Unani Growing as a Popular Alternative Medicine

Unani was founded in Greece between 460 and 370 BC. The system of Unani Medicines was first brought into India by Arabs and Persians. It consists of animals, plants and mineral products. Unani medicines have been consistent in the treatment of chronic diseases like diabetes, asthma, arthritis etc. Here are some of the causes of its widespread popularity as alternative medicine:

• Unani is a fast growing system of medicines that aims to benefit patients through non-evasive and health friendly techniques that are aided by natural products. The fact that Unani medicines are comprised of products of nature makes it safe for our body and it helps the body to rejuvenate its self healing mechanism. Thus, the Unani medicines have attained popularity among the people today.
• Unani is an ancient method of medicines and treatment. It is about 50 centuries old and has helped millions of patients worldwide in the treatment of diseases. This traditional form of medicine is based on the research and findings of Greek scholars. The proven benefits of Unani cures among the large number of people have made it quite popular in the field of medicine.
• Unani first set foot in India through the Delhi sultanate in the 13th century. It was during the reign of Allaudin Khilji that Unani scholars and physicians were openly invited to practice Unani medicine in India. This led the foundation of Unani medicine in India and it grew to be popular both in India and China. It was also widely propagated by Arab and Persian practitioners who carried the system throughout India.
• Unani has given us means to tackle chronic diseases effectively. Diseases like diabetes and asthma often take a serious toll on the body. The allopathic medicines that we use to treat these ailments often produce various side effects on the body that degrade the body’s ability to heal on its own. Unani, on the other hand, works wonderfully to treat chronic ailments without any adverse effects on the body.
• Unani medicine closely resembles Ayurveda combining the four elements air, water, earth and fire to study the human body. The disruption of balance between these elements leads to various diseases. Unani is based on the theory of Humoral which states that every humor has a definite effect on the temperament of the body. These humoral constituents are formed about by using animal, minerals and plant products in Unani medicine.

Unani medicines have shown a way of safe and effective treatment of various diseases and ailments of the human body using products that are devoid of any harmful chemicals. Though Unani advantages our body in many ways, it still does have its lacunas. It cannot be considered to be a replacement for modern medicine that follows a systematic investigation, treatment and diagnosis based method. Unani is a viable alternative for medicine but it may not be used to treat complicated ailments effectively and therefore, it should never be used as a substitute to modern medicine.