A retrospective survey on the relationship between Prakriti (body constitution) and mental health

Abstract

Prakriti of a person means original creation that is translated as a person’s constitution. There are two types of Prakriti viz. Shareerika and Manasika are described in ancient Ayurveda texts. While Vata, Pitta and Kapha determine the characteristics of the body (Shareere), the Sattva, Rajas and Tamo Guna are said to influence the attitudes and behaviour of an individual. Mental status can be defined as a comprehensive description or statement of a patient’s intellectual capacity, emotional state and general mental health based on the examiner's observations and directed interview including assessment of mood, behaviour, orientation, judgment, memory, problem-solving ability and contact with reality. The present study aims to establish the interrelationship between Prakriti and mental state and to find out the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants. A retrospective survey was conducted on Ayurvedic Medical Officers with the help of Bachelor of Ayurveda Medicine and Surgery graduates. All the participants were between the age group of 20-45 years. Both males and females were included in the training programme at the Institute of Indigenous Medicine, University of Colombo. A selfassessment questionnaire was used for the survey. In the present study, the majority of participants belong to the age group between 31-40 years (92.8%) of which 88% of participants were females. It has been found that the majority of the participants were living in the Suburban area (49.4%) and their education level was recorded till graduation. The present study revealed that 56.6% of participants have Sathwa Manasika Prakriti whereas 44.6 participants have PittaKapha Shareerika Prakriti. The mental state revealed 81.95% of normal, 13.3% of mild and 4.8% of moderate mental status. The study concludes that there was a significant relationship between Manasika Prakriti and mental status (p = 0.008) whereas the relationship of Shareerika Prakriti with mental status was found insignificant (p = 0.287).