Pupil Medicine Form; Complete And Sign This Form - Edgar Sewter: Fill & Download for Free

Not really, but perhaps that can change…Sushruta Samhita[1] and Charaka Samhita[2] are definitely very valuable historically. Written approximately two millennia ago, they provide a wonderful window into ancient medicinal practice in India.But this is exactly what makes it irrelevant in modern times. Think of any scientific knowledge from two millennia ago. Have we not built upon that knowledge so much that almost everything from that time is outdated now? In physics, for instance, almost everything we learn in school is from Newton’s time or later (with a few exceptions like Archimedes’ principle). This makes most of the knowledge from that time merely of historical interest.And in the case of medicine, the situation was worse. We did not have even a basic understanding of how the human body worked. We had no idea of biochemistry for instance. Pathogenic microorganisms had not been discovered. That is why we have, for instance, this section about epidemics and preventive measures in Sushruta Samhita[3]Sometimes a town or a city is depopulated by a curse, anger, sin, or by a monster or a demoness conjured up by a spell or incantation. Sometimes the pollens of poisonous flowers or grasses, etc., wafted by the winds, invade a town or a village, and produce a sort of epidemic cough, asthma, catarrh, or fever, irrespective of all constitutional peculiarities or deranged bodily humours agitated Towns and villages are known to have been depopulated through malignant astral influences, or through houses, wives, beds, seats, carriages, riding animals, gems and precious stones assuming inauspicious features.Prophylactic measures:—In such cases migration to a healthy or unaffected locality, performances of rites of pacification and atonement, (wearing of prophylactic gems and drugs), recitations of mantras, libations of clarified butter cast into the sacrificial fire, offerings to the gods, celebration of sacrificial ceremonies, obeisance with clasped palms to the gods, practice of penances, self-control and charity, kindness, spiritual initiation; obedience to one's elders and preceptors, and devotion to the gods and the Bramhanas, and observance of such like rules of conduct may prove beneficial to the affected community.When we did not understand what caused epidemics, we attributed it to curses and demons in medical texts of the time! And the “cure” involved atonement, sacrifices and penance. This happened because the medical practice was strongly intertwined with religion. In fact, Sushruta Samhita begins with an explanation of the origin of medicine from the incarnation of Dhanvantari[4]Well, we shall now describe the origin of the Science of Medicine, as disclosed by the holy Dhanvantari to his disciple Sushruta. (Vedotpattimadhya'yam).Once upon a time, when the holy Dhanvantari, the greatest of the mighty celestials, incarnated in the form of Divodasa, the king of Kási, was blissfully seated, in his hermitage, surrounded by a concourse of holy Rishis; Aupadhenava, Vaitarana, Aurabhra, Paushkalávata, Karavirya, Gopura-rakshita, Sushruta and others addressed him as follows:—"O Sire, it grieves us much to find men, though otherwise well befriended by their kin and relations, falling a prey to diseases, mental, physical, traumatic, or natural, and piteously wailing in agony like utterly friendless creatures on earth; and we supplicate thee, O Lord, to illumine our minds with the truths of the Eternal Ayurveda (Medical Science) so that we may faithfully discharge the duties allotted to us in life, and alleviate the sufferings of humanity at large. Bliss in this life and hereafter, is in the gift of this eternal Ayurveda, and for this, O Lord, we have made bold to approach thee as thy humble disciples." To them, thus replied the holy Dhanvantari:—"Welcome to all of you to this blissful hermitage. All of you are worthy of the honour of true pupilship or tutelage."This idea of filling the gaps with gods and curses makes ancient Ayurvedic texts philosophically incompatible with science-based medicine.The biggest problem as I see is the foundation of the Tridosha theory: that all disease arises from the imbalance of Vayu, Pittam and Kapham.The Va'yu:—The imparting of motion to the body (Praspandanam), the carrying of the sensations of the respective sense organs (Udvahanam), the passing down of food to its proper receptacles (Puranam), the separation of excretions from the assimilated food matter (Viveka), and the retention and evacuation of urine and semen, etc. (Dharanam) should be ascribed to the functions of the five kinds of Vayu (nerve force) which support the body.The Pittam:—Pigmentations or colouring (Ragakrit), the digestion of food and metabolism of tissues (Paktikrit), the vitalisation and nutrition of the protaplasmic cells (Ojakrit), the origination and preservation of eye-sight (Teja-Krit), the germination of heat and maintenance of the temperature of the body (Ushma-Krit), and the origination of the faculty of intellection (Medha-Krit) should be regarded as the functions of the five kinds of Pittam, which contribute to the preservation of the body through its thermogenetic potency (Agni-Karma).The Shleshma.:—The function of the five kinds of Shleshma is to lubricate the interior of the joints (Sandhi-Samshleshanam), to contribute to the gloss of the body (Snehanam), to aid in the formation of healthy granules in sores (Ropanam), to add to the size of the body (Puranam), to build fresh tissues (Vrimhanam), to impart a pleasant or soothing sensation to the body (Tarpanam), to increase its strength (Valakrit), and to give firmness to the limbs (Sthairya-krit), thereby contributing to the welfare of the body by supplying it with its watery element.Trying to fit all diseases into this mould is problematic, especially when you consider that many diseases are the result of pathogens. See for instance[5]The aggravated or agitated Vayu, charged with an abnormal quantity of Kapham, sometimes affects and stuffs the entire nervous system, and gives rise to a form of disease, which is called Dandapatanakam (Epilepsy with convulsions), inasmuch as it deprives the body of its power of movement and flexibility, making it stiff and rigid like a rod (Danda).The disease but rarely yields to medicine and, is cured in rare instances only with the greatest difficulty; its characteristic symptom being a paralysis of the jaw-bone, which makes deglutition extremely difficult. The disease in which the enraged Vayu bends the body like a bow is called Dhanushtambha (Tetanus).But today, we know that Tetanus[6] is a bacterial[7] infection!This is not to say that ancient medicine was all witchcraft. On the contrary, they did their best with the available knowledge and technology. For instance, Sushruta Samhita talks about a lot of surgical instruments[8]Surgical Appliances may be divided into six different groups or types, such as the Svastika, the Sandansha, the Tala, the Nadi Yantras, and the Shalakas, besides those that are called the minor or accessory appliances (Upa-yantras).The Svastika instruments (forceps) in their turn, are divided into twenty-four sub-classes; the Sandansha instruments (tongs) into two; the Tala Yantras into two; the Nadi Yantras (tubular) into twenty; and the Shalakas (bougies) into twenty-eight; while the Upa-yantras admit of being divided into twenty-five different types. These instruments are all made of iron which may be substituted for any other similar or suitable substance where iron would be unavailable.And they took surgical training very seriously, making sure that students practiced on dead animals etc.[9]A pupil, otherwise well read, but uninitiated into the practice (of medicine or surgery) is not competent to take in hand the medical or Surgical treatment of a disease. The art of making specific forms of incision should be taught by making cuts in the body of a Pushpaphala (a kind of gourd , Alavu, watermelon, cucumber, or Ervaruka. The art of making cuts either in the upward or downward direction should be similarly taught. The art of making excisions should be practically demonstrated by making openings in the body of a full water-bag, or in the bladder of a dead animal, or in the side of a leather pouch full of slime or water. The art of scraping should be instructed on a piece of skin on which the hair has been allowed to remain. The art of venesection (Vedhya) should be taught on the vein of a dead animal, or with the help of a lotus stem. The art of probing and stuffing should be taught on worm (Ghuna) eaten wood, or on the reed of a bamboo, or on the mouth of a dried Alavu (gourd). The art of extracting should be taught by withdrawing seeds from the kernel of a Vimbi, Vilva or Jack fruit, as well as by extracting teeth from the jaws of a dead animal. The act of secreting or evacuating should be