Many Indians are up the ante to boost their immunity so that the novel coronavirus will not infect them. The best and easy way to boost the immunity, according to the obsessed promoters of faith based healing practices is that man should turn to cud chewing animal; eat herbs, boil herbs in water and then drink, relay on neem, tulsi, turmeric etc. One may wonder, the insects that infest neem tree, turmeric plant and the other so called healing herbs doesn’t get infected by novel coronavirus and that may be the logic why many people surrender their common sense and intelligent quotient to faith based healing programmes and recipes. Does that mean the ungulates whether artiodacyla or perissiodactyla and probiscida etc., doesn’t get sick in wild because they exclusively relay on plants?
Another interesting question also we must ask, why most of the so called medicinal plants like neem, tulsi, turmeric, pepper etc., are not been preferred, relished or eaten by most of the herbivores animals? Is it because man may need them in future to fight coronavirus and hence the herbivores animals have been avoiding all these plants since time immemorial?
Or is it because Lord Siva who gifted Siddha system of healing practice and Dhanvanthri who gifted Ayurveda to man purposefully neglected the welfare of animals and want only man alone should boost their immunity and hence they did not share the secret of the medicinal plants to animals therefore animals avoid all those medicinal plants.
If the medicinal plants are ‘drugs’ and can cure several diseases means why the plant eating animals avoid all those so called ‘great drugs’ of nature even when they fall ill?
Wont the memory acquired by these animals at various stages of their evolution should have inspired the plant eating animals to go after all those so called ‘wonder herbal medicine’ and instead why the animals have reserved all these plants for man, until Modi became the Prime Minister of India to promote them to fight coronavirus and boost immunity of man.
The narrative is so funny and farce that several herbs and herbal preparations are claimed to increase the immunity and the boosted immunity of the host would fight the virus and save the person.
Some obsessed herbal wonder promoting experts have even gone to extent to announce ashwagandha would increase the antibody production in human body? Does that mean ashwagansha acts like an antigen? How an adaptive immunity can be elicited by certain herbs or herbal concoctions unless and otherwise they acts like an antigen? If ashwagandha has antigenic property means, it is good or bad?
Innate immunity has only very minimal role in protecting us from pathogens and the protection they offer is quite general and not specific. But only specific adaptive immune defence mechanism could combat pathogens and eliminate them.
Another wonderful scientific story also came up in the print media some years ago that curcuma and aloe vera could neutralize antibiotics in the milk of cow when the animals were treated with antibiotics.
The innocent enthusiasm bounded by ignorance hasn’t allowed the investigator to ask the fundamental question that if the above observation was true, there is nothing to celebrate but to worry, instead. Imagine those who are on antibiotic therapy and if they consume food with curcuma, naturally the antibiotic effects may be neutralized and as a result, the severity of infection can increase. Further the antibiotic resistance is also possible in a few microbes due to the neutralization of antibiotics by curcuma. Curcuma is widely used as a flavouring agent in most of the Indian cuisine.
Can we rely on SRBC (Sheep Red Blood Corpocells) based experiment on rat or mice as an evidence for immune boosting effect of some herbs?
Infectious diseases due to opportunistic pathogens are counter products of derailed immunity. Whereas the infection due to true pathogen doesn’t need immune defect but the load of the pathogen is sufficient.
To prevent the infection, we need antiviral or antibiotics or anti parasitic or antifungal therapy or else, require our adaptive immune defence mechanism to combat the pathogen. How the herbal preparations can boost the adaptive immune defence of the host when they are not antigens?
The logic of protecting the healthy people with all those preparations to boost their immunity to extra level is nothing but a joke. Does that mean an elevated immune (extra high) defence mechanism is needed to fight the novel coronavirus which can be easily achieved by herbal immune modulators? If the herbal immune modulators can elevate the immune defence above the normal level and thereby we can prevent the disease means all those who have consumed various herbal concoctions in Tamil Nadu should not have contracted the virus like how the polio vaccine protect the people from the possible polio attack. Healthy people are supposed to have good immunity and where comes the need for the herbal immunity builders?
Another curious situation that exists among several institutionally qualified traditional healers also we must question and debate and that is cross pathy. Why several AYUSH healers go after cross pathy (practicing and prescribing allopathic drugs) rather than rely on herbal recipes?
Why some of the institutionally qualified traditional healers have totally left the Tridosha based diagnosis and proudly use stethoscope, BP apparatus and Scan reports for diagnosis? Will stethoscope or BP apparatus or Scan ever help a vaidya to understand the Tridosha imbalance?
We need patriotism and respect for our legacy and tradition but can be we be so obsessed and paranoid and promote obscurantism and occultism to mitigate global pandemic?
Herbal recipes and such stream of healing practices must be promoted for paramedical assistance and such stream should not be promoted as medical science or its recipes as drugs. Patriotism or uncontrollable love over herbal recipes is not going to answer our health challenges or to treat the disease burden.
Are we not attempting to booze our immunity by way of promoting unproven herbal recipes with tall claim and causing medication health fraud? A healthy person is assumed to have good immunity and where is the chance of him or her getting ill? Why should such people need herbal immune boosters?
In COVID 19, the killer is inflated immunity and therefore the immune suppressants are recommended in the therapy to save the patient. Does that mean the herbal immune boosters boost the immunity beyond the level required and make them highly vulnerable to COVID 19 and cytokine storm.
Are we not playing fun with human life, innocence and fear and pushing several innocent people to waste their money and endure prolonged suffering.
Our love over herbal drugs not only promote cross pathy by several vaidyas but also promote medication health fraud. The poor people are the natural victim.
Written by Dr S Ranganathan
Follow him @drsranganathan
WhatsApp us