Saturday, February 23,2008
COLOMBO: Researchers at the Bandaranaike Memorial Ayurvedic Research Institute (BMARI) in Nawinna have developed an Ayurvedic formula to further the life span of AIDS patients and lessen their sufferings, Indigenous Medicine Minister Tissa Karalliyadda claimed Friday. Senior BMARI Research Officer Dr. Pushpa Wickramasingha said research conducted at the BMARI so far had proved that the sufferings of AIDS patients could be lessened by indigenous medicine. Experimental treatment carried out on five HIV positive patients have brought positive results, she claimed.
The BMARI has also found a permanent cure derived from a medicinal herb for the skin disease leucoderma (Vitiligo). Over 6,000 patients annually seek treatment at this centre, Wickramasinghe said.
The institute conducted extensive research and has established that ‘Bakuchi’ oil, extracted from a medicinal herb, applied on the white patches to the body is a most effective cure. There are 200,000 Vitiligo patients in the country, Minister Karalliyadda.
"We have cured around 100 patients and a large number is currently undergoing treatment. There is a delay in seeking Ayurveda treatment as the majority of the patients start off with western treatment and after failing switch to Ayurveda treatment. This causes a delay as early treatment enables fast recovery,” Dr Wickramasinghe said.
The increased uses of pesticides, chemicals, fast foods, hair dye and lipstick are the common causes, she explained. This is a disease that is found among all age groups and it passes on from one generation to the next. However, with the curative process we carry out, the patients can lead a normal social life.
Minister Karalliyadda said experiments conducted by the BMARI since 1969 had established that Vitiligo could be cured using traditional prescriptions.
“There are hundreds of Vitiligo patients who have been fully cured through Ayurvedic treatment which involves the use of medicinal oil and essence of leaves. There is a stigma attached to this skin disease. Hence, those who got fully cured are reluctant to say that they once had this disease. They even send a third party to the Ayurvedic hospitals to obtain their drugs,” Minister Karaliyadda said.
Dr. Pushpa Wickramasingha explaining the method of treatment said oil ‘Bakuchi’ prepared by the BMARI is the main drug used in treatment of Vitiligo patients. This oil is applied on the white patches of the patient’s body and exposed to sunlight for about one hour from 7.00 – 8.00 am. In addition one tea spoonful of Manibadra powder is administered orally along with water boiled with Nelli and Rasakinda. When treated in this manner for a few weeks the white patches of the skin begin to disappear and after a few months of continuous treatment the disease would completely disappear.
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