taught on the surface of a Shalmali plank covered over with a coat of bee's wax, and suturing on pieces of cloth, skin or hide. Similarly the art of bandaging or ligaturing should be practically learned by tying bandages round the specific limbs and members of a full-sized doll made of stuffed linen. The art of tying up a Karna-sandhi (severed ear-lobe) should be practically demonstrated on a soft severed muscle or on flesh, or with the stem of a lotus lily. The art of cauterising, or applying alkaline preparations (caustics) should be demonstrated on a piece of soft flesh; and lastly the art of inserting syringes and injecting enemas into the region of the bladder or into an ulcerated channel, should be taught (by asking the pupil) to insert a tube into a lateral fissure of a pitcher, full of water, or into the mouth of a gourd (Alavu).There are also chapters and chapters on various drugs and their uses.[10]Now we shall discourse on the Chapter which treats of medicinal drugs possessed of cleansing (cathartic) or soothing effects (Samshodhana-Samsha-maniya-madhyayam).Emetic Drugs:—The drugs known as Madana fruits, Kutaja, Jimutaka, Ikshvaku, Dhamagarba, Krita-vedhana, Sarshapa, Vidanga, Pippali, Karanjaka, Prapunnada, Kovidara, Korvudara, Arishta, Ashva- gandha, Vidula, Vandhujivaka, Shveta, Shanapushpi, Vimvi, Vacha, Mrigervaru and Chitra, etc. are possessed of emetic properties. Out of these the fruits (seeds) of plants preceding Kovidara in the abovesaid list (from the Madana fruits to those of the Prapunnada) and the roots of plants from Kovidara to its close, should be used.Purgative Drugs:— The trees, plants, herbs and creepers, etc. known as Trivrita, Shyama, Danti, Dravanti, Saptala, Shankhini, Vishanika, Gavakshi, Chhagalantri, Snuk, Suvarnakshiri, Chitraka, Kinihi, Kusha, Kasha, Tilvaka, Kampillaka, Ramyaka, Patala, Puga, Haritaki, Amalaka, Bibhitaka, Nilini, Chaturangula, Eranda, Putika, Mahavriksha, Saptachchhada, Arka, and Jyotishmati, etc. are possessed of purgative properties. Of these the roots of plants, which precede Tilvaka in the above list, should be used for purgative purposes. The barks of trees from Tilvaka to Patala in the same list should be used for similar purposes. The pollens or dust of the Kampilla seeds, and of the fruits of trees from Eranda to Puga, the leaves of Putika and Aragvadha. and the milky exudations of the remaining members of the list, should be similarly used.The expressed juice of Koshataki, Saptala, Shankhini, Devadali, or Karavellika is both emetic and purgative.Unfortunately, there were limits to what they could achieve with the shaky theoretical foundations.So, how can such ancient medical texts be relevant in the modern age?To answer this, let us think about the history of western medicine. Hippocrates[11] was among the first in the west to treat diseases as naturally caused rather than being curses of gods. This was a very important step in the history of medicine in the west. But at the same time, his medical practice was based on a faulty foundation as well. The Hippocratic idea of four humors[12] — blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile — is very similar to the tridosha theory.But the western world moved on. Though the historical importance of Hippocrates is acknowledged in the Hippocratic oath,[13] you will not find a modern medical textbook which still talks about diseases as arising from the four humours. Modern medicine is science-based or evidence-based. We understood the importance of questioning all these age-old theories and discarded everything that did not work. Firmly footing the field on evidence and science is how we managed to achieve the unbelievable progress in medicine in the last couple of centuries.And yet, the modern Ayurvedic textbooks still have the three doshas as the foundation.This happens because Ayurvedic practitioners today believe in tradition more than science. What passed on to us from centuries ago matters more than evidence. It doesn’t matter that physics, chemistry and biology have progressed unbelievably far ahead since Charaka and Sushruta wrote their books. But little of that shows in the modern practice of Ayurveda. How do you trust a field that refuses to throw out the five-element view of the world? It is my firm belief that, if the great Ayurvedic doctors who founded the field centuries ago got a chance to set foot in the 21st century and see the state of knowledge today, they would be livid at