Alternative therapeutic concepts have been recognized and valued in the four corners of the

world in the past decade or so, and in my experience one highly-regarded one is Traditional
Chinese Medicine (TCM). As the foundations of the ancient Chinese culture, besides its being
supported by philosophical and cultural contexts of the ancient China TCM is a kind of huge
cultural heritage. Its origin reaches 2, 500 years ago, with the later text, Yellow Emperor's Inner
Canon (Huangdi Neijing) specializing in the guiding outline of the aspects of TCM, principles,
and practices.

For healing the body, TCM based on the Chinese principle of Tai-Chi ( harmony and balance of
body, mind and spirit) was established in ancient China. The philosophical foundations of TCM
are in fact doctrine of Taoism and Confucianism philosophies, which stipulate the unity of all
which is in the organism and broadly, the significance of harmony in existence for the good of an
individual. This systematic health model, which is holistic in nature and concentrated on the
state of balance, differentiates TCM from the reductionist approach of contemporary Western
medicine.
This systematic health model, which is holistic in nature and concentrated on the state of
balance, differentiates TCM from the reductionist approach of contemporary Western medicine.
It is therefore the individualized, holistic approach to the cause and cure of illness that
distinguishes TCM from the reductionist approach of the modern Western medicinal system.
Through this comprehensive approach to health and health care, TCM is differentiated from the
Western medicine that looks for specific causes and uses one treatment.
This integrative principle is a main characteristic which distinguishes TCM among the
reductionist strategy of modern Western medicine.
TCM is distinctive in a way that it covers all aspects of health and healing in a holistic way in
contrast to the reductionist method of contemporary Western medicine.

While TCM as a form of alternative medicine has brought both benefits and concerns alongside
its growing popularity and acknowledgement in Western world, it has still played as a
complementary treatment for traditional orthodox medicine. Personalized treatment plan
consisting of different herbs, acupuncture, and eating therapeutic foods is contrary to the
Western medicine which follows a standard procedure and might be the only symptom-focused
treatment. TCM views diseases as results of disturbances in the balance of forces, and looks for
treatments that would restore this balance. The approach of TCM is complementary to the
Western medical model since it focuses on the well-being of individuals instead of focusing
particularly on diseases.

Moreover, the consequent fusion of TCM and modern medicine has triggered a constant
demand to integrate and complement medicine, and many patients turn to a multidisciplinary
model of treatment based on herbal therapy supplemented by traditional medicine. Furthermore,
it has led to research projects that investigates the TCM effects towards people's health and the
way it can be useful in some situations and have those limitations.
Traditional Chinese Medicine persists by the way on the challenge of modern conventional
medicine as well as a prospect of wide use in common practice.Its approach challenges the
modern western medicine and at the same time complements it.It does this through it's
comprehensive health and healing approach.This reflects the growing recognition of the value of
traditional medicine in health and wellness.