Robert Thomson, in “Natural Medicine” (Wildwood House, London, 1981) says, “All the Hakims I consulted were in agreement that chicory is the best remedy for bad temperament of the liver.”
Chicory root, is al-hindubaa al-baria in Arabic, and Ju Ju Gen in TCM.
In Tibb it is classified as a tonic, diuretic, hepatic and laxative. It removes phlegm. It is good for the liver.
In TCM it is classified as bitter and diuretic and considered as good for the liver.
In a study published in January 2018 it was found that, “… people who took curcumin experienced significant improvements in their memory and attention abilities, while the subjects who received placebo did not, Small said. In memory tests, the people taking curcumin improved by 28 percent over the 18 months. Those taking curcumin also had mild improvements in mood, and their brain PET scans showed significantly less amyloid and tau signals in the amygdala and hypothalamus than those who took placebos.” (Source: EurekAlert!, the online, global news service operated by AAAS, the science society.)
In Tibb (Islamic Medicine), turmeric is classified as hot and moist: food qualities.
A February 2018 study published in the American Journal of Hypertension, published by Oxford University Press, suggests that, “higher yogurt intake is associated with lower cardiovascular disease risk among hypertensive men and women.” (Source: EurekAlert!, the online, global news service operated by AAAS, the science society.)
In Tibb (Islamic Medicine), yoghurt is classified as cold and dry: food qualities.
“Include in the diet: pomegranate, quince, orange and orange peel, cinnamon, gur, senna, cloves, cardamom, and mint … Everything that strengthens the stomach also strengthens the intestines and throat.”
Chishti in "The Traditional Healers Handbook"
“Include in the diet: chickory, roasted chickory root, pomegranate, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves. Liver weakness comes mainly from things that cause coldness and moisture. Therefore, including heating [garmi] foods and spices.”
Chishti in "The Traditional Healers Handbook"
“Eat peaches, pomegranate, tamarind, apple, rhubarb, cowslip, mint, coriander seeds, orange, cinnamon, senna, gur, saffron, carrot, cardamom…”
Chishti in "The Traditional Healers Handbook"
“Include these items in the diet: quince, apples, orange, rose water, ginger, valerian, cloves, chicken, brains, and goat’s milk."
Chishti in "The Traditional Healers Handbook"
The signs of weak kidneys are, “white or colorless urine and pain, weakness of the body, loss of virility, backache and headache.” The remedy is, “by diet consisting of large amounts of pure water, kidney meats, parsley, leafy green vegetables, wheat germ, and fresh green peas. Avoid coffee … and other stimulants.”
Robert Thomson, in “Natural Medicine” (Wildwood House, London, 1981)
Hakim Chishti in "The Traditional Healers Handbook" said, "Behind every natural action of the human body is an inherent wisdom, a mechanism that allows the body to heal itself. In fact, no herb, no food or any other substance or procedure can do anything on its own to heal; it can only aid and assist the body in its own self-healing role. If your finger is cut, it is not the stitches or the bandage or the iodine that causes it to heal; it is the skin itself that performs this miracle.”
In Tibb (Islamic Medicine), sleep is classified as moistening.
In a recent study by the University of Pennsylvania it was found that, “Children who eat fish at least once a week sleep better and have IQ scores that are 4 points higher, on average, than those who consume fish less frequently or not at all, according to new findings from”
Source
EurekAlert!, the online, global news service operated by AAAS, the science society.
In Tibb (Islamic Medicine), sleep is classified as moistening.
In a recent study by Kings College London it was found that, ““Sleeping for longer each night is a simple lifestyle intervention that could help reduce intake of sugary foods and lead to a generally healthier diet”
“The fact that extending sleep led to a reduction in intake of free sugars, by which we mean the sugars that are added to foods by manufacturers or in cooking at home as well as sugars in honey, syrups and fruit juice, suggests that a simple change in lifestyle may really help people to consume healthier diets.”
Source
EurekAlert!, the online, global news service operated by AAAS, the science society.
The Tibb Institute of South African in its paper, “Tibb and body weight – different options” tell us that, “Tibbʼs approach is to deal with three aspects of lifestyle – food intake, physical activity, and sleep hygiene. For instance, dietary sugar and fructose syrup, now revealed as major culprits, need to be severely curtailed, together with most processed foods. In support of these changes, physical activity needs to be increased, and good sleeping patterns developed.”
In their paper, “Concept of Obesity and its management in Unani Medicine – A Review”, Ali and Naushin outline Tibb approaches for the management of obesity, noting, “there is treasure of plant origin drugs having highest diversity in their properties both in dieto- and herbal therapy, which can reduce body weight and prevent diet induced obesity.” And recording that Buqrat (Hippocrates) advised that obese people should,
Ali and Naushin set out 20 herbs with a hot/dry temperament useful in the management of obesity, a disease that is cold in temperament.
Ahmer, Khan, Jamil and Ali in “Research and Reviews: Journal of Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy Obesity (Siman-E-Mufrat) in Greeco-Arabic Perspective: A Review” outline dietary, exercise and regimental therapies for dealing with obesity, noting for example that, “One should consume at least eight large glasses of water every day. This ensures effective removal of any toxins present inside the tissues and blood vessels. After a meal, one should not drink so much water that it might cause the food to leave the stomach and float about … one should abstain from drinking water till the food has passed down from the stomach.”
