A Narrative Review on Healing Wisdom: Unveiling the Power of Pathya-Apathya in Wound Recovery

Ayurveda’s distinctiveness lies in its use of Ahara-Vihara (dietic and daily regimes) as a therapeutic method. Sixty therapeutic protocols for wound healing have ahara (food) as one of the approach. Wound healing is a multifactorial mechanism where food plays a significant role in terms of micro and macro nutrients. In clinical practice, understanding Pathya Kalpana (conducive practises) is crucial as it considered as half of the treatment, Ardha Chikitsa (Partial Treatment) and it also stabilises digestive and metabolic fires (jataragni and dhatwagni). Prescribing medicines and ignoring a proper lifestyle and diet changes serve no purpose as it only defeats the symptoms of the disease without attending the root causative factors of a disease, as Apathya (non conducive practices) are the major causative factors of pathogenesis. Even a treatment protocol which can hit the bull’s eye would fail, when a patient has inappropriate diet and indulges in improper activities of routine. The knowledge of influence of shadrasa (six tastes) in healing, method of eating, conducive and non conducive foods and regimes given in scriptures, properties and effects of the wholesome foods and its indications is beneficial for establishing a structured treatment protocol. Various types of wounds and different phases of wound healing can be approached by a specifically designed diet and regimes.