The history of medicine is both a study of medicine throughout history as well as a multidisciplinary field of study that seeks to explore and understand medical practices, both past and present, throughout human societies.
Bharadvaja was one of the revered Vedic sages (maharishi) in Ancient India. He was a renowned scholar, economist, grammarian and a physician. He is one of the Saptarishis.
David Frawley, also known as Vamadeva Shastri is an American writer, astrologer, teacher (acharya) and a proponent of Hindutva.
Ayurveda is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. It is heavily practiced in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, where as much as 80% of the population report using ayurveda. The theory and practice of ayurveda is pseudoscientific; some ayurvedic medicines have been found to contain toxic substances.
Maharishi Vedic Approach to Health (MVAH) is a form of alternative medicine founded in the mid-1980s by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who developed the Transcendental Meditation technique (TM). Distinct from traditional ayurveda, it emphasizes the role of consciousness, and gives importance to positive emotions. Maharishi Ayur-Veda has been variously characterized as emerging from, and consistently reflecting, the Advaita Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy, representing the entirety of the ayurvedic tradition.
Allopathic medicine, or allopathy, is an archaic and derogatory label originally used by 19th-century homeopaths to describe heroic medicine, the precursor of modern evidence-based medicine. There are regional variations in usage of the term. In the United States, the term is sometimes used to contrast with osteopathic medicine, especially in the field of medical education. In India, the term is used to distinguish conventional modern medicine from Siddha medicine, Ayurveda, homeopathy, Unani and other alternative and traditional medicine traditions, especially when comparing treatments and drugs.
The history of alternative medicine covers the history of a group of diverse medical practices that were collectively promoted as "alternative medicine" beginning in the 1970s, to the collection of individual histories of members of that group, or to the history of western medical practices that were labeled "irregular practices" by the western medical establishment. It includes the histories of complementary medicine and of integrative medicine. "Alternative medicine" is a loosely defined and very diverse set of products, practices, and theories that are perceived by its users to have the healing effects of medicine, but do not originate from evidence gathered using the scientific method, are not part of biomedicine, or are contradicted by scientific evidence or established science. "Biomedicine" is that part of medical science that applies principles of anatomy, physics, chemistry, biology, physiology, and other natural sciences to clinical practice, using scientific methods to establish the effectiveness of that practice.
In early ayurvedic medicine, rasāyana is one of the eight areas of medicine in Sanskrit literature. In Vedic alchemy, "rasa" also means "metal" or "a mineral".
Unani or Yunani medicine is Perso-Arabic traditional medicine as practiced in Muslim culture in South Asia and modern day Central Asia. Unani medicine is pseudoscientific. The Indian Medical Association describes Unani practitioners who claim to practice medicine as quacks.
The Charaka Samhita is a Sanskrit text on Ayurveda. Along with the Sushruta Samhita, it is one of the two foundational texts of this field that have survived from ancient India. It is one of the three works that constitute the Brhat Trayi.
Marthanda Varma Sankaran Valiathan is an Indian cardiac surgeon. He is a former President of the Indian National Science Academy and National Research Professor of the Government of India.
Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (B.A.M.S.) is a professional degree focused on Ayurveda offered in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.
The Ministry of Ayush, a ministry of the Government of India, is responsible for developing education, research and propagation of traditional medicine and alternative medicine systems in India. Ayush is a name devised from the names of the alternative healthcare systems covered by the ministry: ayurveda, yoga & naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, Sowa Rigpa, and homeopathy.
Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Rajasthan Ayurved University, formerly Rajasthan Ayurved University, is Ayurved university in the state Rajasthan. The university situated in Jodhpur was founded on 24 May 2003.
Nancy Lonsdorf is an American author and medical doctor who practices Maharishi Ayurveda. She received her training at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and studied Ayurveda in Europe and India, and is the author of several books on the subject.
Panniyampally Krishnankuty Warrier was an Indian Ayurveda practitioner. He was born in Kottakkal, Malappuram district in the Indian state of Kerala. He was the chief Physician and Managing trustee of Arya Vaidya Sala. He was the youngest nephew of Vaidyaratnam P. S. Varier, the founder of Arya Vaidya Sala.
Bhushan Patwardhan is a Distinguished Professor of Health Sciences, biomedical scientist, and ethnopharmacologist. He serves as the chairman of the Interdisciplinary AYUSH R&D Task Force on COVID-19 and India Lead, WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine Task Force. He is also a member of the Lancet Citizens' Commission on Reimagining India’s Health System. Until March 4, 2021, Patwardhan served as the Vice Chairman of the University Grants Commission, New Delhi, and Chairman i/c of the Indian Council of Social Science Research.
Kodethur Narasimha Udupa (1920–1992) was an Indian surgeon, medical administrator, a pioneer of integrative medicine and the founder director of the Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University (BHU). Born in Udupi in the South Indian state of Karnataka, His father was Tamayya Udupa scholar in Sanskrit and Jyotish belonging to Shivalli brahmin community. He passed his bachelor's degree in Ayurvedic Medicine (AMS) from Banares Hindu University, secured his master's degree (MS) from the University of Michigan in 1948 and passed FRCS examination from Canada.
BGR-34 is an Ayurvedic-derived product that is sold in India as an over-the-counter pill for the management of type 2 diabetes. It was developed in 2015 by two government-owned laboratories and launched commercially in 2016. It has been tested in only one, modest-sized, human trial. The drug has been heavily criticized, and without more clinical trials, its efficacy remains unproven. The manufacturers have refused to acknowledge the claims of inefficacy and other concerns.
Clinical trials on ayurveda refers to any clinical trials done on ayurvedic treatment. Ayurveda is a traditional medicine system in India and like other cultural medical practices includes both conventional medicine and also complementary and alternative medicine. When there are clinical trials in ayurveda, the focus tends to be on practices in alternative medicine.
