Ayurveda For Indigestion & Bloating: A Case Study

Samprapti Ghataka– Dosha: Pitta-Vata pradhan

Dushya: Ras, meda; Srotas: Anna vaha, ras vaha, medo vaha; Adhishthan: Amashaya-Pakvashaya

Nidana: Improper diet and life style, disturbed sleep, improper timings of meal, psychological weakness etc factors.

Chikitsa Sutra

• Nidana parivarjan – Avoid things in diet and routine that accelerates progression of disease

Shaman Chikitsa – Pitta-Vata shaman, deepan, pachan, rechan, sroto shodhan, lekhan

• Shodhan Chikitsa – Natural and easy methods are discussed that could be practiced at home

• Sattvavjay Chikitsa – Patient education, expectation 

management and approach of treatment is shared

Specific Advice:

Pathya: Practice of regular walk after meals instead of sitting, increased water

consumption, maintaining proper gap between meals, coconut water, including fiber added edibles in ample quantity like salad-fruits ¬veggies, yoga-pranayam, exercise, breathing exercises, light & easily digestible foods, fresh buttermilk etc were advised.

Apathya: Fried, oily, spicy and heavy foods, hot potency things, tea-coffee, white flour products, fast foods, preservative added packed foods, pickles, sauce, tomato, jackfruit, cauliflower, black gram, kidney beans, potato, brinjal are advised to avoid.

Treatment Plan in Jan. 2016

Modifications/Changes made in prescription during course, below changed medicines were given as per patient’s feedback:

Except adding few products to address her other health issues, her main medicines were kept unchanged from beginning to end.

Outcome:

After couple of months of medication, patient shared mixed response regarding her issues as symptoms recurred if the suggested regimen was not followed. Her menstruation trouble recurred after quitting her old combination which was helping her. In successive months, and after prescribed medicines and diet, she reported very good improvement in all problems including acidity, indigestion, menstruation, bowels etc. Since September, her medicine was reduced because of improvement achieved so far. She lost almost 28 pounds weight. In October, even taking reduced dosage on alternate days, patient shared complete improvement in all complications i.e. acidity, bloating, gas formation, constipation, headache, overweight issues.

Parameters before, during & after treatment

Discussion:

When food is not digested properly, due to low jathragni, and most of the food is not converted into nutritious juice required for the sustenance of the body, it forms the mucus like substance which is ‘apakv ahar’. Very little of this substance gets converted in nutritious juice while a large part of it is converted into waste products. This excess of waste causes aggravation of vata, which disrupts the normal functioning of the digestive canal thus producing (ama) in the body. Anna is the toxin caused by undigested food.

Eating before the previous meal has completely digested, over eating, eating heavy foods, eating irregularly, eating very hot or very cold food, eating incompatible foods, eating food s which are not suited to the climate/season or body is often responsible for indigestion.

Holding natural urges, drinking too much water, working late nights or not getting proper rest, mental factors like Anxiety/ fear/anger/sickness/sorrow etc also contribute in causing indigestion.

Due to improper lifestyle/diet and mental causes, jathragni becomes low and the food is not digested properly because of aggravation of doshas. The water content increases and dilutes the digestive juices and they can’t act properly on the food, which causes indigestion. It further leads to formation of various symptoms like acidity, bloating, unsatisfactory bowel movements, piles etc. Ama, a toxic by-product of weak digestion, is very similar to meda dhatu hence it eventually increases weight and related complications. 

Amlapittantak rasayan – Pitta-vata shaman, deepan, pachan, sroto shodhan, Pitta shamak rasayan – Pitta shaman, deepan, pachan, Yakrida churna – Vata shaman, rechan, sroto shodhan, Shankh bhasma -Vata shaman, deepan, pachan, Yashtimadhu compound – Pitta-vata shaman, sroto shodhan, Acidity tablet – Pitta-vata shaman, deepan, pachan

Soot shekhar ras – Vata-pitta shaman, deepan, pachan, Liver vati – Vata shaman, rechan, sroto shodhan, Saaf saaf tablet – Rechan, sroto shodhan

Digestol tablet – Vata shama, deepan, pachan, sroto shodhan, Slim tea – Lekhan, sroto shodhan Punarnavadi syrup – Vata shaman, sroto shodhan, rechan