The back-to-AYUSH wave

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen increased interest in traditional remedies to build up personal immunity and nutrition.With India’s AYUSH ministry approving clinical studies and the WHO backing protocols for testing African herbal medicine, and most lately, the Health Minister releasing an Ayurveda and yoga-based national clinical management protocol for prevention and treatment of patients who are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms, will the COVID-19 pandemic finally bring respectability to a sector long scoffed at for being more faith than evidence-based? A review of the strategies at play, as new players plan to ride the immunity and nutrition wave, while legacy players move to the next level

- Viveka Roychowdhury

On September 20, theWorld Health Organisation endorsed a protocol for testing African herbal medicine as potential treatments for the coronavirus which causes COVID-19 as well as other epidemics. While India's AYUSH ministry must be feeling vindicated that they had approved clinical research studies on four Ayurvedic formulations way back on May 22, it is important to note that the WHO stressed that phase III clinical trials are pivotal in fully assessing the safety and efficacy of a new medical product.

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen an unprecedented interest in products with a ‘natural’ tag, as people try to undo years of unhealthy eating habits, lack of exercise and stressful work-life imbalances. While big FMCG companies such as Dabur reportedly clocked a 400 per cent surge in demand for Dabur Chyawanprash and an 80 per cent traction in Dabur Honey in the early months of the lockdown, the rising tide has lifted many newer companies and startups in the natural ingredients space. For instance, Mumbai-based OZiva reported a 40 per cent increase in queries especially in categories related to immunity and everyday fitness while Upakarma Ayurveda clocked a 35 per cent surge in the same categories.

But with so many brands crowding the natural space, and more joining in the gold rush triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, how are both newbies and established brands standing out? Or will some brands lose out in the stampede? And how can they take on the cost versus benefits argument, especially when they seem to lack hard evidence and data that they are actually beneficial to users as they have not gone through the same regulatory approval process as prescription medicines? Here are some strategies at play.

Getting evidence on their side