New Delhi, June 14: The Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani and Naturopathy (AYUSH) Wednesday denied reports that it had advised pregnant women not to have sex after conception or avoid non-vegetarian food.
In a clarification, the ministry said it had never endorsed ‘no sex’ for pregnant women in their booklets. “Some news reports carry an assertion that the booklet puts forward the prescription that pregnant women in India should say no to sex after conception. This is far from the truth. In fact, the words ‘no sex’ do not feature at all in the booklet,” said.
The ministry also however stood by the endorsing a vegetarian diet for pregnant women claiming that Yoga and Naturopathy do not encourage non vegetarian food. It said, “The suggestion regarding avoiding certain types of food like tea, coffee, white flour products, fried and oily items and non-veg during pregnancy, is seen to have received selective attention.”
The ministry also added, “The suggestion that non-vegetarian food may be avoided (as Yoga & Naturopathy do not advocate non-vegetarian food in its practice) has been singled out for high-lighting in some reports, omitting the mention of white flour products, fried and oily items etc.”
The ministry meanwhile also claimed that the publication in question had been in distribution through the units of the erstwhile Department of AYUSH and CCRYN since 2013. The report that it was released by the Minister of State (IC) for AYUSH in the recent past is incorrect, claims the AYISH ministry.
In the last few days, some media reports have appeared since June 13, concerning the publication “Mother and Child Care” of Central Council for Research in Yoga and Naturopathy CCRYN, an autonomous body under the Ministry of AYUSH which are also going viral in the social media. The report cites the ministry publication which allegedly talked about abstinence and quitting non-vegetarian food and keeping pure thoughts in mind once a woman conceives, spurring a controversy amid netizens and women activists.
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