the anachronistic state of Ayurveda today and follow science-based medicine instead.If we think of our ancestors as being perfect in knowledge and infallible, things will stay this way. Ayurveda will have nothing to offer modern science-based medicine.But if we treat people like Charaka and Sushruta as humans who did the best they could while standing on the incomplete knowledge of that time, perhaps there is something in their work that still lies unused. Perhaps there is a drug which science-based medicine has not accepted into its repertoire yet. Can the Ayurvedic practitioners follow the scientific method and study the ancient texts with the required scepticism and isolate the drugs that work from the ones that do not? Can they perform medical trials and use modern biochemistry to identify the active ingredients in those drugs? And most of all, can they throw away discarded notions into the bin and embrace all the knowledge about the human body down to the molecular level that modern science has built up?Then it might be possible to rescue Ayurveda from being a museum piece after all.PS: My answers about alternative medicine and pseudoscientific claims about ancient India are aggregated here.Footnotes[1] Sushruta Samhita - Wikipedia[2] Charaka Samhita - Wikipedia[3] Page:Sushruta Samhita Vol 1.djvu/156[4] Page:Sushruta Samhita Vol 1.djvu/105[5] File:Sushruta Samhita Vol 2.djvu[6] Tetanus - Wikipedia[7] Clostridium tetani - Wikipedia[8] Page:Sushruta Samhita Vol 1.djvu/160[9] Page:Sushruta Samhita Vol 1.djvu/175[10] Page:Sushruta Samhita Vol 1.djvu/462[11] Hippocrates - Wikipedia[12] Humorism - Wikipedia[13] Hippocratic Oath - Wikipedia

I'm okay with my life as a teen in 2016But I've never had another idea of what life is likeMy life as a 15 year old girl in the western world is incredible privileged never the less being a teenager has its down sides.ExpectationsYou are treated like a child and exepected to behave like an adultI'm not allowed to go to the toilet when I want- even though as a girl who goes though menstral cycles this can be INCREDIBLY inconvenient. But I'm expected to-have a job,-get straight As-have a great social life-a relationship-a healthy lifestyle-do chores around the house-keep up a social media profile-girls have to wear clothes that flirt the line between "slutty" and "prudish"-have an idea of what you want to do when your olderThat is a lot for anyone to handle. But that is put forward as an ideal for teenagers meaning there's always something that your not doing "perfect"Social mediaI for one may be one of the first to defend this new form of social interaction but there's no doubt of the negative ways in which it can impact people's lives-Girls even more so are bombarded with images of the "perfect" bodySlim, white, tall, straight, clear skinned models are portrayed more often in the media than what women actually look like. Body dissatisfaction is at its highest and so are eating disorders something that ha the highest mortality rate of all mental illnesses but has the least coverage in school classes.The veriaty of media is improving but that continues to be in the minority. Representation for LGBQ+ , different ethnicities and body types is portrayed by a much too small section of the InternetLimitationsI'm a geek but if I show that I will be made fun ofI'm a vegan but my beliefs are very often described as a phase or something I'm doing to stay "skinny"I have emotions but if I show them I'm weak or just another teenage girl overreactingMy friends, my exquisite, intelligent, kind friends who in different ways all struggle with mental illness are denied anonymity from parents that don't believe they are illPushed into taking medicine they feel they don't wantEducationAlready I feel claustrophobic with this place that I have to go to.Don't get me wrong I adore learning ( that's why I'm on quora) but some of my teachers aren't fit to be in that position of authorityPupils must have complained at some point but the fact is teenagers are ignoredOne teacher constantly berates slow learning pupils with comments such as"Well this question is so easy Poppy might even understand"Another teaches at such a slow pace my previously high ranking class fell several places in terms of averages.But no one cares, our opinions are not worth anything compared to those just 2 years older than us.Thank you for reading ( and all the grammatical mistakes )I will continue to add to this later on!

