The sin of poaching, trafficking and selling animal products in TCM is something that cannot be ignored. Despite the low proportion of it used in the practice, the demand for such products, legal and illegal, has greatly threatened wildlife all around the world. Tigers are hunted for their bones and reproductive organs to brew medicinal wine that is supposed to make men more virile (do we really need this). Sunda Pangolins, one of the most critically endangered species, are illegally poached for their scales that are believed to improve “lactation in nursing mothers”. The horn of the rhino is prized for its ability to cure “fever, convulsions, and delirium”.
Needless to say, most of the demand originate from China and while we applaud them for taking initiatives to ban the trade of several wildlife species, there seems to be a shroud of ambiguity in its policies set to “protect” animals. Recent trends show that the black market for such products has only gotten more productive and evasive and the lax nature of the law barely investigates into this. Furthermore, in lieu of the ongoing pandemic, the efforts to conserve wildlife has been tarnished by research funded by the country to develop a remedy from the bile produced by the Asiatic black bear. Ironically, the cause of COVID-19 is very likely due to the consumption of animal products (pangolin scales), so it seems as though China is fighting fire with fire.
Though the Chinese government’s efforts has been largely unsuccessful, regulations crafted by global TCM organisations are titular in wildlife conservation. The World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies (WFCMS) has teamed up with the World Wildlife Fund and TRAFFIC to enforce strict rules restricting the use of animal products in TCM clinics all around the world. Here’s a great video by Dr Lixin Huang, one of the pioneers of wildlife conservation in TCM, that shares more about this:
While we reduce and (hopefully) impede the use of animal products in TCM, we should also focus on its potential to redesign conventional structures of medicine and healthcare. Herbal remedies have similar effects to western pharmaceuticals and are definitely more environmentally-friendly. Acupuncture has the potential to replace certain medical operations thereby reducing medical wastes. Philosophies to improve lifestyle habits and diets are way more sustainable than the random fads of exercises and eating restrictions proposed and spread through western media.
We must not forget that TCM is no longer an atavistic practice. It has evolved with time, science and society to become more effective, inclusive and environmentally conscious. Though we can all agree that it still has a long way to go, we need to start incorporating and normalising traditional forms of medical care, not just from TCM, into the global practices as they often offer more sustainable methods in perceiving our health and bodies.
Join me next week to finish off this series in SOUL. See you!
sherrymerlot
October 17, 2020 — 10:37 pm
Hi Chuanny! Wow, what an interesting read! I found your point on trafficking was really thought-provoking.
However, the demand for these animals arises from the “knowledge” of some people that these animals can act as an effective remedy. This knowledge and perception are very difficult to change due to the fact that it has been ingrained in their culture and passed down from generation to generation as a tradition.
While I think your point is valid, I think this raises a pertinent and controversial question: if we were to ban these animals for the sake of conserving them, would this not lead to an erosion of the animal-eating culture of these people?
yinchuan
October 24, 2020 — 1:36 am
Hey Sher-Bear, thanks for taking the time to read my blog.
To me, the beauty of culture lies in the fact that is not limited by spatial and temporal limitations. With changes in needs and advancements in technology, we retain certain values and aspects of our cultures that remain relevant to us. I remember learning about how aspiring scholars would connect the ends of their hairs to the ceilings to prevent them from dozing off while studying (ouch) but with the miraculous invention of caffeine, we no longer need to rely on such torturous ways to stay awake. The same applies for the “animal-eating culture”. The consumption of animal products is something that should (imo) no longer be part of our traditions. This is of course under the assumption that those that are currently still doing so have access to better contemporary options. In some way, learning from the history of previous traditions may even strengthen present cultures.
Hope this answers your question!
Joanna Coleman
October 21, 2020 — 6:46 pm
Hi Chuan,
Great post overall.
To be clear, there are 8 species of pangolin and their IUCN conservation statuses are variable. All are subjected to poaching, mainly for TCM, but also for meat and ornamental uses.
Also, I have to ask about this statement.
“Herbal remedies have similar effects to western pharmaceuticals and are definitely more environmentally-friendly.”
Are you suggesting that harvesting plants for TCM is not having serious effects on populations of many plants ? Because if so, you may be interested to start with this website, but also do more digging.
https://blogs.nicholas.duke.edu/internshipblogs/role-of-toxic-and-endangered-plants-and-animals-in-chinese-medicine/
When we think of the illegal (or even legal) wildlife trade, we tend to focus largely on vertebrates while ignoring inverts and plants. That’s a potentially major oversight, no ?
Out of curiosity, are you able to compare floral / herbal ingredients in the medicines you have on hand at home (or even that you find in a shop) against the IUCN Red List and find any threatened species ?
jc
yinchuan
October 31, 2020 — 5:44 pm
Hi Dr Coleman, I can’t believe that I forgot to address plants and invertebrates in this post! I had it written down in my plans for this post and I am embarrassed that it slipped my mind. With regards to my statement, I apologise if I was unclear. My use of the term “herbal medication” is biased to my experiences of growing them with my mum, rather than purchasing them from a TCM shop. As such, if we were to all rely on herbal remedies that we can all grow at home rather than to purchase pharmaceuticals, the impacts of that decisions will almost definitely be much better for our environment. However, after reading the blog that you sent, I realised how severe the situation are for plants as well.
