AYURNUTRIGENOMICS – A STEP TOWARDS PERSONALIZED NUTRITION

Abstract

Ahara is one of the three pillars of life according to Ayurveda. Along with medicine, food plays a role in the prevention and mitigation of diseases. Compared to any drug, food is consumed in large quantity. Hence, research on its effect and interaction with the genome is highly relevant towards understanding diseases and their management. The epistemic perspective on health and nutrition in Ayurveda is different from that of biomedicine and modern nutrition. However, contemporary knowledge is reinventing and advancing several of these concepts in an era of systems biology and personalized medicine. Ayurgenomics presents a personalized approach in the predictive, preventive, and curative aspects of medicine. It is the study of interindividual variability due to genetic variability in humans for assessing diagnosis and prognosis of diseases, mainly based on the Prakriti (constitution type of person). In the emerging eld of Ayurnutrigenomics, based on the clinical assessment of an individual’s Prakriti the selection of suitable ahara, oushadha, and vihara are made. This Ayurveda-inspired concept of personalized nutrition is an innovative perception of nutrigenomic research for developing personalized functional foods and nutraceuticals suitable for one's genetic makeup with the help of Ayurveda. Trans-disciplinary research could be important for pushing the boundaries of food and health sciences and also for providing practical solutions for contemporary health conditions. Hence this novel concept of Ayurnutrigenomics and its emerging areas of research, may unfold future possibilities towards smart yet safe therapeutics.