More than 1,000 specialists from across the country attended an event to mark the first Naturopathy Day on Sunday as declared by the Ministry of Ayush (ayurveda, unani, yoga, naturopathy, siddha and homeopathy).

According to naturopathy, the primary cause of disease, barring accidental or surgical injury, is violation of nature’s laws. The effects of violation are “lowered vitality, abnormal composition of blood and lymph and accumulation of waste matter, morbid materials and poisons”.

It is common now for doctors to prescribe medicines as preventive steps against cholesterol or blood pressure to people above 50.But alarmingly, people are dying because of kidney failure as a result of overdose of such medications, she notes. Dialysis has become very common. Strains of bacteria develop resistance to the disease says, Dr Shilpa Shah, a lifestyle medicine specialist at Swasti Lifestyle Medicine and Naturopathy Clinic.

Naturopathy treatments encourage the inherent curative reaction within each cell based on the five fundamental laws of air, water, earth, fire and ether which govern health. The cure is not by reactions to medications but because the very health of the diseased cell and vitality improves with the correct diagnosis, methods and treatments used, she adds.

There are air, chromo, massage, hydro, fasting and diet and mud therapies. In Delhi, a community mud bath was organised at Balaji Nirogdham where 700 people took bath simultaneously. This has gained to the Asia Book of Records. Mud bath is one of the five natural elements of naturopathy treatment.

According to naturopathy there is only one cause of disease, accumulation of morbid matter and only one cure is its elimination. Fasting is seen as an effective treatment for removing the disorders of mind and body and providing rest to the digestive system. The vital energy which digests the food is wholly engaged in the process of elimination during fasting, naturopaths say.

Healthy eating and good diet practices are the best therapy. There are few diseases like flu, cold, asthma where certain food which can aggravate it and certain food will help deal with the problem. Most of the diseases like diabetes, hypertension and thyroid can be cured through an intelligent eating habit, says Shilpa.

The problem for this practice as there is lack of specific guidelines and trained professionals as also poor research methodologies, admits another expert.

Aarti, who follows naturopathy, says, “Practitioners taught me the principle of healthy living. In the 15-day treatment I was involved in many therapeutic process so that I engaged in my own recovery and learnt to take responsibility for my future health. The sessions through rational use of the elements which are freely available in nature have empowered me to have a positive outlook of life. Good health ought to be your own concern, not solely that of the medical professional.”.