Tabassum and Mohammad Nasar in, “Scope of Unani Herbal Medicine in the Management of Obesity - A Review” give details of several well-known foods, herbs and spices useful in dealing with obesity, including, for example, lemon juice which “…is cold in temperament. It is digestive and having the property of jali (detergent). Lemon juice is quite effective for obesity patients. 5-10 ml of lemon juice is mixed with one glass of water and should be taken on empty stomach in the morning. The mix is very useful for melting of adipose tissue from the body as well as weight loss. However, it is recommended to take the above mix [only] once a day, otherwise, the person may experience loose motion or some digestive problems.”
Asthma is a very challenging, chronic lung disease and globally the number of sufferers is increasing. The Unani Tibb Medicine approach to asthma is, as in other areas, different to allopathic medicine.
The Ibn Sina Tibb Institute identifies three main types of asthma: allergic asthma (breathing difficulties; itchy and red watery eyes; allergic rhinitis with post-nasal drip), phlegmatic asthma (coughing; wheezing; a feeling of tightness in the chest; difficulty in breathing), and melancholic asthma (marked breathing difficulty; mucus or phlegm expectorant is absent; coughing is rare). These are hot, cold and moist, cold and dry, respectively.
The National Health Portal of India says, “Asthma is described with different names in Unani literature as Rabu, Buhar, Zeeq-al- nafas, Dama and Intesab- al- nafas.” and provides useful advice on preventative measures, single and compound medications within the Tibb tradition.
A 2014 report discussed the link between balghami (cold and dry) temperaments, obesity and asthma.
Early treatment for asthma is always highly recommended.
Bhikha and Abdul Haq in “Tibb – Traditional Roots of Medicine in Modern Routes to Health” state, “Tibb could be defined as: “The art of serving, with respect, the physis of each person you meet”.” And, “…the complex inter-connectedness of ever-changing and mutually influencing parts requires something more sophisticated than balance. We prefer to describe homeostasis as ‘dynamic optimum functioning’. It is the active component of an ideal state. Dynamic optimum functioning does not always require equal measures of all contributing factors to health. Different personalities require different measures of different contributing factors. Some personalities need creative stress, others need more sleep and some people depend more on certain nutrients than others.”
Ibn Qayyim in "Medicine of the Prophet" said,
"[We are required] to seek and take the appropriate medicine, while indicating that this action does not contradict dependence on Allah alone for everything.
"Just as one satisfying his hunger, thirst or reacts to being hot or cold does not contradict the dependence on Allah.
"On the contrary, the belief in the Oneness of Allah can only be complete by pacifying and responding to the various harmful elements in the manner and method that Allah has commanded and that which will help in such cases.
"Furthermore, refraining from using these cures or antidotes is, in fact, contradictory to total dependence on Allah, along with contradicting the His Commandments and the Wisdom.
"Not using these cures will weaken reliance and dependence on Allah even though the person might be thinking that he is strengthening his reliance and dependence by abandoning seeking the cure.
"Abandoning the cure is in fact contradictory to the true reliance and dependence, in that, reliance and dependence in essence includes the heart relying on Allah in acquiring what benefits him in his life and his religious affairs, while fending off what harms his life and religion.
"The correct method of reliance and dependence includes seeking these benefits for the slave; otherwise one will not be implementing the Commandments and the Wisdom.
"[We] should not call [our] inability, dependence on Allah, nor consider [our] true reliance and dependence as an inability.”
The stomach
Ibn Qayyim in "Medicine of the Prophet" said, “The famous statement that: "Diet is the top medicine; and the stomach is the home of disease; give each person what he is used to [of food and medicine]," this is not a Hadith, according to the scholars of Hadith. Rather, it is the words of AI-Harith bin Kaladah, the renowned Arab doctor.
Ibn Qayyim in "Medicine of the Prophet" identified many causes of headaches. These include:
Ibn Qayyim in "Medicine of the Prophet" said, “There are many types of headaches that result from various conditions. Headaches usually start when the head becomes hot due to the pressure of a septic vapor that accumulates near the head and which seeks a way out of the body but fails. Then, the pressure of the vapor intensifies, just as a pot when it is heated but the steam is not able to escape from it. It is a fact that when moisture heats up, it seeks more space to expand. Similarly, the vapor accumulates near the head and then causes a headache in the entire head because it is unable to expand or escape from the body as it heats up. This condition causes a type of dizziness. There are various specific causes for headaches.”
A study published in December 2017 by Pennsylvania University found that, “Children who eat fish at least once a week sleep better and have IQ scores that are 4 points higher, on average, than those who consume fish less frequently or not at all.” and discussed the link between fish, better sleep and IQ. (Source: EurekAlert!, the online, global news service operated by AAAS, the science society.)
In Tibb (Islamic Medicine), fish is classified as having cooling and moisturizing properties: food qualities.
Honey
Ibn Qayyim in "Medicine of the Prophet" said, “Honey will add softness and beauty to the hair while allowing it to grow longer. When honey is applied to the eye as a Kuhl, it will strengthen weak eyesight. Honey whitens the teeth, preserves their health and the health of the gums, opens the orifice of the veins along with causing the flow of menstruation. Furthermore, licking honey on an empty stomach will help the body get rid of mucus and phlegm.”
