Holistic Approach to the Coronavirus - I

Holistic Approach to Coronavirus

Extraordinary situations warrant extraordinary measures. Whether we like it or not, Coronavirus (and the COVID-19) is here now and it may linger for some time.  The fatalities are climbing rapidly across nations. So, we must take all possible precautions, preventive steps, and prepare ourselves mentally. Even highly qualified medical doctors with modern equipment are not able to save many patients from the virus. Some scientists and media articles talk about antiviral drugs or vaccines – as a possible way out of this tragic morass. Or, they suggest anti-body treatment using the plasma of healthy virus resistant individuals. But, for most of the underprivileged populace, the elderly, or destitute crowd, there may not be much immediate help despite well intentioned measures by governments and NGOs. So, what to do?

Stock up

Earlier during my college days, once we’re forced to vacate the hostels and idle at parents’ homes. Curfew (Section 144) was imposed for many days. Even grocery shopping came to standstill. So, we (my cousin’s family and myself) barely survived on the daily dose of steamed rice, pickle, chilly powder, and salt. Similarly, now we must use all our creativity and stock up on the essentials of flour, rice, lentils, and frozen vegetables. We can add multivitamin supplements, vitamin C, and Tylenol (or Crocin) to the list. If you forget to prepare like the squirrel in our backyard before the advent of severe winter, then you’ve to beg or entreat a neighbor, friend, or relative. For those on prescription medicines, it is not a bad idea to buy a three-month supply, if it is possible (if the insurer approves). In these lean times we have to shed all our luxuries; learn to live on bare minimum. If you run out of bread, then subsist on cereal. If cereal is also exhausted, then just puffed rice (or poha, అటుకులు) will do. Or make rotis (రొట్టెలు). Manage with whatever is possible with the items in your limited stock (pantry). Ordinary greens like the lowly amaranthus (తోటకూర), purslane (గంగవల్లి కూర) or drumstick leaves (మునగాకు)  have valuable minerals, proteins, and vitamins. Even pumpkin seeds have some essential nutrients. With some sunlight exposure, a bit of greens (amaranthus, purslane), milk, sesame seeds, and rose hips one can get minerals, vitamin A, B-complex, C, and D. Just enough to keep the mind agile and body healthy.

Hygiene and Daily Body Care

Valuable and helpful preventive information is provided by a number of Ayurvedic and other alternate medical professionals (1). Every time you come into the house from outside, wash your hands, feet, and face. Do this ritual at least four times a day. In northeast US and other cold hilly places (Delhi), feet are usually covered with socks in the winter, so one can skip the feet washing part. Leave the footwear outside or in the mudroom. A simple ordinary bar soap (kept dry and clean) works wonders for routine cleaning (ex: Dial Basics or Lifebuoy).

The basic ingredient in the soap is the ‘surfactant’ molecule that removes oil and dirt from our hands. Now if you cannot access soap, then the simple age-old technique of using soapnut berries (కుంకుడి కాయలు) will do the job. Or, you can use Acacia concinna (షీకా కాయి ) also. In fact even today, the soapnut berries are used for cleaning jewelry and silk fabrics. Simple bar soap is far better than all the other fancy products. The reason is simple:  After washing and rinsing with water, our hands should be absolutely free of dirt, oil residue, lipid-laden virus particles, and even the soapy layer.

It appears in this virus case, clean face and clean hands (because they are the entry points) are very important. The face has seven gateways to the body: Mouth, two nostrils, two ears, and two eyes. Our task is to keep these pathways healthy and totally blocked from the deadly nanometer (nm) size virus. Actually the virus diameter is ~ 120 nm. One cannot see the virus with naked eye; you need high resolution electron microscopes.  Most children innocently pick their noses (we all did during our kindergarten days!) or stuff pencil points into ears or accidentally get dirt particles into sensitive eyes. Blessed little souls. That’s why they are children! How to safe guard these delicate sensory organs and pathways?

