Traditional Chinese Medicine – Bridging Ancient Wisdom and Modern Health

Over the past several decades, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has gained recognition as one of the most reliable and effective forms of alternative medicine, earning popularity worldwide. Despite lingering misperceptions and understandable skepticism, TCM’s holistic therapeutic approach has been clinically proven to address a wide range of health concerns effectively.

A common misconception about TCM is that its anatomical understanding lacks a scientific basis and that practitioners only rely on acupuncture and herbal solutions. However, historians agree that the greatest Chinese medical scientist and surgeon, Hua Tuo (华佗), developed Mafeisan (麻沸散), a groundbreaking herbal anesthetic for pain relief during surgery. This discovery predates Swiss physician Paracelsus' experiments with ethyl ether by approximately 540 years and was often used alongside acupuncture anesthesia.

While Hippocrates in the West was developing his theory of the four humors, in the East, Huangdi was teaching the theory of the five elements. However, unlike in Europe, where anatomical illustrations flourished in medical textbooks with artists like Paolo Veronese and Leonardo da Vinci, the dissection of human bodies was strictly prohibited by law in China. Tragically, Hua Tuo was sentenced to death by his patient Cao Cao for proposing cerebral surgery on this most treacherous king. He burned all of his medical writings while in prison, and with his execution, much of his knowledge was lost.

Despite these limitations, Chinese materia medica stands out in the annals of medical history. Its formulas and prescriptions, meticulously recorded on bamboo slips, have been tested, validated, and clinically proven effective over centuries. TCM has been practiced and refined across a vast land rich in natural resources, with evidence-based applications drawn from the medical experiences of millions of patients over more than a millennium.

The earliest records on traditional Chinese materia medica date back to the 3rd millennium BCE. Among these is the compilation of the Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine (《黄帝内经》), written during the Western Han Dynasty (c. 202 BCE–8 CE), which remains a respected authority even today. Other renowned works include the Treatise on Febrile and Miscellaneous Diseases (《伤寒杂病论》), composed during the Eastern Han Dynasty (c. 25–220 CE, coinciding with the peak of the Roman Empire), and the Compendium of Materia Medica (《本草纲目》), written in the Ming Dynasty (c. 1368–1644 CE), a time that parallels the transition from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance in Europe.

One of the foundational principles for prescribing formulas in traditional Chinese materia medica is the concept of 君臣佐使 (King, Duke, Marquess, and Earl). In modern terms, these roles have specific pharmacological meanings. The "King" represents the primary active ingredients, while the "Duke" refers to excipients that enhance efficacy. The "Marquess" reduces toxicity, and the "Earl" minimizes side effects. Additionally, the concept of 药引 (introduction or guide) functions as a catalyst, which is consistent with principles of formulation and pharmacology found in modern Western medicine. This brief overview is just a glimpse into the ancient text, Bodhisattva’s Classic of Materia Medica (《神农百草经》), compiled nearly 2,000 years ago during the time of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty in Europe.

Herbal medicine has a long and storied tradition in the West as well, with influential works such as Theophrastus’ Historia Plantarum (c. 300 BCE) and Dioscorides’ De Materia Medica (c. 65 CE). However, Chinese materia medica was often seen as an exotic novelty, and many Westerners recognized its potential as a rich source of medical remedies. A well-known example is Smilacis Glabrae Rhizoma (土茯苓), which was described in 1535 by Dutch merchant and historian Jan Linschoten as a “wonder drug” due to its effectiveness in treating the symptoms of syphilis.

Chinese medicine, with its ancient roots, developed independently and without recorded external influences. Although European medicine began to establish a foothold in China in the early 19th century, traditional Chinese medicine remains widely practiced today. In clinical settings, TCM is frequently used to address unresolved health conditions, particularly in the fields of respiratory diseases, immunology, gastroenterology, and orthopedics. Commonly treated ailments include rheumatoid arthritis (RA), cough-variant asthma (CVA), irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea (IBS-D) or constipation (IBS-C), and scapulohumeral periarthritis (shoulder inflammation).

Today, traditional Chinese medicine is an interdisciplinary branch which is equally tested and proven by the standards of Western medical sciences and covers all fields of medicine related to botany, biochemistry, chemical engineering, molecular biology, pharmacovigilance, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics and more. Artemisinin, for example, with its derivatives represent the most important and influential class of drugs in the fight against malaria. Although the isolation of Artemisinin is not as easy as it sounds, the prescription is indeed from an ancient medical literature, namely “The Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies”《肘后备急方》written in Dong Jin, 317-420 AD.

Since the discovery of artemisinin in the early 1970s, the global community has made great strides in characterizing and understanding of this remarkable phytochemical and its unique chemical and pharmacological properties. Tu Youyou, the TCM doctor who discovered artemisinin and dihydroartemisinin, received the 2011 Lasker Award in clinical medicine and the 2015 Nobel Price in Physiology or Medicine.

Since the early 2000s, artemisinin-based therapies have saved over 7 million lives globally, particularly in Africa, where malaria remains a major public health challenge. In general, TCM is well-tolerated, with fewer adverse effects comparatively. However, like all medications, TCM also carry potential risks such as toxicity, other side effects, and pharmacokinetic issues. Ensuring the safe and effective use of TCM requires collaborative efforts between both Western medical professionals and TCM practitioners, integrating knowledge from both fields for optimal patient outcome.