- The federal government invests 28.3 million pesos to support 165 traditional medicine projects.
- The IMSS Well-being has registered 753 traditional doctors who base their practice on ancestral knowledge.
- Currently, the true usefulness of herbalism is questioned because it lacks scientific evidence.
Few topics generate as much controversy as the traditional medicine. Broadly speaking, it is a way to cure or alleviate diseases through the use of medicinal plants. For thousands of years it was used all over the world because it was the only option available, but now the main debate is whether it should continue to be used today.
Do alternative forms of healing work?
Diseases have existed since the beginning of history. In the beginning, there were no medicines to combat them and the only thing that humans of the time could use was what was around them. That was why plants were the first form of healing for humans.
The problem is that today the world is completely different. With the development of the pharmaceutical industry, medicines and treatments have been created that have scientific support and really work as forms of healing. It is something that does not have the traditional medicine.
???? I see it and I don’t believe it, one after another, this government never tires of disappointing us. The only objective they seek is to evade their responsibility in the face of the lacking and undersupplied health system that we have. They love spending money on something that is NOT medicine and does NOT work. pic.twitter.com/Mxv4HArsbh
— Dr. Hector Rossete (@HectorRossete) March 14, 2023
With this in mind, the head of the Ministry of Health (SSa), Jorge Alcocer, announced that through the National Institute of Indigenous Peoples (INPI), he announced that he carries out actions focused on the promotion of traditional medicine in indigenous and Afro-Mexican communities in the country.
“Thanks to traditional medicine, humanity has managed to survive and face what has always threatened the physical, emotional and spiritual integrity of the human being: illness and death.”
For his part, the general director of the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), Zoé Robledo Aburto, reported that the IMSS Well-being Health Plan incorporates 753 traditional doctors who base their practice on ancestral knowledge into community health systems.
The “specialties” of alternative medicine with the greatest presence in Mexico
The main specialties are sobadores, bone makers, herbalists, healers and voluntary midwives, Of which there are 7,079 registered and are dedicated to promoting the use of contraceptive methods, refer high-risk deliveries to medical centers, advise on care during pregnancy, attend low-risk deliveries and encourage breastfeeding.
This federal initiative in favor of ancestral medicinal wisdom is implemented in towns in Baja California Sur, Campeche, Colima, Guerrero, Michoacán, Morelos, Nayarit, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tlaxcala and Veracruz, states where 2,177 health committees are reported. 10,356 volunteers, 20,798 home visits and 54,851 information sessions.
According to the Law of the National Institute of Indigenous Peoplesthe federation disseminates traditional medicine based on the following objectives:
- Guarantee the access of indigenous and Afro-Mexican peoples to health services with cultural, linguistic and gender relevance, without any discrimination.
- Recognition and inclusion of traditional medicine in the public health system.
- Strengthening the practice of medicine and traditional midwifery in order to increase access to health with cultural relevance.
- Development of research on herbalism, medicine and traditional practices of indigenous and Afro-Mexican peoples.
Simultaneously, the Indigenous Peoples Regional Justice and Development Plans benefit the communities of Seri Comca’ac, Yoreme Mayo, Guarijío-Makurawe, Wixárika, Na’ayeri, O’dam-Au’dam, Meshikan, Rarámuri in terms of health /Ralamuli, Yumanos and Cochimi, Amuzga Nation, Zapotec, Chinanteco, Xhidza and Xhon.
Through the Program for the Comprehensive Well-being of Indigenous Peoples (PROBIPI), botanical gardens and medicinal plant pharmacies are established. In addition, Cultural Heritage, traditional medicine and indigenous communication are promoted in projects for the promotion of community health.
The federal government invests 28.3 million pesos through this mechanism in support of 165 traditional medicine practice projects and 256 community promoters of ancestral knowledge in 24 states.
Also read:
IMSS Bienestar is in favor of midwifery and traditional medicine
AMLO and Alcocer defend traditional medicine as a form of healing
Cofepris promotes traditional Mexican herbs and medicine, do you agree?