By Caroline Colonna

Traditional Chinese medicine has been used for several thousand years in China to combat epidemic diseases.

Doctors Zhang Zhong-Jing (150-219 CE) and Ye Gui (1666-1745) are the main TCM doctors who organized their respective diagnostic frameworks "cold-induced disorders" (Shang Han) and "warm diseases" (Wen Bing) to treat epidemic diseases that arose in China.

There have been over 320 large-scale epidemics in China in the last 2,000 years. As our population keeps soaring and travels globally, epidemics can easily turn into pandemics especially with a virus that is extremely contagious like the one that causes COVID-19.

The Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization and the Chinese government are now encouraging the use of TCM to treat COVID-19 as research papers abound showing its efficacy. TCM was very efficacious in treating SARS as both SARS-CoV (SARS) and SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) are coronaviruses with 96 percent genome identity.

Based on the current research and my 22-year clinical experience at Willow Clinic using the TCM diagnostic frameworks referred to above, I feel that I can help my community prevent and treat early signs of COVID-19 using TCM.

Prevention Stage: This flu is preventable if we all work together to mitigate its spread. Due to its extremely high level of contagion and the fact that we now know that at least 25 percent of COVID-19 cases display no symptoms, our best way to mitigate the spread is through strict hygiene, social distancing and wearing a face mask in public.

If one thinks about COVID-19 in terms of "Game of Thrones" military strategy, COVID-19 is the Army of the Deads with the White Walkers marching, social distancing and wearing masks is the closing of Winterfeld gates and going underground to hide. TCM herbs are the dragonglass stones that can kill the progressive invasion of the virus into the body and Valyrian steel swords are the acupuncture needles that keep patients from falling to the virus.

The Journal of Integrative Medicine published February 13, 2020 concludes that "Chinese herbal treatments classically used for treating viral respiratory infections may contain direct anti-2019-nCoV compounds." We may not have a cure for completely eradicating corona-type viruses yet but we can keep most people from developing serious symptoms and ultimately possibly save lives.

I encourage all of my patients to seek TCM herbal teas which contain most of the herbs identified by the latest studies to combat COVID-19. Again, the TCM herbal teas have been used in China for thousands of years and I have used this method of treatment successfully in my clinic for the past 22 years to fight the seasonal flu.

Early symptoms: If someone develops flu-like symptoms that may or may not be COVID-19, TCM can help by treating the early symptoms of the flu or the allergies that those symptoms may be. Sneezing, a temperature, chills, sore throat, coughing, shortness of breath, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue and lethargy are early symptoms. Do not disregard such symptoms. Anti-viral herbs in the TCM herbal teas can stop the virus in its tracks. The earlier one uses the anti-viral herbs the more effective the action of the herbs.

Difficulty breathing and pneumonia are not early symptoms. If someone experiences these symptoms it is time to go to the hospital. Western medicine is much better equipped for the pneumonia stage of COVID-19.

These are difficult times for us all. Traditional Chinese medicine can help in the prevention and early treatment of symptoms. TCM can also help with the emotional discomfort emanating from these uncertain times. Some of the conditions TCM can help with include: depression, anxiety, insomnia, PTSD and more.

In conclusion, I would say that staying positive, physically distant from one another and wearing a mask in public are the most important actions everyone can take now. TCM is an effective way to prevent and treat the flu in general and can help mitigate COVID-19 spread by preventing and treating early symptoms.

Dr. Caroline Colonna has been a doctor of Oriental medicine at Willow Clinic of TCM for the past 22 years.

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Opinion: Benefits of traditional Chinese medicine to combat disease - taosnews