Autoimmune disorders, when our own body starts attacking us!

Recently, renowned Hollywood actor Ashton Kutcher opened up about his fight with autoimmune disorder ‘vasculitis’ that occurred three years ago and how he dealt with the condition. He shared the information through his tweet. 

Before there are a bunch of rumors/ chatter/ whatever out there. Yes, I had a rare vasculitis episode 3yrs ago. (Autoimmune flair up) I had some impairments hear, vision, balance issues right after. I fully recovered. All good. Moving on. See you at the 2022 NY Marathon w/Thorn

— ashton kutcher (@aplusk) August 9, 2022

According to America’s National Stem Cell Organization’s website, “Nearly 4% of the world’s population is affected by one of more than 80 different autoimmune diseases, the most common of which include type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, Crohn’s disease, psoriasis and scleroderma. Autoimmune diseases represent the third most common cause of chronic illness in the United States. Although many autoimmune diseases are rare, the National Institutes for Health (NIH) estimates that they collectively affect between 5% and 8% percent of the U.S. population. For unknown reasons, the prevalence of autoimmune diseases is increasing.” 

What exactly is autoimmune disorder?

An autoimmune disorder is a condition, in which the human body starts to attack itself. In this rare condition, the body’s own immune system attacks and destroys the cells within the body, considering them to be foreign invaders. This condition can also be described as the failure of the immune system in differentiating between foreign cells and own cells. The proteins that are released to attack the healthy cells are known as auto-antibodies.  

The parts of the body that are worst affected in this condition are the joints and the skin. In some cases, problems exist with the ENT channel of the body. 

Incidentally, diabetes and thyroid are also considered as autoimmune disorders as the root cause behind these conditions is prolonged distress, whether physical or psychological. 

Treatment of Autoimmune disorders

Surprisingly, there are no defined treatments available for the wide array of autoimmune disorders. Researchers have found no particular cause that triggers such disorders and the major cause is still considered as genetic.

So far there is no known cure for autoimmune disorders but Ayurveda has shown some remarkable results by acting on the theory of Vatta, Pitta Kapha.

Autoimmune disease according to Ayurveda

According to Ex District Ayurvedic Officer (DAO), Himachal Pradesh, Dr Hem Raj Gautam who served the Government of Himachal Pradesh for 31 years and encountered many cases of autoimmune diseases, says Ayurveda works on the root cause of the diseases rather than suppressing them.

Talking to The Statesman, he shared the Ayurvedic approach to treat autoimmune disease:

Understanding autoimmune disease through the Ayurveda way?

In Ayurveda there is nothing like autoimmune disease, our immunity is the powerhouse of every problem and it can never be suppressed. In these types of diseases, we do not know the root cause, and when there is no root cause there is no treatment but Ayurveda believes in finding the root cause and treating it.

How does Ayurveda treat autoimmune disorder?

There are three procedures followed in Ayurveda to treat any diseases.

Detoxification 

This is done by treating the patient with different types of liquids called Kadhas. The Kandhas detoxify the body and flush out all the impurities present in the body.

Improving metabolism 

It is very important for our body to work conveniently so that it can be free from diseases. Our complex body system needs to work properly and this is done by consuming healthy food. Food should be consumed according to the body’s imbalances and this can improve metabolism. For treating autoimmune disease we need to balance “Vaata, Pitta and Kapha” by adding masalas like Cinnamon, Star Anise, and Turmeric etc. in our food.

Charging the cells  

Our body is made up of cells and charging them is very important. Any type of disturbance in the cell system can cause these diseases, body cells can be charged by performing Yoga and Pranayam and there are certain ingredients Like Giloy, Shatavari etc. which are proven to treat autoimmune diseases. 

“It is important to be mentally strong then only your body can fight any type of disease. In Ayurveda we believe, with proper food and exercise, mental strength is also important and the best way to strengthen the mind is meditation and yoga.” he added.

Source: The Statesman