Unani medicine is a system of alternative medicine that originated in ancient Greece but is now practiced primarily in India. Involving the use of herbal remedies, dietary practices, and alternative therapies, Unani medicine addresses the prevention and treatment of disease. Fundamentals of Unani medicine recognizes the mental, emotional, spiritual and physical causes of illness or health and believes that each individual should take responsibility for their own well-being.

The fundamental framework of Unani system of Medicine is based on deep philosophical insights and scientific principles. In order to scientifically establish and interpret the relevance and rationale of various theories and philosophies of Unani Medicine, the research on fundamentals of Unani Medicine is being undertaken by the Council. Validation of the theories of fundamental research in the light of genetic, biochemical, physiological and pathological parameters is an important objective of the Fundamental Research Program.

The theoretical  structure of Unani medicine is based upon the teachings of Buqrat, a Greek philosopher and physician famous by the Latinised  name of Hippocrates. This presupposes the presence, in the body, of four humours viz., blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile. Normally every individual is supposed to have a unique ‘Humoral constitution’ which represents a person’s healthy state. Imbalance in the humoral constitution  causes diseases. This imbalance of humors may be either qualitative or quantitative or  both.

After independence the Unani System along with other Indian systems of medicine received a fresh boost under the patronage of the National Government and its people. Government of India took several steps for the all round development of this system. It passed laws to regulate and promote its education and training.

Unani system of medicine is quite popular among the masses. The practitioners of Unani medicine scattered all over the country, form an integral part of national health care delivery structure. According to official figures available, there are 47963 registered Unani practitioners in the country.
Presently, 15 States have Unani hospitals. The total number of hospitals functioning in different states of the country is 263. The total bed strength in all these hospitals is 4686.