Ayurveda as a wellness medical science churns interest among foreign students

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<strong>As Ayurveda gains acceptable and popularity across the globe amid the Covid 19 pandemic, more and more students are looking to take up this form of traditional medicine for higher studies. At present, the Jaipur based National Institute of Ayurveda under the aegis of the Ministry of Ayush has about 50 foreign students mainly from Nepal, Bhutan, West Indies and Sri Lanka. The total number of students is around 1100. </strong></p>
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“There is a lot of interest around this form of medicine from across the world. It has been accepted that Ayurveda as a line of treatment supports the conventional health system and it is time we have professional specialists with proper domain knowledge in this field,” Sanjeev Sharma, vice chancellor, NIA told India Narrative.</p>
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Sharma said that one of the major challenges is to weed out people who are practicing without proper knowledge and certificate.</p>
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He also noted that post the pandemic demand for Ayurveda medicine has shot up. “We have also seen a surge in exports for our Ayurveda medicines including the Chyawanprash since the outbreak of the pandemic,” Sharma said.</p>
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Chyawanprash is essentially a health supplement aimed at building immunity and vitality. In fact, Dabur India, positioned as an FMCG company focused in manufacturing Ayurvedic products witnessed a surge in demand for many of its items. “We are already witnessing a 400 percent surge in demand for our flagship immunity booster Dabur Chyawanprash and an 80 percent growth in Dabur Honey,” Business new portal MoneyControl quoted Dabur India Ltd Chief Executive Officer Mohit Malhotra as saying.</p>
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In the absence of deterring the Covid-19 scourge therapeutically, it has been acclaimed globally that strengthening the immune system will work wonders in combating the pandemic – an all-time well tested mantra to stay safe and healthy, the <em>Economic Times</em> in an article noted.</p>
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The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) on its official website said that as with all complementary systems of medicine, there has been an upsurge in public interest in Ayurveda. “This is especially true in German-speaking areas of Europe, where alternative medicine is relatively popular. Here, Ayurveda is now much sought after,” the website said.</p>
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Ayurveda is considered one of the oldest medical systems in the world. The medical system, which originated in India, is based on two primary pillars– maintaining health through natural sources and treatment of ailments.</p>