Kozhikode: With the monsoon scheduled to set in soon, the Department of Indian Systems of Medicine has suggested various preventive measures against the diseases commonly occurring during the season. In Kozhikode district, the project is being implemented with the slogan, ‘Maintain your health through Ayurveda’.
Ayurveda medical camps and awareness programmes will be conducted at various places in the district and to coordinate the activities, Dr K K Bindu, the medical officer of Eranhipalam government Ayurveda dispensary, has been appointed as the Task Force convenor.
District Medical Officer Dr K M Mansoor said that the programmes would be implemented after dividing the district into 14 blocks.
The activities planned are:
» Distribution of medicines which are to be given away at medical camps for prevention and treatment of diseases
» Medicine distribution through 100 government Ayurveda dispensaries and hospitals
» Organising awareness programmes, medical camps at panchayat level
» Setting up fever clinics at all hospitals and dispensaries under the department
» Distribution of ‘Aparajita dhoopa choornam’ for mosquito control
» Observation of ‘Dry day’ every week to keep the surroundings clean
Prevention according to Ayurveda
Ayurveda suggests the following measures to keep monsoon diseases away:
» Consume only warm food items. Include ingredients like dried ginger, pepper and long pepper (thippali) which enable quick digestion in dishes
» Take head bath every day after applying oil on the crown of the head. Meanwhile, on the body, gingelly oil, coconut oil, ‘Dhawantharam kuzhambu’ or ‘Sahacharadi kuzhambu’ can be applied. To wash the head, cool water can be used. For the body, warm water is ideal
» Exercise regularly. Engage in strenuous physical activities. Yoga and ‘pranayama’ can also be practised
» To wash the hands and feet, use water which is boiled with neem and raw turmeric
» If there is fever, cold or cough the following remedy can be tried. Take dried ginger, pepper, long pepper, Justicia adhatoda (adalodakam), Andrographis paniculata (kiriyath), Tinospora cordifolia (chittamruthu), sacred basil, nut grass (muthanga) and ‘parpataka’ grass. Mix them together. Take 30 grams of this mixture in 4 glass water and heat. Boil it down to one glass. Consume the preparation two or three times a day.
» Ayurveda also suggests a method to make the air free of germs and keep mosquitos away. Burn any of the following items which are available to produce smoke: mustard seeds, neem leaves, frankincence (kunthirikkam), Commiphora wightii (guggulu), sweet flag (vayambu), sal (chenjalyam), covering of garlic or chaste (karinochi). This fumigation has to be done twice daily, in the morning and evening. Instead of these items, the Ayurvedic preparation ‘Aparajita choornam’ can also be used. To eradicate mosquitos, a mixture of tobacco extract and soap solution is ideal.
