Shah Alam¹*, Nirmala Devi¹, Mohd Adil¹, Jamal Akhtar² and Nighat Anjum³

¹Research Officer, Regional Research Institute of Unani Medicine, Mumbai, India
²Research Officer, Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine, New Delhi, India
³Research Officer, Regional Research Institute of Unani Medicine, Delhi, India

*Corresponding Author: Shah Alam, Research Officer, Regional Research Institute of Unani Medicine, Mumbai, India.

Received: November 19, 2024; Published: January 21, 2025

Abstract

Drug addiction is also known as substance use disorder (SUD). Historically, three types of substance use have been defined: 1) Occasional, controlled or social use, 2) Substance abuse or harmful use and 3) Substance dependence. Dependence is a state in which an individual experiences a physical or physiological need to continue the use of the drug. According to UNODC World Drug Report 2023 over 296 million people used drugs in 2021 globally, an increase of 23% over the previous decade. The number of people who suffer from drug use disorders, meanwhile, has skyrocketed to 39.5 million, a 45% increase over 10 years. The social and economic burdens of substance use are immense, and current pharmacological treatments often show limited effectiveness. This has prompted interest in traditional systems of medicine like Unani medicine, which may offer complementary benefits alongside existing interventions like therapeutic community treatment and behavioral therapies. By virtue of holistic approaches, the system not only takes care of withdrawal symptoms but also manage psychosocial behavioral disorders. Unani medicine is suggested to enhance immune function and support metabolic health, presenting a safer and potentially more affordable option for managing substance use disorders, particularly for individuals whose long-term drug use has compromised their overall health. Moreover, traditional therapies under ‘Ilāj bi’l Tadbīr can also be used to evacuate toxins from the body; to cope with drug withdrawal symptoms and to promote rehabilitation in drug or substance abusers. Unani literature may furnish several leads for various herbal formulations that may be used for de-addiction in the future.

 Keywords: Substance Use Disorder; Drug Addiction; Unani Medicine; Quwwat Nafsāniya; ‘Ilāj bi’l Tadbīr; ‘Ilaj bi’l Dawā’

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Citation

Citation: Shah Alam., et al. “Management of Substance Use Disorders in Unani Medicine: An Insight”.Acta Scientific Medical Sciences 9.2 (2025): 90-99.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2025 Shah Alam., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.