The state government is planning to introduce ayurvedic treatment for addressing anaemia among children in the state.
According to officials in the Ayush Department, the programme will be launched on a pilot basis shortly and will focus on addressing anaemia mostly through food supplements and other Ayurvedic remedies.
To begin with, the government will focus on Raichur and Yadgir, the two aspirational districts in Karnataka as identified by the NITI Ayog and prioritised under the National Nutrition Mission.
Speaking to DH, Ayush Commissioner Ramachandra said that while the allopathy medicine focused on tablets or other supplements, Ayush would lay emphasis on providing nutritional foods that would improve digestion and efficacy of nutrition absorption. "For example, food substances such as ghee, drumstick leaves, figs, raisins among others," he said.
An expert committee of Ayurveda doctors has already been constituted and these professionals will recommend the nutrition to be given to children.
The government has allocated a budget of Rs 5 crore for the programme for the current fiscal.
"We have now written to the government stating that Ayush department will provide the technical know-how, while the Department of Women and Child Development can be in charge of implementation. This is because the DWCD already has an existing network of Anganwadi workers who can be roped in for distribution of the food items," the official added.
If the pilot programme achieves good results, it will later be expanded to other districts.
The government has meanwhile invited Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds and partners to take the programme forward.
According to information provided by the government in the Akanksha portal, more than 50% of children in Yadgir and Raichur are anaemic. The government also hopes to increase the supplementary nutrition provided under the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) to pregnant women.
However, a Health department official involved in the project told DH that the Ayurvedic treatment cannot replace the allopathy medicine in all cases. "Ayurvedic treatment can be introduced in only mild and moderate cases of anaemia. The treatment of acute cases will require intervention of other medication," the official pointed out.
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