Normally we learn basic hygiene and body care through our parents (and grand parents) or science teachers. Now due to the Corona scare we are forced to relearn these elementary habits. After returning from outdoors, wash hands and face thoroughly; ditto after restroom visit. In tropical climate (where we wear sandals for comfort) we have to clean feet also. Except in summer and pleasant autumn months, I tend to wear socks. So I can skip the feet cleaning ritual; the daily ablutions (if I can borrow the phrase from a learned Swami of my alma mater) will see that the feet are clean. In addition to simple face cleaning I also indulge in these (Ayurvedic) steps: a) Garlic oil drops for the ear. This is to keep the hearing in good condition. It also protects the ears (and the connected sinuses) from cold winds, ear blockages, and earaches. When our mother (bless her!) used to pour sesame seed oil during weekly shampoo baths, I would often run out of the village garden to escape from her oily hands. b) The nose (nostrils) gets dry during wintry months (it is severe where indoor heating is used) or during hot dry summer months (as in Rajasthan or Delhi). This leads to nose bleeding and sinus (stuffed sinuses) problems, headaches, etc. Human bodies are like our indoor plants; they need proper humidity and clean fresh air circulation. We can add moisture through the use of a humidifier (or desert cooler) – and this is particularly essential during sleep. A few drops of olive oil (or sesame seed oil) does wonders to the nose problem. Sometimes, a mild saline solution (saline nasal drops available in stores) (sea salt) rinse can precede the oil treatment. Some people get sudden attacks of mumps or salivary gland aches due to dryness, sudden altitude changes, or winter onset. They can be avoided (or at least the severity of attacks can be reduced) with these simple preventive measures. c) About the throat part now. We need not master the entire Gray’s Anatomy to understand the inner workings of sinuses. Ear, nose, and throat are connected internally. We intuitively understand this fact when we get ear blockage (in flight, diving, or mountain climbing). The internally connected paths (call them sinuses loosely) should not be blocked ("traffic jam" due to infection). They are fluid pathways and they have very sensitive inner soft tissues (epithelial). So to keep the throat in good healthy condition, follow age-old techniques: Drink warm ginger tea (or turmeric milk) at the earliest sign of throat discomfort. Gargle with lukewarm salt water. Sea salt or the Himalayan salt (సైంధవ లవణం) is better if you can grab it. Otherwise just use table salt. At least once a day, preferably right after getting up (from sleep) in the morning, do brushing and tongue cleaning (2) (see my earlier post here). Munch on ginger candy instead of the usual chewing gum.

The eye: It is a very delicate organ. Usually we clean with potable neutral water (pH = 7) after waking up from sleep. We gently remove the accumulated teardrop residue from the corners. For excessive dry eye situations, artificial tear drops are a great help. The human eye is so sensitive that even washing with clean water can produce slight discomfort for eyes. This is because water is water and it is not a substitute for natural tears. The chemical composition, pH, and osmotic pressure issues come into play here. If one cannot access artificial tears, then we can use pasteurized (well boiled) cow’s milk to reduce dryness/itching. (Very dilute salt water is also used some times by naturopaths). In most situations, eyes’ problems resolve with good rest and gentle washing with cool clean water. 

            The ear, nose, throat, and eyes act as the gateways for cold, flu, and the current deadly Coronavirus. (to be continued) Copyright 2020 by the author

1. https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1600895

2. https://pattri-pulu.blogspot.com/2019/02/inexpensive-dental-care.html

Recently Dr. G. V. Purnachand prescribed the following Ayurvedic churna (వేసవారం చూర్ణము) for boosting immunity particularly during these Corona virus outbreak. Though the powder mixture uses the common Indian kitchen ingredients, it should be used with proper guidance. Particularly elders who take multiple prescription medicines with underlying health conditions need extra care. The mixture consists of  (v/v) asafetida 1 part, ginger 2 parts, black pepper 4 parts, cumin 8 parts, and turmeric 16 parts. A YouTube video explains the method and its use. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mrKsKRyv84

Ayurvedic doctors in Gujarat have made field trials with ginger powder (శొంఠి). Very small quantity (size equal to one moong dal grain) is inhaled through nose. About 1 gm is taken through mouth, gently chewing the powder first. Details are on the Internet at YesTV. The doctors claim that it provides protection from the virus particularly during outdoor exposure in crowded places.