Evidence Watch
The placebo question, taken seriously
Dismissing a treatment as merely placebo is both a serious criticism and an under-examined one. What placebo effects are, and are not, matters for how traditional medicine should be assessed.
Ayurveda Town — Tradition, examined
Dosha & Constitution
Using both: how to combine Ayurveda with conventional care
Most people who use Ayurveda also use conventional medicine. Doing both well requires a few specific habits and a clear sense of what each is for.
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Herbs & Formulations
Diuretic herbs and the kidney
Punarnava and several other traditional preparations are used for fluid retention and urinary conditions. The kidney is an organ where herbal preparations have caused substantial documented harm.
Yoga & Breath
Yoga injuries and how to practise without acquiring one
Yoga is generally safe and injury rates are not zero. The pattern of injuries is well enough documented that most of them are avoidable.
Yoga & Breath
Breath practice for anxiety: the specific thing to do
Of everything discussed on this site, slow breathing has the best combination of evidence, accessibility and safety. Here is the practical version.
Diet & Digestion
Cooking oils: the classical selections and the current evidence
Ayurveda assigns properties to different oils and recommends them for different constitutions. Nutrition science asks different questions, and the answers do not entirely align.
Daily Routine
Children: traditional practices and what to be careful about
Ayurveda has a branch dealing with children, and several traditional practices for infants carry documented risks that are worth knowing precisely.
Dosha & Constitution
All dosha & constitution →
Dosha & Constitution
Using both: how to combine Ayurveda with conventional care
Most people who use Ayurveda also use conventional medicine. Doing both well requires a few specific habits and a clear sense of what each is for.
Dosha & Constitution
Mind in the classical framework, and mental health care now
Ayurveda has a developed account of mental states and a category of treatment addressing them. Where that sits relative to contemporary mental health care needs stating carefully.
Dosha & Constitution
Ojas and the immunity claim
Ojas is a classical concept frequently translated as immunity in contemporary material. That translation is doing a lot of work it cannot support.
Herbs & Formulations
All herbs & formulations →Herbs & Formulations
Diuretic herbs and the kidney
Punarnava and several other traditional preparations are used for fluid retention and urinary conditions. The kidney is an organ where herbal preparations have caused substantial documented harm.
Herbs & Formulations
Arjuna and the heart claims
Terminalia arjuna is used classically for cardiac conditions and has a small research literature. Cardiology is the field where substituting an unproven treatment is least advisable.
Herbs & Formulations
Shilajit: what it is, and the contamination question
A mineral-rich substance collected from rock faces, with a small research literature and a quality control problem that follows directly from what it is.
Diet & Digestion
All diet & digestion →Diet & Digestion
Cooking oils: the classical selections and the current evidence
Ayurveda assigns properties to different oils and recommends them for different constitutions. Nutrition science asks different questions, and the answers do not entirely align.
Diet & Digestion
Drinking with meals, and the classical instructions about water
Classical texts give specific instructions about when and how much to drink around eating, and several popular claims about this have no support at all.
Diet & Digestion
Honey: the classical instructions and the evidence
Classical texts treat honey with unusual specificity, including a prohibition on heating it that corresponds to a real chemical change, and one absolute safety rule.
Daily Routine
All daily routine →Daily Routine
Children: traditional practices and what to be careful about
Ayurveda has a branch dealing with children, and several traditional practices for infants carry documented risks that are worth knowing precisely.
Daily Routine
Pregnancy and postnatal traditions: what is helpful and what is not
Ayurveda has detailed prescriptions for pregnancy and the postnatal period. Some are sensible, some conflict with obstetric guidance, and several specific practices carry real risk.
Daily Routine
The evening routine and winding down
Classical texts give less attention to the evening than to the morning, and what they do prescribe corresponds closely to what sleep research recommends.
Yoga & Breath
All yoga & breath →Yoga & Breath
Yoga injuries and how to practise without acquiring one
Yoga is generally safe and injury rates are not zero. The pattern of injuries is well enough documented that most of them are avoidable.
Yoga & Breath
Breath practice for anxiety: the specific thing to do
Of everything discussed on this site, slow breathing has the best combination of evidence, accessibility and safety. Here is the practical version.
Yoga & Breath
Conduct as part of the regimen: the ethical prescriptions
Both classical Ayurveda and the yogic system include behavioural and ethical prescriptions as part of health practice, which is a framing modern health advice has largely lost.
Evidence Watch
All evidence watch →Evidence Watch
The placebo question, taken seriously
Dismissing a treatment as merely placebo is both a serious criticism and an under-examined one. What placebo effects are, and are not, matters for how traditional medicine should be assessed.
Evidence Watch
Choosing a practitioner: what to look for and what to ask
Regulation of Ayurvedic practice varies enormously between countries, and in many places anyone may use the title. Here is how to assess someone.
Evidence Watch
Cancer claims: the most important thing on this site to get right
Alternative cancer treatment is an area where the stakes are absolute and the evidence is clear. This article states the position plainly.
About Ayurveda Town
Classical Ayurvedic practice explained clearly, alongside what modern research has and has not been able to confirm. We publish explanatory articles rather than news, which means an article here is written to still be useful a year from now. Every piece is bylined, sourced and read by an editor before it appears — the full process is set out in our editorial policy.