Ayurvedic medicine for heart palpitations involves understanding the root cause and helps you calm the sensation of your heart skipping or racing ahead of you safely, without covering a signal your body might actually need you to pay attention to.
Heart palpitations are the sensation of feeling your heartbeat, such as racing, pounding, fluttering, or feeling like your heart has skipped a beat. In many people they are harmless, but sometimes they can be associated with an abnormal heart rhythm or another medical condition. The first step is therefore to identify the cause rather than simply suppress the sensation.
The feeling is something which shouldn’t be avoided but also worth guiding carefully. Palpitations are extremely common, but they aren’t the same as usual, and the honest first step isn’t a remedy but diagnosing which category it falls into.
This article walks through what palpitations actually feel like, what typically causes them, the red flags that need urgent attention, causes of heart palpitations, the tests doctors use to get a real answer, and Madhavbaug’s structured, doctor-supervised Ayurvedic approach.
What Palpitations Actually Feel Like
Palpitations are broadly defined as an uncomfortable awareness of your own heartbeat, and they may show up differently for different people:
- A fluttering or “butterfly” sensation in the chest
- A pounding or racing heartbeat
- A feeling that your heart skipped a beat or paused briefly
- A thumping sensation you can feel in your throat or neck
- An irregular, uneven rhythm you can’t quite predict
Importantly, palpitations are a symptom, not a diagnosis in themselves. A similar sensation can be entirely harmless or may be associated with an underlying heart condition or other disease. The sensation alone isn’t enough to guide. (Govender et al., 2022)
Causes of Heart Palpitations
Among the most frequent, well-documented causes of heart palpitations are:
- Stimulants (caffeine, nicotine, energy drinks, and certain over-the-counter cold or decongestant medicines)
- Stress and anxiety
- Poor sleep or exhaustion
- Dehydration or skipped meals
- Hormonal shifts (pregnancy, menstruation, or perimenopause)
- Alcohol
- Fever or acute illness
- Certain medications and supplements, including some asthma inhalers and thyroid medicines
Medical causes:
- Thyroid disorders
- Anemia
- Electrolyte abnormalities
- Low blood glucose
- Hormonal changes
- Heart Rhythm abnormalities or arrhythmias
- Structural heart disease like Valvular prolapse
Source: Abbott, 2005
When Are Heart Palpitations Dangerous?
Seek emergency medical care immediately if palpitations occur together with:
- Chest pain, pressure or tightness
- Severe breathlessness
- Dizziness, near-fainting, or actual loss of consciousness
- Cold sweats
- A pounding or racing heartbeat that doesn’t settle within a few minutes
Palpitations accompanied by dizziness and fainting are specifically indicated in clinical guidance as more likely to reflect a serious underlying cause and require medical evaluation and stabilisation before anything else (Govender et al., 2022).
If any of this describes what you’re experiencing right now, it’s the moment to get seen. Visit your nearest Madhavbaug centre immediately for doctor-supervised ayurvedic treatment for heart palpitations.
If palpitations are happening now with chest pain, severe breathlessness, fainting/near-fainting or severe dizziness, seek immediate emergency medical care.
Palpitations with chest pain, severe breathlessness, dizziness or fainting should never be ignored. If these symptoms are happening now, seek immediate medical attention to understand the cause and receive appropriate care.
Possible Rhythm Disorders
Heart palpitations can sometimes point to an underlying arrhythmia (an abnormal heart rhythm), which might include atrial fibrillation, supraventricular tachycardia, frequent ectopic beats, or other conduction issues.
These aren’t something you can diagnose by how the sensation feels; they require actual cardiac monitoring to confirm. This is precisely why a structured evaluation matters more than trying to interpret the sensation yourself for which Madhavbaug provides a detailed cardiac assessment. To get yourself assessed, visit your nearest centre today.
