Comparative Clinical Evaluation of Yoga Therapy (Laghu Shankha Prakshalana) and Virechana Therapy in the Management of Madhumeha (Diabetes Mellitus-II)

Yoga is a centuries-old science of healthy living and is now recognized as a system of medicine along with naturopathy by the Ministry of Ayush, India. Nowadays, Yoga has emerged as one of the important disciplines of healthcare for the achievement of overall well-being all over the world. It works on all aspects of a person’s health i.e. Physical, Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual health. The word Yoga means unity or oneness and is derived from the Sanskrit word "Yuj", which means to “join”. Maharshi Patanjali, the father of Yoga philosophy, defines Yoga as, the control of thought waves in the mind in terms of ‘Yogash Chitta Vritti Nirodhah’ (Y.Su. 1.2). [[i]]Yoga therapy has numerous health benefits that lead to improved mental and physical balance, agility, improves blood circulation and control lifestyle disorder. Type-II diabetes now emerged as a greater health concern in the 21st century and is always associated with major risk factors. The approaches to the management of type-2 diabetes (T2DM) are still not up to the mark in modern medicine and it is always associated with adverse consequences. It affects 80%–90% of all people living with type II diabetes. The past three decades have witnessed an epidemic of diabetes (especially T2DM) and more than 80% of the people with diabetes currently live in developing countries. Yogic therapy andVirechanatherapy are proven methods of stabilizing an individual from hypertension, metabolic disorder, and lifestyle disorder. Thus, it has a significant effect on stress, anxiety, depression, lifestyle disorders, and type-II diabetes, recent evidence suggests that stress plays a key role in the genesis of type-II diabetes, hypertension, and other disorders related to the body. By controlling the blood sugar level through Asanas and pranayama, we can minimize the exaggerated metabolic activity by decreasing the sugar level. Evidence suggests that specific Yogic therapy can stimulate pancreatic insulin secretion or increase the peripheral uptake of glucose. Yogic therapy and Virechana therapy emerge as a feasible cost-effective tool for type-2 diabetes and prevent the chances of type-2 diabetes complications like retinopathy, nephropathy, and cardiovascular disease. Seeing this fact, the current research work will be conducted in a series of cases of type-2 diabetes under the influence of Yoga therapy and Virechana therapy to compare its safety.

[i] Vivekananda, Swami. Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. Prabhat Prakashan, 2022.