‘A potential treasure trove’: World Health Organization to explore benefits of traditional medicines | Global health

FFrom herbalists collecting plants to use as poultices in Africa to acupuncturists in China using needles to cure migraines or Indian yogis meditating, traditional treatments increasingly appear to work and deserve further attention and research, according to a World Health Organization official.

Head of the World Health Organization Global Traditional Medicine Center, Dr. According to Shyama Kuruvilla, the lack of historical evidence that traditional practices are rejected by many may change with greater investment and use of modern technology.

Earlier this year, countries joined a WHO new global traditional medicine strategy “aims to capitalize on TCIM’s potential contribution” for the next decade [traditional, complementary and integrative medicine] evidence-based health and well-being”.

It includes plans to establish a solid evidence base for traditional medical practices, improve regulation of treatments and practitioners, and integrate practices into mainstream biomedical healthcare where appropriate.

“It’s very exciting,” says Kuruvilla. “I’m not saying we know what works and what doesn’t on a large scale, but I think the opportunity is there [to find out] Right now.”

Traditional medicine, defined as the systems of health and well-being that precede “biomedicine,” appears in many different guises, from herbal tea to India’s Ayurvedic system of medicine.

Kuruvilla says many of these centuries-old applications have “huge potential” and can now be explored in new ways by technologies such as artificial intelligence, genomics and brain scans.

Kuruvilla says Thailand is a good example of a country embracing traditional medicine, with researchers observing and documenting traditional practices and conducting randomized trials to add herbal treatments to the country’s list of essential medicines. In May, Thailand’s health ministry recommended doctors Switching from some biomedical drugs to traditional drugs for certain conditions such as muscle pain and constipation.

There is some concern that the WHO strategy could create a backdoor for non-scientific systems such as homeopathy to enter the mainstream, but Kuruvilla points out that homeopathy does not fit the WHO definition of conventional medicine (it was only created in the late 18th century) and there is not enough strong evidence for practice.

But he says: “With all these things (biomedicine, homeopathy, conventional medicine) if the evidence changes, I think it’s our responsibility to be open to that.”

Kuruvilla says homeopathy is used as complementary medicine in some countries, and it depends on the country. “As WHO, we must remain faithful to the evidence.

“I think our bottom line is: Is this supported by solid, reliable evidence, especially on safety and effectiveness? If not, WHO doesn’t support it, whether it’s biomedicine or conventional medicine.”

WHO surveys It suggests that in most countries the majority of traditional, complementary and integrative medicine services are not part of the formal healthcare system and are paid for by patients. They are less likely to be subject to formal quality checks but are extremely popular.

“Not participating was not an option, because that would mean everything would continue without any protection,” Kuruvilla says, pointing to a thriving trillion-dollar wellness industry ranging from yoga studios to “nutraceuticals.”

New methods allow scientists to study traditional medicine “in a way that wasn’t possible before,” Kuruvilla says. Genomics can lead to new understanding of a plant’s properties, while modern scanning equipment can also detect changes in the brains of people who meditate.

“Meditation was this whole ‘woo-woo thing,’ but now seeing all these advances in neuroscience and showing changes in brain waves from functional magnetic resonance imaging that we couldn’t do before – actually being able to follow pathways that lead to changes in health metrics – I think it’s really, really exciting,” he says.

A new WHO strategic technical advisory group for traditional medicine was established at a global summit in India this week. Speaking at the summit, Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO’s deputy director-general for health systems, access and data, said: “This is a pivotal moment for traditional medicine. It embodies cultural heritage and national health identities and is increasingly a vital component of primary health care strategies.”

The aim, according to Kuruvilla, is to “build a bridge” between conventional medicine and biomedicine. It’s important to “find common ground,” he says. “It’s really important to show that the science can be sound, especially from a patient safety perspective.”

Kuruvilla says traditional medicine has the potential to be a “treasure trove.” He says large numbers of people working in this field, including university-educated professionals accredited to work in clinics in China and India, could address the global labor shortage and make a “major contribution” to universal health coverage.

In the context of aid cuts forcing countries to rethink healthcare, traditional medicine could be “a way for countries to become more self-reliant and then share those resources with each other.”

The risk of not investing, he says, is that people won’t be able to access the healthcare they choose safely and “the world won’t be able to use our shared heritage here in a way that allows us to find new holistic solutions for the health and well-being of people and the planet.”