Our addiction to health

Mind

To question whether TCM works or not is one of the most popular inquires ever. TCM is not exactly a proven science and many have coined it as a quasi-science or a result of the Placebo effect. Much of it relies on an individual’s feeling and spirituality, both of which are difficult to quantify.

How then has TCM managed to stay relevant over the millenniums that it has existed? How is it that there exists schools of TCM all around the world, from the American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine to the Confucius Institute for Chinese Medicine in South Africa

To the cynics, I question, why must something be scientifically proven to be for it to be accepted by mainstream society? Religion, a socio-cultural faculty, has been in conflict with the world of science and is yet subscribed by millions all around the world. We continue to fund millions of dollars to explore the outer space even though we have yet to procure any concrete proof that there’s life on Mars. Why then is TCM so largely rejected?

I believe that it is mainly due to the way that it has been portrayed in media. 

Even though only 8.7% of TCM drugs are from animal parts, the media tends to focus on its use of animal parts and its contribution to the illegal wildlife trade and poaching issue. While I do agree that it is paramount that we tackle the use of threatened species in its practice, it deceives the uninformed public about what TCM truly entails. 

The western medicine model tends to view the body as a series of individual systems (cardiovascular, skeletal, digestive etc) and thus, prescribe individual solutions to deal with health issues. The TCM model however views the body as one whole system with meridians interconnected with all body parts. During their version of triage, TCM physicians diagnose using 4 fundamental skills – sight (望), smell (闻), touch (切) and inquiry (问). Apart from recording about the same data as a western triage would, physicians will look at the tongue to gauge the internal conditions of the body and ask the patient about their lifestyle habits, diets and mental wellbeing to fully understand the root cause of the illness. Listen to this TED talk by Charmian Wylde, an acupuncturist based in London, to better visualise the holistic nature of TCM. 

As we continue to address the upcoming issues surrounding this ancient art of healing, I implore you to approach it with an open mind and to explore TCM objectively. In a world doomed by the effects of anthropogenic climate change, TCM offers a potential to remodel our approach to medicine for a more sustainable future, but in order for this change to occur, we must be willing to believe in agencies that may not proven scientifically, but supported empirically. Before I end, do check out this short video of a critic trying out TCM for the first time. See you next week!

« »