ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Pharmacol.
Sec. Ethnopharmacology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1586334
This article is part of the Research TopicPrevention and Treatment of Infectious Diseases by Herbal MedicineView all 13 articles
Ethnobotanical Survey of Herbal Medicines for Anti-COVID-19 Used by Traditional Chinese Medicine Pharmacies in Taiwan
Provisionally accepted
- 1School of Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
- 2Department of Rehabilitation, Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, New Taipei City, Taiwan
- 3School of Medicine, Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan
- 4School of Chinese Medicine, College of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
- 5Chinese Medicine Research Center, Department of Chinese Pharmaceutical Sciences and Chinese Medicine Resources, Master Program for Food and Drug Safety, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
- 6Department of Food Nutrition and Health Biotechnology, College of Medical and Health Science, Asia University, Wufeng, Taichung County, Taiwan
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Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) pharmacies in Taiwan have been a vital healthcare resource in Chinese communities, with generations of accumulated TCM knowledge playing a crucial role in infectious disease prevention and treatment. However, as proprietors age and the industry declines, this valuable ethnomedicinal knowledge faces the risk of being lost.Therefore, documenting and analyzing the knowledge used by Taiwanese TCM pharmacies in combating COVID-19 is essential for the preservation and application of ethnomedicine. This study employed a stratified sampling method to survey 106 TCM pharmacies in Taiwan, collecting 61 TCM formulae against COVID-19. The medicinal materials were compiled, and analysis were conducted using relative frequency of citation (RFC) and the Phi correlation coefficient to examine the relationships among TCMs. Furthermore, cluster analysis was applied to establish TCM combination patterns. This study recorded a total of 70 medicinal materials and identified 30 commonly used ones, categorizing them into four major groups:Group A (heat-clearing and detoxifying): As similar as NRICM101, suitable for moderate to severe cases. Group B (heat-clearing and tonifying): Suitable for mild cases, with both antiviral and immune-boosting effects. Group C (symptom relief): Primarily used for relieving cough, expelling phlegm, and alleviating discomfort. Group D (tonifying and strengthening): Suitable for uninfected individuals to enhance immunity. This study successfully documented and analyzed the TCM usage patterns of Taiwanese TCM pharmacies in combating COVID-19, revealing their alignment with modern TCM theories. The findings not only contribute to the preservation of ethnobotanical knowledge but also serve as a reference for developing herbal prevention strategies and healthcare products, ensuring that traditional medical wisdom can play a greater role within the modern healthcare system.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ethnobotany, Taiwan
Received: 02 Mar 2025; Accepted: 18 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Chi, Ko, Chi, Huang, Lin, Chao and Huang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Jung Chao, Chinese Medicine Research Center, Department of Chinese Pharmaceutical Sciences and Chinese Medicine Resources, Master Program for Food and Drug Safety, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
Shyh-Shyun Huang, School of Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, China Medical University, Taichung, 40402, Taiwan
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