Standardization of quantity of Churna for Udvartana based on body size

Determining the quantity of udvartana churna required for the procedure based on the body size w.s.r. to BMI and WHtR

Abstract

Lifestyle disorder is a burden to the modern age of machines and materialism. Industrialization, excessive stress, dietary habits and lack of exercise are the main faults which has led to emergence of many Santarpanotha vikaras alarmingly. Udvartana is a type of bahya rukshana karma adopted most frequently in the initial stage of lifestyle disorders aiming at ama nirharana. Procedure of massaging the body with churna in the direction opposite to hair follicles of the body is Udvartana. Lack of standardization is as a major pitfall in any therapy. Aim of the present study was to quantify Udvartana churna based on body size. A total of 30 subjects aged between 20 to 60 years, eligible for udvartana karma were included in the study. The study was conducted in a tertiary centre, located at South Karnataka, India. Body Mass Index (BMI) and Waist-Height Ratio (WHtR) readings were the assessing parameters used in this study. BMI was a more consistent parameter as compared to WHtR for assessing proper amount of churna required for udvartana. Thus, proper quantification of churna is essential to avoid wastage which inturn influence the availability of genuine drugs and high expense of treatment.

 Keywords: Santarpanotha vikara, Udvartana, Rukshana karma