Sharing Knowledge - Beijing. The first corona virus pandemic occurred in China near the end of 2019. But China was also the first to win against the corona virus even though new cases are now beginning to emerge. One of the keys is that China uses traditional methods for treating corona viruses.
A recent Chinese government report claims 92% of Covid-19 cases in the country are handled using traditional medicine for the treatment of the corona virus. Traditional Chinese medicine is one of the oldest medical practices in the world covering a variety of ways, from herbal concoctions, acupuncture, to Tai Chi.
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This practice is very popular in China across generations, though several times it has generated debate in cyberspace regarding its use. Experts say China is developing the appeal of traditional medicine both domestically and internationally, but healthcare professionals in various parts of the world are still skeptical about its usefulness.
The Chinese National Health Commission has its own chapter on traditional medicine in the corona virus treatment guidelines. The state media highlighted its role which was thought to be able to overcome past outbreaks of disease, such as SARS in 2003.
Six traditional medicines are advertised as effective healers for the treatment of corona virus. The two most popular corona virus drugs are Lianhua Qingwen - which contains 13 elements including Forsythia suspense and Rhodiola rosea or known as the golden root - and Jinhua Qinggan which was developed during the H1N1 outbreak in 2009 and consists of 12 components including honeysuckle, mint, and liquorice.
Proponents of traditional Chinese medicine argue that there are no side effects or negatives in using it. However, experts stress the need for a series of scientific tests before stating the formula in the drug is safe for humans and efficacious for the treatment of corona virus.
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The US National Institutes of Health say traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of the corona virus may be able to relieve the symptoms of the disease, but its overall effectiveness in fighting the corona virus has not been proven. "Traditional Chinese medicine does not yet have good evidence and therefore its use is not only unjustifiable, but also dangerous," said Edzard Ernst, a supplementary medicine researcher quoted in the scientific journal Nature.
TCM
However, traditional Chinese medicine which is often abbreviated as TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) continues to rise in China and demand is increasing in the world. The Chinese State Council last year estimated the TCM industry would be worth US $ 420 billion by the end of 2020. President Xi Jinping claimed he was a "big fan" of ancient medicine and called it "the treasure of Chinese civilization".
However, Yanzhong Huang, a senior member of world health affairs at the China Council on Foreign Relations, noted "safety and the ability to produce the desired results is a problem in the TCM sector and many Chinese people still prefer modern medicine over TCM". The National Institute for Food and Drug Control of China last year found poisons in a number of TCM samples.
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'Soft power' game
Although Beijing continues to promote traditional medicine in the world, some audiences outside China are not aware of its existence. Some critics see China now using a pandemic as a way to promote traditional treatments for the treatment of the corona virus abroad - an accusation that has been denied by state media.
In the context of the promotion, China has sent supplies of traditional medicines and their practices to Africa, Central Asia and Europe - along with conventional medicines and medical equipment. "We are willing to share" Chinese experience "and" Chinese solutions "in handling Covid-19, and allow more and more countries to learn about Chinese medicine, understand Chinese medicine, and use Chinese medicine," said Yu Yanhong, deputy head of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Agency, March then.
Huang believes that the promotion of TCM abroad will lead to an expansion of the influence of 'soft power'. "The government narrative describing TCM as effective in treating corona viruses also serves to promote the superiority of the Chinese approach against Covid, at a time when the Western approach seems ineffective in stopping the spread of the virus," he said.
The image of traditional Chinese medicine in the world skyrocketed last year after the World Health Organization (WHO) formally recognized it after China lobbied for years - a move condemned by the international medical community. WHO then entered into further controversy after the organization revoked the warning for the use of traditional medicines in dealing with Covid-19 in English and Chinese recommendations.
Lack of standardization and almost no clinical trials hamper widespread use of TCM. Last May, the Swedish government tested samples of Lianhua Qingwen and they found that the 'medicine' only contained menthol.
Wild animal trade
The Covid-19 pandemic that hit the world this year also brought to the spotlight on traditional Chinese medicine related to the trade in wild animals. The Chinese National Health Commission was criticized after recommending an injection containing bear bile powder as a treatment for corona virus.
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China has recently banned the use of pangolins, rare animals whose scales are often used as traditional medicine. However, animal protection activists fear that the rising popularity of traditional Chinese medicinal products will encourage illegal hunting and trade in wildlife. "Even if these endangered species have medicinal properties, we should use botanical products as alternatives in TCM practices," Dr Lixing Lao, professor of Chinese medicine at the University of Hong Kong, told the BBC.
Meanwhile, a number of government and media measures in China to promote traditional medicine seem to backfire. In March, local government officials in Yunnan Province drew criticism from the public after reports emerged that students were forced to take traditional medicine as a condition for returning to school.
Then, the draft rules designed by the Beijing City government to punish those who "defame" TCM were bombarded with criticism. "Science can stand up to the question. Traditional Chinese medicine cannot be asked, so traditional Chinese medicine is not science," said a Weibo user.
Dr Lao stressed that the only way for TCM to be accepted by the world audience was "through scientific evidence, not propaganda"
This article has been aired on Kompas.com with the title " What Is Traditional Chinese Medicine for Covid-19? ",
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