What actually is Ayurveda? And how can it help you?

Does this problem sound familiar to you? Whether it’s at the office or among friends, there’s always that one person who’s been able to change their life for the better – and won’t stop going on about it. Be it yoga, the Feldenkrais Method, holotropic breathwork or transcendental self-awareness seminars, you simply can’t keep up with all these «life-changing» experiences. You feel as naive as a peasant fumbling in the turnip fields of yesteryear. Where’s this «enlightenment» supposed to be? Where are the answers to all the unanswered questions? Maybe you’ll find one in Ayurveda, the traditional Indian medicine system. It might be a good fit for you. At any rate, its motto sounds perfectly reasonable: «Whatever we can do to improve our own health works better than anything others could do for us.»

Ayurveda is a discipline dating back more than 5,000 years. Translated from Sanskrit, the word means something akin to «knowledge of life». As a holistic method, Ayurveda isn’t just dedicated to tackling pain and symptoms of disease. It’s also about bringing the body, mind and soul into harmony. In India, by the way, Ayurveda certainly isn’t the sole preserve of fancy spa resorts. In fact, it’s mainly used in specialised hospitals and sanatoriums.

Little wonder, then, that the World Health Organization recognised it as a medical discipline in its own right back in 1982. To cleanse, detox and strengthen the body, Ayurveda mostly involves a combination of soothing massages, herbal and oil applications, aromatherapy, meditation, relaxation and movement exercises, as well as person-specific nutrition.

Ayurveda? Time to ask an expert from India

I’ve asked an expert to explain what all of this means. Sreenath Pulintara has more than 11 years of experience in India and abroad. Part of the third generation of a family determined to take Ayurveda all over the world, he’s a qualified Ayurveda practitioner. In addition to having six years of academic education in the subject under his belt (Bachelor of Ayurvedic and Surgery), he’s also a graduate of Kerala University.

This training includes Ayurvedic Panchakarma (roughly translated as «five actions», meaning the body can be healed in five different ways) and Marma, a therapeutic massage during which pressure is applied to certain points on the body. Alongside Austrian Hannes Hruby, Pulintara opened the «Citylight Ayurveda Clinic» at Munroe Island in southern India in mid-2022. You can ask him anything without feeling silly.

What happens during an Ayurveda treatment?

Every Ayurvedic consultation begins with pulse diagnosis (Prakruti). This helps Ayurvedic doctors to identify the current constellation of the three doshas, known as Vata, Pitta and Kapha. These three life energies manifest in individuals in varying degrees of intensity. If the doshas are out of balance, body and mind alike are put under strain, potentially resulting in acute and chronic diseases. Consequently, the measures mentioned before need to be used to restore balance to the body, mind and soul.

Who is Ayurveda suitable for?

Any person – healthy or unhealthy – can benefit from Ayurveda. It helps anybody who’s willing to give nature a chance in the healing process. Why? The answer is quite simple. The constitution of each individual patient always takes centre stage, with treatments tailored precisely to it. Ayurveda brings the body, mind, soul and environmental influences into balance. It also helps prevent illness by stimulating the immune system and body constitution.

What does Ayurveda help with?

Ayurveda can be used for all kinds of rheumatic, psychiatric and neurological illnesses, as well as gastrointestinal problems. This comprises headaches, migraines, hair loss, sight and hearing problems, depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, joint conditions, degenerative nerve diseases and skin conditions such as psoriasis or acne. There have been amazing successes with spinal disorders such as the dreaded herniated disc, as well as autoimmune diseases, menstrual disorders, ovarian cysts, uterine fibroids, hyperacidity, liver disease and kidney disease. It also has very strong preventative aspects. Ayurveda is particularly well suited for supportive therapies targeted at modern illnesses affecting civilisation, such as burnout, or even post-traumatic stress disorder.

What’s an Ayurvedic diet based on?

Again, Ayurveda takes an individual view of each person. What’s good for one person doesn’t have the same effect on someone else. That means the central question is: which food products, herbs and preparation methods are well suited to the individual? Their constitution (Pakriti) and any potential imbalance (Vikriti) has to be taken into account when making those choices. And, of course, the type of doshas we discussed earlier. These are active to varying degrees over the course of the year. That’s why there are different dietary recommendations for every season.

How do I tell whether someone’s a real expert?

The first important step is to seek advice from a qualified Ayurvedic practitioner who’s completed six years of study at a recognised university. Ayurveda is a fully-fledged system of diagnosis and therapy and boasts a considerable wealth of empirical healing knowledge. Unfortunately, it’s virtually unregulated in Europe. Here, basically anybody is allowed to call themselves an Ayurveda therapist. In Switzerland, the best place to contact is the «Berufsverband für Schweizer Ayurveda Medizin und Therapie» (Professional Association for Swiss Ayurvedic Medicine).

How much does Ayurveda cost and how long does it take?

That varies a lot, and it’s far cheaper in India than in Europe. You can get a day-long stay including introductory treatments at «Citylight Ayurveda» starting at 60 euros. A regimen of Panchakarma lasting one week or more can certainly be more expensive. That said, the benefits of an Ayurveda treatment take time to come to the fore. It’s not at all advisable to do two or three massage sessions on the same day in order to achieve the supposed goal as quickly as possible. The goal is the process – anything else overwhelms us on the path to healing, or even backfires.

What does science have to say on Ayurveda?

To answer this question, I went looking for studies on efficacy. At any rate, the growing number of clinics in Europe offering Ayurveda indicates that it’s becoming increasingly significant. However, there’s still plenty of room for improvement. Some results can be taken from a dissertation completed at Hannover Medical School on the efficacy of Ayurveda in treating chronic illnesses (in German). The best evidence base by far for the efficacy of Ayurvedic interventions is in relation to diabetes mellitus, with 62 isolated studies. That’s followed by lipid metabolism disorders and bronchial asthma. In addition, a study conducted by the Cochrane Collaboration – a global, independent network of scientists and doctors – found Ayurvedic medicines to have some effect in treating schizophrenia. But this has only been examined in small, pioneering studies.

In the book «Alternative Medicine: A Critical Assessment of 150 Modalities», German-British physician Edzard Ernst reaches a clear conclusion. Ernst used to be a professor of complementary medicine. However, he’s also partly critical of alternative medicine. He says there are few studies on Ayurvedic remedies and most are methodologically weak; their effectiveness depends on the exact nature of the ingredients used. Another point he makes, however, is that good research costs money – and there are rarely large sums of research funding available for natural medicine.