Globalizing Traditional Chinese Medicine.docVIP

Globalizing Traditional Chinese Medicine 　　Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）， the only option for people in China to cure diseases and stay healthy before Western medicine spread to the country over 100 years ago， is gaining global popularity. According to a government white paper published in December 2016， TCM has been introduced in 183 countries and regions around the world. A global survey of China’s national image conducted by China International Publishing Group’s Center for International Communication Studies earlier last year showed 50 percent of overseas respondents chose TCM as the element that best represents Chinese culture. 　　Westerners’ understanding of TCM， however， may be limited to therapies such as acupuncture， cupping and massage. For instance， the purple， bruise-like marks left on U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps’ back from cupping for the purpose of relaxing his muscles and reducing pain became the center of attention during the Rio Olympics in 2016. 　　As a matter of fact， Chinese herbs play a more important role in eradicating diseases and keeping the body in good condition in the TCM treatment system than physical therapies. It is therefore disheartening to know that while 103 World Health Organization member countries have given approval to the practice of acupuncture， not many recognize Chinese herbal medicine. TCM lags far behind Western medicine owing partly to the lackluster development of Chinese herbs. 　　Herbs are made into pills， powder， paste and soup， and the kind of herbs used， their quality and quantity， and the processing of the ingredients jointly determine the efficacy of the prescription. Compared with Western medicine， which has standardized drug production processes and treatment methods， TCM lacks standardization， with the chemical composition and functioning mechanisms of its medicines being unclear and their effects being unstable. Standardization has improved in recent decades， with an increasing number of factories p