Role of Unani System of Medicine in Global Health Care: An Emerging Field Imtiyaz Ahmad Mir * , Najeeb Jahan, G Sofi, Sumera Mehfooz and Mazhar Husain Department of Pharmacology, National Institute of Unani Medicine, Bengaluru, India * Corresponding author: Imtiyaz Ahmad Mir, Department of Pharmacology, National Institute of Unani Medicine, Bengaluru, India, Tel: +91-9596517806; E-mail: drimtiyazmir87@gmail.com Received date: November 11, 2017; Accepted date: November 21, 2017; Published date: November 30, 2017 Copyright: © 2017 Mir IA, 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. Abstract Unani System of Medicine (USM) is basically originated from Greece and has been introduced in India by Arab and Persian settlers. USM has been accepted worldwide because of its easy availability, cheaper and relatively safer than other conventional medicine. World Health Organization (WHO) is the predominant agency that has direct impact on Global health care. USM has gained recognition from WHO in 1976. Global health is about understanding the causes and finding the means to provide solutions to the challenges and disparities in the health status of people worldwide. Ancient roots of USM are in China, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Syria, India and other Far East countries. Nowadays USM is the best alternative choice of health care globally both in developed and developing countries. USM is an emerging field worldwide because it cures those diseases in which modern system fails like Bars (vatiligo), Dau sadaf (psoriasis), Iltehab-e-kabid (Infective Hepatitis), Hasat-ul-kulya wa masana (Renal and Bladder calculus) etc. The focus of this paper is to highlight the role of USM in global health care and more emphasis has been given to strengthen the USM worldwide. Keywords: Global health; Herbal medicine; Traditional knowledge; Unani medicine Introduction Te Arabs in the middle of the 7th century discovered the ancient Greco-Roman learning and spread it to the new world. Te Golden age of Islamic medicine began with the Persian physicians like Al-Razi (850-925), Ibn–Sena (980-1037). Ibn-Sena’s Canon of Medicine (Al- Qanun f’l-Tibb) was taught for centuries in the universities of Europe [1]. During the British period (1807-1946) western medicine in India gained momentum and Indian System of Medicine has faced many hindrances in their progress. Despite the pathetic attitude of the British Government, the progress of Unani medicine continued unabated [2]. Te World Health Organization (WHO) has recognized the Unani System of Medicine as an alternative medicine to cater the health care needs of human population. USM is vibrant and vigorous today and is being researched, taught and practiced in 20 countries including Afghanistan, China, India, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Netherland, Norway, Poland, Korea, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, and Swizerland [3]. Global acceptance of Unani medicine in present era Global contribution by USM is unforgettable. In present era the demand for traditional Indian medicine has increased tremendously in India and abroad. Traditional medicine has maintained its popularity in number of Asian countries like China, India, Japan and Pakistan. In China Traditional medicines (Herbal preparations) accounts about 30 to 50% of total medical consumption [4]. Current Global market of Herbal and Ayurvedic medicine is estimated to be more than US$ 100 billion, out of this E.U (European Union) accounts for about 40%, Japan 20%, USA 10%. Te Asian countries together account for 30% of the global market [5]. Nowadays USM courses and practices have been recognized by various countries like Bangladesh (Five year degree course recognized by University of Dhaka and other universities), Sri Lanka (fve year degree course in Unani medicine at institute of indigenous medicine university of Colombo), Pakistan (Two universities are ofering fve year BEMS degree along with M. Phil and PhD) etc. Since its independence Sri Lanka holds a unique position in South Asia by providing free education and quality health care system. Te health care system in Sri Lanka is enriched by the mix of Allopathic, Unani, Ayurvedic and other several system of medicine that exist together [6]. Traditional medicine in Saudi Arabia is based on herbal remedies and spiritual healing. Tere is hardly a city or village in the country where traditional medicines are not used or sold [7]. Te frst institution of Unani medicine was established in 1872 as oriental collage at Lahore in the undivided India. Tereafer many institutions came into existence. Presently alternative or traditional medicines practices in Pakistan are regulated by UAE (Unani, Ayurvedic and Homeopathic) Act of 1965. Te Practitioners are to be registered by their respective counsils [8]. Global Demand of Herbal Medicine Besides the research based activity medicinal plants are important source of income for the country. It is a global need to cultivate and conserve medicinal plants. In Russia 50000 tons of medicinal plants are used annually. Lucknow, a state in Indian, grows medicinal plants of 100 crore US dollars annually and the European Union uses 3000 kg of Glycerrhiza each year for which 400 tons plants roots are needed. By the year 2000 the total output of Chinese pharmaceutical companies was 28 billion US dollars and by the year of 2010 the share of Chinese traditional medicine in international market is improved to 15% from the existing 3% [8]. WHO reported in 2001 that in Malaysia, 500 million US dollars has been spent annually on traditional medicine as compared to 300 million US dollars on orthodox medicine. One third O rt h o p e d i c & M u s c u l a r S y s t e m: C u r r e n t R e s e a r c h ISSN: 2161-0533 Orthopedic & Muscular System: Current Research Mir IA et al., Orthop Muscular Syst 2017, 6:4 DOI: 10.4172/2161-0533.1000249 Review Article Open Access Orthop Muscular Syst, an open access journal ISSN: 2161-0533 Volume 6 • Issue 4 • 1000249