Although Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is often seen as pseudoscience, it was reportedly used on 99% of COVID-19 patients in Hubei makeshift hospitals, as well as 94% of people that were quarantined for prevention. According to officials, TCM experts have been working side by side with Western medicine professionals to find a cure for the pandemic. A study had even claimed that Shuanghuanglian, a traditional Chinese medicine, could “inhibit” the virus, although these claims were later withdrawn. However, traditional cures - while not necessarily a true cure - could help alleviate some of the milder symptoms of the disease, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Along with Shuanghuanglian, the Chinese often use Banlangen, a traditional cold medicine. Some of them have also historically had a bigger impact on medicine: Artemisinin was used by Chinese herbalists for more than 2,000 years for the treatment of malaria, and in the 1990s, it was adapted for use by the broader medical community. But the remedies used for COVID-19 have either not been tested in a laboratory setting or have been deemed not effective enough. That is why Western officials warn that traditional medicine should not be used to replace peer-reviewed solutions.
