Notice: Function _load_textdomain_just_in_time was called incorrectly. Translation loading for the wordpress-seo domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /var/www/html/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6260 Shanghai, China—Blog III: Traditional Chinese Medicine - Nutraceuticals World

What are you searching for?

Sign in

Shanghai, China—Blog III: Traditional Chinese Medicine

Author Image

By: Sean Moloughney

Editor, Nutraceuticals World

I had planned to be with Minister Chen at a medical college where they teach Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). I have written before about my interest in this subject. I brought Dr. Josephine Briggs, who heads the Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine at the National Institutes of Health. Our purpose is to stimulate some scientific cooperation on how Western medicine can be informed by TCM.

TCM deals with concepts that are thousands of years old, and involves assessment of more than physical well being. It strives to find balance within the various systems of the body. I don’t understand all of it, but I think it is important to respect that their approach is different than ours, and to acknowledge there may be a lot we can learn. In medicine, it is important to understand why something works. It appears to me in TCM, it is only necessary to believe something works. What I hope we can do more of, is applying scientific methods to understand why Chinese methods work. Blending knowledge from the two should be our goal. We are working on a Memorandum of Understanding to do just that.

The difference between TCM and Western medicine typifies the challenge of working cooperatively with the Chinese; two different philosophies and two different systems. Neither should attempt to change the other, but rather to make our systems interoperable.

—Mike Leavitt, Secretary U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Blog, 5/19/08

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Get the latest Nutraceuticals World news, insights and analysis in your Google Search and AI experiences.

Add Nutraceuticals World as a preferred source on Google (opens in a new tab)

Keep Up With Our Content. Subscribe To Nutraceuticals World Newsletters