
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loving the use of the past tense there PEter

Sean said: ↑

hellisitic
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