Tests Doctors Use
A proper evaluation follows a clear sequence, and it’s exactly the diagnostic-first approach Madhavbaug builds every cardiac assessment around before recommending any care plan:
A standard first-line investigation that can help identify an abnormal heart rhythm or other cardiac abnormalities. (Govender et al., 2022)
- Blood tests
Including thyroid function, complete blood count, and electrolyte levels, since anaemia, thyroid disorders, and electrolyte imbalance are all recognised, treatable causes of palpitations
- Holter monitoring
A portable ECG worn for 24–48 hours, used when a resting ECG doesn’t capture what’s happening, particularly if episodes occur daily
- Event recorders
Worn for longer stretches (sometimes weeks), useful when palpitations are less frequent and unlikely to occur during a short monitoring window
- Echocardiogram (2D Echo)
Assesses heart structure and function, especially if a structural cause is suspected
Noting Heart Palpitations
For medical evaluation to identify the causes of heart palpitations, a simple trigger note is genuinely useful. For each episode, note:
- Date and time
- What you were doing just before it started
- Duration of the episode
- Any caffeine, alcohol, or medication taken that day
- Sleep the night before
- Stress levels around that time
- Any accompanying symptoms (dizziness, breathlessness, chest discomfort)
Patterns that emerge from this, like palpitations consistently following two cups of coffee or appearing during high-stress periods, can meaningfully shorten the path to a clear answer and are worth bringing to your very first consultation.
Ayurvedic Treatment for Heart Palpitations
Ayurvedic treatment for heart palpitations includes many novel drugs and therapies. One of the most commonly used herbs is arjuna.
Terminalia arjuna (Arjuna), the most extensively studied cardiac herb in Ayurveda, has shown cardioprotective properties in various experimental and clinical studies, including some benefits in heart failure. (PD L, J.S. and Chabukswar, A., 2006)
This is just one herb. Likewise, there are many herbs which are useful and help you have a healthy heart.
Madhavbaug offers a holistic and novel approach. Along with herbal medications, it has integrated the traditional Ayurvedic treatment called panchakarma along with a personalised diet regimen, exercise and modern diagnostic methods with developed technologies, including a continuous monitoring system.
This approach not only helps eliminate the symptoms but also addresses the root cause, leading to detoxification and a sustainable healthy lifestyle. To read more about the treatment in detail, read here.
When to See a Specialist
Book a cardiology consultation if:
- Palpitations are recurring, even without severe symptoms
- Episodes are becoming more frequent or longer in duration
- You have risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes, or a family history of heart disease
- Palpitations are affecting your sleep, work, or daily confidence
- You’re over 40 and experiencing this for the first time
When are heart palpitations dangerous?
Generally, when they’re accompanied by chest pain, breathlessness, or fainting, or occur in someone with existing heart disease or significant cardiac risk factors, the only way to know for certain in your specific case is through proper testing, not guesswork. To know more about the causes of your heart palpitations and their patterns, book a consultation with Madhavbaug today.
Recurring or changing palpitations deserve proper evaluation, especially if you have diabetes, high BP, a family history of heart disease or are experiencing them for the first time after 40. A cardiac assessment can help identify the possible cause instead of relying on guesswork.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Ayurvedic medicine effective for heart palpitations?
Some Ayurvedic herbs, particularly Terminalia arjuna, have research interest and traditional use in cardiac support. (PD L, J.S. and Chabukswar, A., 2006) - What are the most common causes of heart palpitations?
Stimulants like caffeine and nicotine, stress and anxiety, poor sleep, dehydration, hormonal changes, and certain medications are among the most frequent causes, though in some cases a clear cause isn’t found even after evaluation (Abbott, 2005).
- When are heart palpitations dangerous?
Palpitations accompanied by chest pain, severe breathlessness, dizziness, fainting, or cold sweats need urgent medical attention, especially in people with existing heart disease or significant risk factors (Govender et al., 2022).
- What tests are used to diagnose the cause of palpitations?
A 12-lead ECG is the first-line test, often followed by blood tests (thyroid, blood count, electrolytes) and, if needed, ambulatory Holter monitoring or a longer-term event recorder to capture intermittent episodes.
- Can stress alone cause heart palpitations?
Yes, stress and anxiety are among the most common triggers for palpitations, but persistent or recurring episodes should still be evaluated to rule out an underlying rhythm disorder before being attributed to stress alone.
References
- Abbott, A.V. (2005) ‘Diagnostic Approach to Palpitations’, American Family Physician, 71(4), pp.743–750.
- Govender, I., Nashed, K.K., Rangiah, S., Okeke, S. and Maphasha, O.M. (2022) ‘Palpitations: Evaluation and management by primary care practitioners’, South African Family Practice, 64(1), a5449.
- PD L, J.S. and Chabukswar, A., 2006. Natural remedies for heart diseases. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, 5(3), pp.420-427.
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