{"id":357652,"date":"2025-12-19T05:40:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T05:40:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/357652\/"},"modified":"2025-12-19T05:40:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T05:40:09","slug":"can-traditional-medicine-strengthen-modern-healthcare-an-expert-weighs-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/357652\/","title":{"rendered":"Can traditional medicine strengthen modern healthcare? An expert weighs in"},"content":{"rendered":"

Exploring evidence-based uses of traditional medicine, like ginger to treat nausea, is one of the topics at the\u202fsecond\u202fWorld Health\u202fOrganization\u202f(WHO<\/a>) summit<\/a> dedicated to traditional,\u202fcomplementary\u202fand integrative medicine (TCIM<\/a>), taking place in India this week. \u00a0<\/p>\n

While most WHO\u202fmember States report that 40 to 90 per cent of their populations use traditional medicine, a meagre one per cent of global health funding supports research in this field.\u202fAdditionally, a WHO survey showed<\/a> regional imbalances in the per cent of countries that have a national policy on TCIM. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Why has such little funding been\u202fallocated\u202fto traditional medicine? And is traditional medicine a treatment, a lifestyle or something else? \u00a0<\/p>\n

To find out,\u202fUN News\u202fspoke to\u202fRabinarayan\u202fAcharya, Director General of India\u2019s Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) which collaborates <\/a>with\u202fWHO to advance research in the field. \u00a0<\/p>\n

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.<\/p>\n

\"Rabinarayan<\/p>\n

\u00a9 Courtesy of Rabinarayan Acharya <\/p>\n

Rabinarayan Acharya is the Director General of India’s Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS).<\/p>\n

UN News: How did you get into the field of traditional medicine?<\/p>\n

Rabinarayan\u202fAcharya:\u202fMy entry into traditional medicine was shaped early at home. My father was formally trained both in Ayurveda and Sanskrit at a reputed Sanskrit institution in Puri, Odisha, and I grew up exposed to classical texts,\u202fphilosophy\u202fand scholarly traditions. Odisha’s strong living heritage of Ayurveda instilled in me a deep respect for Ayurveda as a knowledge system, not just a treatment modality. This foundation, combined with my science background and\u202fhonours\u202fin Botany naturally led me to pursue Ayurveda as a career focused on research, evidence generation and teaching. \u00a0<\/p>\n

UN News: Is Ayurveda a lifestyle or\u202fa treatment? \u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr. Acharya:\u202fAyurveda is both a way of life and a system of medicine, but its scope extends far beyond\u202feither\u202fin\u202fisolation. At its core, Ayurveda\u202femphasises\u202fhealthy living through\u202fappropriate lifestyle\u202fpractices (Vihara), dietetics (Ahara)\u202fand ethical conduct (Sadvritta). These principles are designed to\u202fmaintain\u202fhomeostasis, prevent disease, and promote long-term well-being rather than merely address illness after it occurs.\u202fWhen illness does occur, Ayurveda offers well-structured therapeutic measures aimed not only at symptom relief but at restoring systemic homeostasis. \u00a0<\/p>\n

This holistic orientation aligns closely with conventional public health priorities, such as disease prevention, healthy\u202fageing\u202fand management of chronic lifestyle-related disorders. The principles and practice of Ayurveda is especially relevant in the context of the global shift toward non-communicable diseases, which are\u202flargely driven\u202fby modifiable risk factors such as unhealthy diets, physical inactivity,\u202fstress\u202fand environmental exposures. \u00a0<\/p>\n

UN News: WHO\u2019s Global traditional medicine 2025-2034 strategy aims to strengthen the evidence base for traditional medicine, among other goals. What role do national institutions play in advancing these goals? \u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr. Acharya:\u202fAt CCRAS, our mandate directly addresses the need\u202fidentified\u202fby WHO that while the use of traditional medicine is widespread, robust evidence on safety, effectiveness and\u202fappropriate use\u202fmust be systematically generated. \u00a0<\/p>\n

We do this by designing and conducting methodologically rigorous clinical studies, observational research, and public health evaluations rooted in classical Ayurvedic principles, while adhering to contemporary scientific and ethical standards. These research initiatives focus on drug development, clinical research, pharmacology, medicinal plant research, epidemiology, and health systems research, thereby enabling evidence generation across the entire research continuum. \u00a0<\/p>\n

UN News: Currently, less than one per cent of global health research funding is\u202fallocated\u202fto traditional medicine. Why do you think that is and what will it take to change it? \u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr.\u202fAcharya:\u202fThe limited share of global health research funding for traditional medicine is\u202flargely due\u202fto structural and methodological factors, not a lack of relevance or demand. Systems such as Ayurveda are complex,\u202findividualised and delivered as whole-system interventions, which do not always fit neatly into conventional biomedical research frameworks that dominate global funding priorities. \u00a0<\/p>\n

\u202fChanging this will require a strategic shift toward evidence-informed integration, as outlined in the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025\u20132034. This means sustained investment in high-quality, fit-for-purpose research that clearly\u202fdemonstrates\u202fsafety,\u202feffectiveness\u202fand public health value \u2014 from health promotion and prevention to treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care. Equally critical is embedding validated traditional medicine interventions into national health policies. \u00a0<\/p>\n

UN News: How hopeful\u202fare\u202fyou that more countries will incorporate traditional medicine\u202fin\u202ftheir health systems? \u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr.\u202fAcharya:\u202fI am cautiously\u202foptimistic,\u202fand the global momentum is certainly encouraging. This is particularly relevant at a time when health systems are under pressure from rising noncommunicable diseases, ageing populations and workforce and resource constraints. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Importantly, integration does not imply replacement of conventional care, but rather a complementary approach where safe and effective traditional medicine practices are aligned with national health priorities and public health goals. \u00a0<\/p>\n

UN News: Can you give us an example of evidence-based traditional medicine used to treat body ailments or mental health? \u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr.\u202fAcharya:\u202fWithania\u202fsomnifera\u202f(Ashwagandha),\u202ftraditionally used as an adaptogen in Ayurveda, has been studied as a complementary treatment for mental health. Evidence suggests it may help reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety, while being\u202fgenerally safe\u202fand well tolerated, highlighting its potential as a therapy in mental disorders. \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Exploring evidence-based uses of traditional medicine, like ginger to treat nausea, is one of the topics at the\u202fsecond\u202fWorld…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":357653,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[64,63,137,500],"class_list":{"0":"post-357652","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-healthcare"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357652","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=357652"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357652\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/357653"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=357652"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=357652"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=357652"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}