Allopathy is the conventional medicine system that is practiced the world over. But there are many alternative health systems that are very popular as well. Here we will take a look at a few of these alternative health systems.

Ayurveda: Ayurveda is actually 2 words - 'Ayu' meaning 'life' and 'Veda' which means 'knowledge'. Thus, it is the knowledge of life. This is an ancient Indian knowledge, which believes in the combination of mind, body, senses and the soul. This ancient science that is more than 6000 years old, is actually a lot more than just healing and curing. It is much larger and speaks of a way of life and how man and nature can co-exist peacefully for complete harmony and physical well being, leading to good health.

In Ayurveda, solutions are always customized for each individual. It takes in to consideration the energy forces that influence nature and human beings. It then advices which food and which lifestyle should be followed to stay healthy based on the individual situation.

Homeopathy: The word 'Homeopathy' comes from the Greek word 'homeo', meaning 'same' and 'pathos', which mean suffering. This is a system that is quite new compared to Ayurveda. This 200-year-old system is based on the work conducted by the German physician and chemist Samuel Hahnemann. It believes that there is a healing process already in each person, so it wants to use it through the administration of minute 'homeopathic' dilutions of specific remedies.

Homeopathy believes in 'like with like'. In this, the patient describes the condition in detail - both the physical and the psychological symptoms. The practitioner then prescribes very small, nontoxic doses that at higher doses would produce the same symptoms in a healthy person.

Chinese medicine: This alternative health system is more than 2000 years old. It is a system of diagnosing, treating and preventing diseases. It can enhance immunity, recovery, and even alter the state of mind.

Chinese medicine is a 2 polar principle - Yin and Yang. Everything surrounds this and is the result of their mixing. When there is perfect harmony of Yin and Yang, it leads to good health. On the other hand, any conflict leads to diseases. Thus, Chinese medicine aims to promote or maintain complete harmony.