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While we're here, "Traditional Chinese Medicine in the Treatment of Patients Infected with 2019-New Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2): A Review and Perspective" (https:

While we're here, "Traditional Chinese Medicine in the Treatment of Patients Infected with 2019-New Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2): A Review and Perspective" (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7098036/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7098036/) Hey, it can't hurt and it might help. China has had one of the best recoveries from the pandemic.

forgingahead 7y ago
Thanks for sharing this, not sure why you're getting downvoted. TCM has its place, Artemisia Annua has been used as an anti-malarial treatment as well for hundreds of years, and again, is cheap, available, and side effects are known. I've had anecdotal experience that it's helpful for milder coronavirus symptoms.
- AlexandrB 7y ago
  > Thanks for sharing this, not sure why you're getting downvoted. Because TCM is - charitably - pseudoscience. Many of its remedies involve grinding up endangered animals into concoctions that have no plausible mechanism of treating the thing they're meant to treat. > I've had anecdotal experience that it's helpful for milder coronavirus symptoms. I have anecdotal experience that my microsorium musifolium plant has been effective in preventing coronavirus infection in my household. Unfortunately, just like your statement, this doesn't qualify as evidence and shouldn't be used to make public health decisions.
  - forgingahead 7y ago
    You are mindreading my comment of "TCM has its place" and are wrongly confusing it in your own imagination of "used to make public health decisions". Please don't do that, it's insulting to folks trying to have open discussions, and it also makes you, the mindreader, stressed and anxious about things that are not happening.
perardi 7y ago
I cannot tell if you are purposefully trolling, or this is sincere. Regardless, let's wade in… 1. That's not's a study. That's not a metareview. That's a puff piece by people who have a strong, strong self-interest in promoting TCM, because they want to keep their department chairs. 2. Oh heck, I'll just quote the entire last paragraph: "The safety of TCM in the treatment of emerging coronavirus diseases was not included in the observation on SARS patients. It was reported that some herbs used in TCM contain nephrotoxins and mutagens, while the toxicological features of the most of Chinese herbal medicines remain to be fully understood. Furthermore, herbs used in TCM can mimic, or magnify, or oppose the effect of conventional medicines. Thus, the safety of TCM used in treatment of emerging coronavirus infections should be carefully evaluated. It is particularly important to avoid toxicity or interfere with the efficacy of conventional treatment caused by herb-drug interaction." So, in conclusion, we don't know if this works, and this stuff may be toxic, and it may have drug interactions, and oh by the way there's no quality control on this so you have no idea what's in the medications. Might as well recommend acupuncture and getting your chakras aligned, couldn't hurt! (Probably less of a chance it hurting than taking a wild dose of unregulated herbal supplements.)
- mcguire 7y ago
  "Might as well recommend acupuncture and getting your chakras aligned, couldn't hurt!" Indeed, it might help and it couldn't hurt. "(Probably less of a chance it hurting than taking a wild dose of unregulated herbal supplements.)" Or possibly a known drug with no real evidence of efficacy and a long list of known side effects? Oh, and by the way, "That's a puff piece by people who have a strong, strong self-interest in promoting TCM, because they want to keep their department chairs," is both an hominem and describes all academic publications.

forgingahead 7y ago

Thanks for sharing this, not sure why you're getting downvoted. TCM has its place, Artemisia Annua has been used as an anti-malarial treatment as well for hundreds of years, and again, is cheap, available, and side effects are known. I've had anecdotal experience that it's helpful for milder coronavirus symptoms.

AlexandrB 7y ago
> Thanks for sharing this, not sure why you're getting downvoted. Because TCM is - charitably - pseudoscience. Many of its remedies involve grinding up endangered animals into concoctions that have no plausible mechanism of treating the thing they're meant to treat. > I've had anecdotal experience that it's helpful for milder coronavirus symptoms. I have anecdotal experience that my microsorium musifolium plant has been effective in preventing coronavirus infection in my household. Unfortunately, just like your statement, this doesn't qualify as evidence and shouldn't be used to make public health decisions.
- forgingahead 7y ago
  You are mindreading my comment of "TCM has its place" and are wrongly confusing it in your own imagination of "used to make public health decisions". Please don't do that, it's insulting to folks trying to have open discussions, and it also makes you, the mindreader, stressed and anxious about things that are not happening.

perardi 7y ago

I cannot tell if you are purposefully trolling, or this is sincere. Regardless, let's wade in… 1. That's not's a study. That's not a metareview. That's a puff piece by people who have a strong, strong self-interest in promoting TCM, because they want to keep their department chairs. 2. Oh heck, I'll just quote the entire last paragraph: "The safety of TCM in the treatment of emerging coronavirus diseases was not included in the observation on SARS patients. It was reported that some herbs used in TCM contain nephrotoxins and mutagens, while the toxicological features of the most of Chinese herbal medicines remain to be fully understood. Furthermore, herbs used in TCM can mimic, or magnify, or oppose the effect of conventional medicines. Thus, the safety of TCM used in treatment of emerging coronavirus infections should be carefully evaluated. It is particularly important to avoid toxicity or interfere with the efficacy of conventional treatment caused by herb-drug interaction." So, in conclusion, we don't know if this works, and this stuff may be toxic, and it may have drug interactions, and oh by the way there's no quality control on this so you have no idea what's in the medications. Might as well recommend acupuncture and getting your chakras aligned, couldn't hurt! (Probably less of a chance it hurting than taking a wild dose of unregulated herbal supplements.)

mcguire 7y ago
"Might as well recommend acupuncture and getting your chakras aligned, couldn't hurt!" Indeed, it might help and it couldn't hurt. "(Probably less of a chance it hurting than taking a wild dose of unregulated herbal supplements.)" Or possibly a known drug with no real evidence of efficacy and a long list of known side effects? Oh, and by the way, "That's a puff piece by people who have a strong, strong self-interest in promoting TCM, because they want to keep their department chairs," is both an hominem and describes all academic publications.