After adopting 3 cats, my family had to move our plants out to a communal garden so I really apologise as I don’t think I can evaluate my home grown ones with the IUCN ones (I haven’t been home for a few weeks). However, I did some research over common herbal medications used globally and this website classifies some of them pretty well!
What I’ve learnt was that in order to conserve and protect the endangered plants in the wild, all stakeholders must be involved in the process of solution-making, most importantly, the communities that depend on these plants. Just look at this report about the conservation of orchids in India! Communities there depend on several orchid species as a form of remedy and one of them is the Dendrobium Stem (also known in TCM as Tian Ma). I also learnt from another UN report about how these species are not just threatened by over-exploitation, but also when the host plants that they rely on is harvested for other anthropogenic uses.
By considering these reasons and how plants with remedial qualities are worth more, I would rephrase my stance such that sustainably-farmed herbal remedies could possibly replace pharmaceuticals in a less environmentally degrading way. Of course, that would be rather idealistic but we should strive towards this balance as a goal for the future.
Hope this clarifies things up and thank you!
Joanna Coleman
November 4, 2020 — 4:18 pm
What an AWESOME reply ! Also, I wasn’t expecting you to say you grow the herbs at home. That’s super interesting and it makes me question my assumption that most TCM consumers & practitioners buy their ingredients or formulations at the shops.
Thanks so much,
jc
yinchuan
November 4, 2020 — 7:57 pm
Hi Dr Coleman,
Thank you for your kind words! Where my mother works, they source their own herbal medicines in farms overseas which, despite the footprints of transportation, provides a steady income for locals in those areas. I’m not super sure of how sustainable or ethical the measures surrounding their farming practices are but I think it is pretty neat that most of its produce is self-sourced.
Rachel Lim
October 23, 2020 — 9:28 am
Hi Chuan,
I think out of every aspect of our life, humans are most unwilling to compromise on health. No matter what science says, it is unlikely that this demand for animal products will ever budge. Given that, do you agree that maybe the only effective way to stamp out this market is legislative action?
Rachel Lim
yinchuan
October 30, 2020 — 3:33 pm
Hey Rachel,
I suppose legislative action would be paramount in diminishing the demand for animal products but for a long term impact, education would be the better way to go. Laws and policies that targets these issues have so far led to a short term decrease in demand but it has also led to the formation of several black markets for these goods. Only with education and a systemic cultural shift, will demand for it lower in the long run. Thanks for your question 🙆♂️
bangwenhan
October 23, 2020 — 11:11 pm
Hi Chuan
Thanks for the good read, really insightful one. I have visited TCM practitioners several times, and the best one yet was how my acne problems got under control thanks to it (though I have to deal with scarring now sadly).
Moreover, in the URL that you linked regarding harvesting pangolin scales for the medicinal market, I was astounded when I saw the bags of pangolin scales. I visualized them to be few and expensive, not bags full of them like peanuts that are sold in the dry market. This probably explains why pangolins are depleting at such a fast rate-unsustainable overharvesting. I do agree that TCM is evolving along with the times and is greatly reducing its reliance on exotic wildlife that have been speculated to be therapeutic in nature.
Even with titular bodies like WFCMS that place a control on TCM clinics throughout the world, illegal wildlife trading is still ongoing. One example was my personal experience in Jiangmen (China). I was accompanying my godma to visit a highly reputed village TCM practitioner (or that was what he proclaims). He captured a hawk fledgling to brew soup for her, on the stance that the youngling has recuperative effects. This got me thinking, ‘These young birds aren’t even mature, how would they be medicinal in value at all?’
Therefore my question would be, ‘What if these TCM practitioners provided ‘underground services’ like the one I mentioned or mass-protested against illegal wildlife regulations, on the grounds that these exotic wildlife has been part of their culture for generations? Hope to hear from you!
yinchuan
October 31, 2020 — 5:57 pm
Hey Wen Han, thanks for taking the time to read my post and for sharing your personal story. My heart ached when I read about the young fledgling.
The black market for TCM products and practices, sadly, already exists. With the WHO acknowledging TCM as a legitimate form of medicine, I presume that less practitioners would have to hide their practices (if they are doing legal procedures that is).
If they argue against certain bans and restrictions based on cultural reasons, well, personally, I think it is unethical for us to immediately exert our beliefs on to theirs. The process should be an open and discursive one with the goal of convincing these people that conservation takes precedence. One way that I could think of is to show how much more they can benefit from the ecological services that nature can provide if such species were better protected. For a more well-rounded response, you could look at what I replied Sherry on this blog post. She asked something very similar and I hope that my response is sufficient in addressing your question.
Thank you and press on for the next few weeks!