Practicing veterinarian of forty years here. I have only one client who insists on feeding his cat a vegan diet - and I’m beyond grateful there’s only one! Cats are OBLIGATE carnivores. That means that their bodies have evolved to require meat, not just to stay healthy-appearing, with a nice shiny coat, but simply to survive. Because of eons of eating a meat only diet, all felids have actually lost the ability to make certain amino acids and vitamins in their own bodies like herbivores or omnivores (like humans) do. Examples: Cats are unable to produce vitamin A from beta-carotene the way many other mammals can, so they need to ingest it in its pre-formed state. They’re not real good at producing niacin from tryptophan either, and probably most dramatically, they have an extremely high requirement for taurine, an amino acid which is found almost exclusively in animal flesh.In my senior year of vet school, during my neurology rotation, I noticed one night as my own cat continually tried to interrupt my studying by sitting on my open book, that the pupils of his eyes were different sizes - a phenomenon known as anisocoria, a pathological change I’d just been studying. I immediately took my cherished little furry companion to the neuro clinic with me the next morning, and when the neurology resident looked into his eyes with his ophthalmoscope, he immediately asked me, “What do you feed your cat?” He seemed a bit too excited as he asked the senior neurologist to have a look. “What do you feed your cat?” was his instantaneous query. Then with great enthusiasm, we all traipsed to the ophthalmology department, where the head ophthalmologist at the University of Pennsylvania College of Veterinary Medicine, took ophthalmoscope to kitty’s eyes and immediately asked, “What do you feed your cat?”Quite ironically, many months prior, I had met with the head of the nutrition department after school one day to get help in creating the “perfectly balanced” vegetarian diet for my cat. I was a vegetarian and, well . . . you get the rest. Dr. Kronfeld and I spent a good hour, as I recall, and I fed him precisely as directed from then on. In 1976, even the head of the nutrition department at a prestigious veterinary teaching institution hadn’t yet gotten the memo about the need for taurine in the cat’s diet, and my cat was slowly (thank heavens) going blind, the most immediate and common sequela to taurine deficiency in cats. The neuro and ophtho guys knew about it because they’d read of cases of cats being fed dog food that led to this condition. They all recognized immediately the very specific retinal changes associated with taurine deficiency, even though this was one of the first cases they’d actually seen - hence their excitement when examining the posterior chamber of my cat’s eyes. Vegetarian diets were still uncommon in American households back in the ‘70s, and the word, “vegan” hadn’t even been introduced into the lexicon. Luckily, we caught this problem with my own cat before he went totally blind or developed dilated cardiomyopathy, another pathological change associated with taurine deficiency in cats. Even though I was generally humbled by my veterinary school experience, I did find the gumption to seek out Dr. Kronfeld and chat a bit more about the “perfectly balanced” diet he had helped me create and ended up adding clams and clam juice to my cat’s diet. The retinal degeneration stopped and all went well thereafter. Now, decades later, I am still a vegetarian, but my cats all eat high quality commercial cat food. Some people do learn from their mistakes.All that to say - WHY fight nature? There is at least one company that produces vegan cat food, supplemented “appropriately” with taurine and arginine and everything else a cat “needs,” but this is, of course, a highly processed food, and my clients’ cats don’t particularly enjoy it - or thrive on it. When any one of them has become ill enough to require hospitalization at my clinic, the owner leaves his vegan kibble with us, and we always offer it to the cat - along with some “real” cat food, and I promise you they always dive into the meaty stuff and leave the cereal in the bowl. If the hospitalization is long enough, there are always clearly observable improvements in the cat’s coat, body weight, and general body condition by the time he is discharged. The irony of all this seems to me that the people who are driven to feed vegan diets to their cats are usually the same ones who are fanatic about “clean” living themselves - they eat only fresh organic foods (preferably from their own gardens), they wear organic cotton clothing and only natural fiber shoes. They’re deeply concerned about the environment and dream of living off the grid so they will leave virtually no carbon footprint - and yet, they’re perfectly happy forcing their beloved pets to live in a most unnatural way, taurine-supplemented or not.Bottom line? If you’re not ready to feed your cat meat, get a rabbit.