Ayurvedic Approach to Dementia Care

Dementia is a slow, progressive decline in mental function in which memory, thinking, judgment, and the ability to learn are impaired.

Causes:

1. Most common cause is Alzheimer’s disease
2. Destruction of brain tissue by strokes, which results in vascular dementia
3. Less common causes include Parkinson’s diseases, infections such as AIDS, normal pressure hydrocephalus, and drug or alcohol abuse.
4. It May also result from brain damage due to head injury cardiac arrest, and radiation therapy for cancer.

SYMPTOMS

• In people with dementia, a mental function typically deteriorates over 2 to 10 years.
• In people with vascular dementia, symptoms tend to worsen in steps, worsening suddenly with each stroke, with some improvement in between
• In people with Alzheimer’s disease, the symptoms tend to worsen more steadily
• Peoples with dementia typically have problems finding and using the right words and have difficulty with abstract thinking. Mood swings and personality changes are common. They are unable to follow the conversation and they also become unable to speak.

AYURVEDIC VIEW

• The smritibramsa is a disease of the mind developed due to provoked vata.
• Hina satwa, Rajas predominant Prakriti, and the person whose mind is weakened by all stressful conditions are more prone to develop smritibramsa.
• Regular consumption of diet dominant in tamas and rajas gunas increases the Tama and rajo dosas in the mind.

TREATMENTS

Ayurvedic treatments include oral medications and external therapies like Siropichu, Sirovasthi, Thalam, Nasya, Rasayanas, etc depending on the conditions.