History of Medicine

It's been over a year since COVID-19 first made its appearance, yet it remains as challenging as ever to beat. As cases surge around the world with no clear remedy in sight except for the vaccine (hopefully!), there is increasing attention being paid to ancient remedies. After various Indian and Chinese remedies made their rounds (which I wrote about some time back), here's a new one that made news this month. Andrographis paniculata , a herbal plant commonly known as green chiretta, was recently approved by Thailand for treating COVID-19. Their ministry of health has started a pilot program to test the alternative treatment after human trials showed patient condition improving within days of treatment with the extract. The ancient herb has apparently reduced the severity of inflammations in early stages of the disease.  Turns out, Andrographis paniculata is a well known ayurvedic herb, called  Kalmegh,  and is used to treat liver disease and fever. According to ayurveda, the &

Although we have come to associate COVID-19 with many negatives-  school closures,   quarantine, social distancing, and travel restrictions to name a few- it has also provided a boost for science, particularly in the area of vaccine research. The pandemic of historical proportions has triggered a global race to develop a vaccine against the virus. The development of a new vaccine typically takes 10-15 years, a luxury the world can ill afford right now. So companies around the world are racing to find a solution in record time. This has led to the development of an entirely new type of vaccine called mRNA or messenger RNA vaccine. mRNA vaccines are not a new concept; they have been known for a few decades but have not been developed seriously until now. mRNAs are tiny pieces of genetic code that tell cells in our bodies to make a protein.  The two companies at the forefront of vaccine development, Pfizer and Moderna, are both using mRNAs to develop a vaccine. They both use synthetic mRN

I previously wrote about WHO endorsing the study of herbal remedies for treatment of COVID in Africa. This was in response to a herbal drink being sold widely in Madagascar claiming to be highly effective against COVID-19. The herbal infusion is sold in bottles labeled as COVID Organics or CVO, but is colloquially referred to as "green gold". It is reportedly flying off the shelves as people scramble to get their hands on a cheap and popular drink that can help them combat the rapidly spreading disease. The herbal drink is made from a local plant called artemisia annua, also known as sweet wormwood. The plant grows widely in African countries and it is commonly used to treat malaria in Africa. However, it appears to have originated in China, where it is known as qinghao.  Artemisia plant Qinghao was first mentioned in  Recipes for Fifty-Two Ailments (Wushi'er Bingfang),  an ancient Chinese medical treatise, thought to be written during the Qin Dynasty around 215 BC or ear

Getting back to the topic of using traditional medicines against COVID, which I wrote about earlier, it seems now the World Health Organization (WHO) is also endorsing its use, or at least considering it. On September 19, the WHO formally endorsed a protocol for testing herbal medicines as potential treatments for the coronavirus and other epidemics. The endorsement was specifically aimed at testing African herbal medicines, but the same should apply to all herbal medicines used around the world. A statement by the WHO director read, "The onset of COVID-19, like the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, has highlighted the need for strengthened health systems and accelerated research and development programmes, including on traditional medicines." The move seems to be in response to some African countries using and selling herbal remedies for treating COVID. The most prominent one is a drink called COVID-Organics or CVO, which is being sold widely in Madagascar, with their President

Continuing with the theme of ancient medicine being used for treating COVID-19,  a recent article claims that a 3000 year old medicine, derived from the autumn flower crocus, was recently found to show promising results for the treatment of the disease. Autumn crocus flowers The medicine, colchicine, has been used for many centuries as an anti-inflammatory agent for gout and arthritis. It was first mentioned as far back as 1500 BCE in the Egyptian manuscript, the Ebers Papyrus as a remedy for joint pain. It was derived from the autumn flower crocus, and widely used by the 1st century AD for gout and edema. In fact, it is said Benjamin Franklin, who suffered from edema, imported crocus plants to North America from France. The Ebers Papyrus. Image: National Institute of Health After the active ingredient was isolated in the 1800s, colchicine is now available in the form of a pill for various ailments such as gout and periciditis. Now, a team of Greek doctors conduct

