Couple of things with Ayurveda and the conventional western treatments (purely my understanding/take on things):
1. Ayurveda is over a 1000 years old (if not more). Conventional procedures are less than a few hundred years old. Havind said this, the conventional treaments available today for IBD actually started their research well after 1950s (and hence is relatively new).
2. The IBD conventional medicinces available in the market treat the systems and not the source (as the source of the issue is yet to be identified by the researchers). The only thing that is know is - the TNF alfa malfunction (which is more along the lines of where the trigger is).
3. The news about conventional medicines is all over the news since the pharmaceutical companies are heavily invested in marketing of the drugs and need to get the money back that was invested in R&D.
To give you an example, LDN (Low Dose Naltrexone) apparently has lesser side effects compared to Remicade, Humira etc. However, the cost of that drug is around a measly few dollars. However, Remicade and Humira cost is roughly $2k/month. Hence there is no company that is willing to conduct studies for LDN as there is less money involved. Hence there is no push to get an FDA approval for LDN to treat crohns. Hence the doctor's are not willing to prescribe this for Crohns (even though the benefits are better).
I confirmed this theory with my gastroenterologist who agreed with me that in this capitalistic world, this is exactly how it works (money speaks)!!
4. With Ayurveda, the western countries do not trust it much! Ayurveda is a natural way of treatment (yoga, food restrictions, natural fruit juices, enema with natural herbs, breathing exercises and eventuall getting rid of the toxins in the body before actually treating the symptoms). This requires more discipline and requires the patient to take time out of their busy life to do all these day until IBD is brought under control. Having said this, not everyone's body reacts the same way. Some may get total remission but for some it is temporary remission for a few years after which the treatment needs to be done again.
The biggest benefits of ayuvedic treatment are - there are no side effects, the treatment focuses on strengthening the body instead of treating the symptoms. In principle, ayurvedic treatment can be done in parallel with the taking conventional medicines on the side. The ayurvedic treatment costs less than conventional medicines over the lifetime with faster results. [On a side note, ayurvedic doctors earn less than conventional doctors].
5. The biggest issue in ayurvedic treatments not getting famous (purely my take on this): This branch of treatment is from a third world country which does not have a lot of documentation except for the results that speak for itself. It is not commercialised even in india (possibly due to lack the marketing skills or the finance for it). Ayurvedic treatments are not meant for all types of diseases and has its limitations. Even with IBD, the ayurvedic doctors treat patients only if IBD has not reached the third stage (surgery) yet.
. The key things for Ayurveda is diet restrictions and Ayurveda does not recommend any 'meat' based food. The doctor will also provide a list of veggie food items to avoid and ones to follow.
