Alternative & Integrative Medicine

Diabetes Mellitus type-2 encompasses a widespread clinical syndrome associated with several metabolic abnormalities associated with a range of complications over a period of time. Since the disease is practically incurable, the continued adaptations and restriction imposed by the disease cause a variety of psychological problems in patients, which are associated with several factors such as chronicity, severity, personal characteristics and several others. According to the concept of mizaj (temperament) in Unani medicine, the persons having a cold temperament which may be balghami (phlegmatic) or saudavi (melancholic) are more likely to be depressed, anxious and irritable than others. It was postulated that the same psychic reactions may determine their illness behaviour. With this background, the present clinical study explored the factors associated with irritable behaviour in 100 diabetic subjects. It was observed that diabetic subjects having a saudavi temperament were most likely to be irritable (p<0.01, highly significant). Also, irritability was associated with taking injectable medication and those having higher blood glucose (p<0.0001, extremely significant). It was concluded that diabetes-related management and therapeutics must take into account these factors along with other clinical and biochemical parameters.

In order to develop, any herbal formulations (tablet, capsules, paste etc), the formulation expert must be having sound knowledge of work flow, which is to be adopted while formulating. The factors including traditional claim of plant based drug, its process to develop formulations, its other active ingredients and additional excipients (if needed), are generally referred from traditional books like Ayurveda Sar Samhita, Charak Samhita, Bhaisaj Ratnawali etc. The present attempt is one of the systematic approaches depicting on development of herbal tablet formulations. This review will assist in knowing the process and work protocol while developing herbal tablet.

Objectives: To compare standard allergy management (SM) to a new integrative treatment for food allergies, Allergy Release Technique® (ART), for effects on skin prick testing wheal diameter (SPT), IgE levels (allergen specific (SIgE) and total IgE (TIgE)), quality of life (QoL), anxiety, calcium intake, and allergen ingestion. ART includes multiple components, including skin conductance assessments at acupuncture points, exposure to radio frequency pulses, food desensitization, cognitive behavioral techniques, and post-treatment exposure to food allergens. Three hundred and seventy-seven children have participated in ART over the past 12 years.
Methods: Allergies had been documented in 2007-2015 (time 1) for both ART and SM groups (N=10 each), matched for age (7-17 years), gender, and food allergy (peanut or cow’s milk). At study enrolment (time 2, 2016-2017), ART group had had weekly treatments (M treatment length=6.3 months). The SM group had been followed by a board-certified allergist for at least one year. An average of 4.56 years elapsed between time 1 and time 2 for both groups. At time 1 and 2, SPT, SIgE and TIgE were assessed; time 2 also included food challenges, food ingestion diaries, QoL and anxiety questionnaires.
Results: Wilcoxon signed-rank statistics revealed no significant differences between groups on any measures at time 1. At time 2, compared to the SM group, the ART group had lower SPT and self-reported impact of food allergy on QoL, higher allergen ingestion, and a greater decrease in SPT from time 1 to time 2 (p values <0.05; effect sizes, r=0.52-0.86).
Conclusion: ART is an integrative treatment resulting in smaller SPT, higher level of allergen ingestion, and lower impact of food allergies on QoL compared to SM. Results should be replicated using larger samples, a prospective design, disaggregating ART components, and comparing ART to oral immunotherapy.