Just as ancient Indian medicine is under review for potential use for treatment of COVID-19, the Chinese have also turned to their ancient medical science to combat the disease. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is widely used in China, and represents a multi-billion dollar industry. So when the novel coronavirus hit China in early 2020 and no effective treatment was found, the Chinese turned to TCM, apparently based on their past experience in the treatment of infectious diseases including the SARS epidemic in 2003. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the human body (and in fact, all matter) is made up of Qi or vital energy. The qi controls the basic functions of the human body; when the normal flow of this life energy is disturbed, it causes disease. In the case of COVID, the pathogenic qi is stronger than the healthy qi and has an adverse effect on the lungs. TCM doctors described severe cases of COVID-19 as caused by a noxious dampness that causes the qi in the lungs to

As I wrote previously, researchers in the U.S. and India are exploring the ancient Indian science of Ayurveda to combat the coronavirus. There are clinical trials underway to study the efficacy of Ayurvedic medicines touted by many Indian doctors. In the meantime, the Indian ministry has endorsed immunity boosters specifically for COVID-19. They include concoctions like turmeric powder mixed with hot milk- a common remedy in India, also known as "golden milk"- and daily meditation with deep breathing.   Indian Ministry of Ayush poster. Image: Twitter Even though these therapies may not kill the virus, they can help boost the body’s natural immune system and improve lung condition. Lungs are the most affected organ in COVID. According to Ayurveda, herbs such as holy basil, Ashwagandha, Yashtimadhu and other common household (to Indians) spices like turmeric can help boost immunity against respiratory diseases and help fight pathogens.  Because people are skep

As the world struggles to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers around the globe are racing against time to find a cure and vaccine for the coronavirus. One of the therapies under investigation is the ancient Indian healing science, Ayurveda. It turns out Harvard and MIT scientists recently investigated the potential of Ayurvedic science to cure coronavirus and found promising results. They are not the only ones to look at Ayurveda- Indian researchers have been investigating it for the last several months and some doctors are already prescribing medicines based on Ayurvedic herbs. A doctor in India conducted clinical trial with a small number of patients with mild to moderate symptoms and found 100% recovery rate in 9 days or less. There is also an example of an Indian man who made a full recovery from COVID-19 in a short time after taking only Ayurvedic medicines. Interestingly, I read that Ayurvedic medicine was used extensively during the Spanish flu pandemic a century ago. A

As the world celebrates a muted Saint Patrick’s Day today, thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, here’s a blog dedicated to all beer lovers around the world.  I first read about the use of beer in the ancient world during my summer reading assignment for history,  A History of the World in 6 Glasses,  by Tom Standage. It is a fantastic read and highly recommended, not just for history buffs but for anyone who likes reading about history in an informal and interesting way. Starting with a little history of Saint Patrick’s Day: it was a religious festival marking the arrival of Christianity in Ireland which was made into an official feast day. The festival has evolved into a day of revelry during which vast amounts of alcohol, particularly beer, are consumed. So in honor of Saint Patrick’s Day, here's a short history of beer and its use in ancient times for much more than just getting drunk.  Beer was one of the oldest beverages consumed by humans, second only to water. With

With the recent fear of a coronavirus outbreak, I thought it would be interesting to trace the history of infectious diseases. Infectious diseases date back to the ancient civilizations. The earliest reference to influenza, which the coronavirus is a form of, came from none other than the father of modern medicine, Hippocrates. As early as 412 B.C.,  Hippocrates described a highly contagious disease with flu-like symptoms afflicting residents of Perinthus in northern Greece. It is the first known influenza epidemic in history. The name, influenza , came much later in 1357 AD, when people in Florence named the epidemic “influenza di freddo”, or influence of cold. Infections spread quickly and widely in the ancient world, and influenza was certainly not the first epidemic in history. The Great Plague of Athens in 430-426 BC, caused by an outbreak of typhoid and other diseases, is the earliest known major epidemic. The outbreak came in the middle of the Peloponnesian War between the S