Encouraged by the positive results, delivered by its recently concluded three-year-long study wherein around 2,50,000 patients ailing with lifestyle diseases such as diabetes were treated with integrated medicare, the Government is mulling to provide similar services at around 12,000-15,000 Wellness and Health (W&H) Centres which will be exclusive AYUSH centres.

In other words, at least 10 per cent of the total 150,000 W&H centres (also called as the Primary Health Centres) in the country will exclusively focus on providing integrated holistic medicare. The Ministry plans to roll out 4,000 centres this year.

In this regard, Union AYUSH Minister Shripad Naik last week said, "All Primary Health Centres or W&H Centres in the country will now have AYUSH doctors besides allopathy practitioners. The people would be introduced to alternative medicine through such measures."

At the AYUSH centres, scientifically developed ayurvedic medicines, dietary regimen and yoga classes will be offered to patients suffering with the non communicable diseases which are increasing at a disturbing rate. In fact, India has already become diabetic capital of the world and Ayush centres aims to focus on preventive health strategies including yoga, providing cost-effective herbal drugs and diet modifications to cut down the NCDs.

A senior Ayush Ministry official talked about the anti-diabetic herbal drugs like BGR-34 which has been jointly developed after standardisation and pre-clinical studies by the two labs --Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP) and National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI).

A few years ago, in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, Naik had said BGR-34 is meant to be used by patients of newly diagnosed diabetes only as a measure of management of the disease. The herbal composition, BGR-34 is being sold by the AIMIL Pharmaceuticals from Delhi.

BGR-34 is a natural DPP-4 (dipeptidyl peptidase 4) inhibitor with no side effects, added Sanchit Sharma from  AIMIL. He explained that DPP-4 inhibitors are a class of drugs used to lower blood sugar in adults with Type-2 diabetes.

In three year-long study, the Ministry introduced yoga, diet modification and added some simple medicine, and followed the patients for as many duration. In these periods, we found that their quality of life had improved and doctors reduced the dosage. The patients had fewer complications, said an official.