Today, Ayurveda is well-positioned to use technology to identify conditions and rovide efficient treatments: Vaibhav Jain, Aayush Bharat
27-Dec-23 05:30:57

We have to choose where to put modern medicine and when to use Ayush. This conflict or confusion needs to be resolved in a productive way. Ayurveda is yoga's parent body and possesses comparable powers. We need to assess how to make sustainable, healthful products using conventional treatment methods. Clinical trials can be conducted in the Ayush sector if proper guidelines are followed, and rules must be established appropriately.

Shahid Akhter, editor, ETHealthworld, spoke to Vaibhav Jain, Founder and CEO, Aayush Bharat to figure out the emerging trends in Ayurvedic care that leverages technology to facilitate diagnosis and treatment. 

AYUSH: Opportunities

Ayush is the short form for Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy. These are all based on the wisdom of traditional treatments. Today, we see a lot of people succumbing to lifestyle diseases. We live in an era with strong communication and information that can prevent many illnesses and help people survive and thrive. But still, we are lacking behind. The challenge I see today is that of awareness and acceptance. Second, we want quick fixes. We want orders to be delivered in eight minutes. However, we must understand that the diseases we have acquired have not come in minutes. Hence, the solution will also not come in minutes. We have to be more patient, and we have to be more aware of our bodies. Third, we must decide where we want to go with Ayush and where to place modern medicine. This clash or confusion must be tackled in an effective manner.

Ayush Challenges

Let's take an example of how yoga started in India and then changed lives across the globe. Ayurveda is the umbrella body of yoga and has a similar capability. Today, people lack awareness about lifestyle diseases that Ayush can prevent. Second, we look for medicines when we fall ill with any chronic illness. How these medicines treat us can be a topic of debate. Ayurveda, on the other hand, has been proven to treat these diseases, including mental illness and infertility, in an effective way for many centuries. We must evaluate how to use traditional treatment practices and create sustainable, healthy products. Ayush is an area where clinical trials can be done with the right principles and fundamentals, and regulations must be set up accordingly.

Another key aspect is the implementation of the latest technologies. Today, we have modern types of equipment and diagnostic practices aided by technology that can be combined with Ayurveda and made to develop effective solutions. This can open many international opportunities where comprehensive and personalised care can be delivered.

Ayush Market

We are the world's youngest population, and the young force delivers the maximum to the nation's economy. On the other hand, people are succumbing to diabetes or heart attacks at a very young age. If Ayurveda is not tapped properly, India can become one of the world's sickest countries instead of being the world's strongest country. The global health market will stand at around $14 trillion by 2030, and India's Ayush market as of today is $16 billion. With a CAGR of 15%, it is expected to be $40 million by 2027 and $60 billion by 2030. It means this segment is getting a lot of support from the people, and the Indian government policies are also favourable.

Aayush Bharat: Idea and concept

When I was working in the US, I was diagnosed with gouty arthritis. At that time, I was told that this condition was incurable. I took medicines that were not helping me and instead killed all my efficiency. However, I was lucky to know an Ayurvedic practitioner in the remotest part of the country who helped me. Today, I followed the dietary and lifestyle changes he had suggested, and till now, I have not faced any problems. This situation has been faced by many, time and again. Ayush has come to their rescue. People who have lost all hope are now finding effective Ayush solutions.

Coming from India, a country with a rich heritage of Ayurveda and other traditional medicine practices, we have an edge. However, the discovery of Ayush experts, even in 2021, was still a challenge. There was no platform to find the right Ayurvedic doctor and consult them. So my co- founders, Vishal and Abhinav, and I sat down to set up a platform to help such people. That was the idea behind the genesis of Aayush Bharat. Initially, we started with Ayurveda but soon realised that people also wanted to explore other traditional practices (Yoga, Siddha, Unani, and Homeopathy). We thought of integrating them all and bringing up a solution where all the Ayush doctors could come up at one online place, leverage the technology, and deliver the solutions. Today, they even hold audio-video consultations for people.

Aayush Bharat: The connecting platform

We currently cover 60% of the area but want to dig deeper into the country's remotest region. We also plan to set up around 300+ cloud clinics, where these clinics will become the fulfilment centres and the telemedicine partners. These centres will become places where people can consult the doctors and, if required, pick up medicines directly from the clinics. 

Currently, we are working on making these services and products more affordable. AayushBharat has launched some very effective products to boost immunity and men’s wellness. These products will be available on our platform and other platforms too. Starting with men’s wellness, we will expand to other categories. We are working on making the right product at the right price for a larger population, making India healthy, and realising the dream of Aayush Bharat.

SOURCE & CREDIT: ECONOMIC TIMES