TCM: Prices Rise!



Traditional Chinese Medicines (TCM) is no longer the cheaper alternative it once was as prices of herbs skyrocketed due to the global economy and high global demand.
As a result of the weak ringgit, it was now more costly to import such medicines from China, said Malay­sia Federation of Chinese Medicine Dealers and Practitioners Asso­ciation Secretary-General Kerk Ee Chan.
He said the price of some herbs went up by as much as 50% after the GST implementation in April, 2015 and the cost continues to rise steadily over the past year.
TCM plays a vital part in Chinese meals like soups besides its medicinal purposes.
“Traders are also feeling the pinch as we have members complaining of some 40% to 60% of drop in their businesses. They are barely scraping through each month,” he said in an interview.
Kerk said there was no sign of the prices stabilising due to the global economy and the weak ringgit, ad­vising consumers and practi­tioners to brace for a continuous increase that was expected to be­­come more acute after Chinese New Year.
“The price increase does not only apply to herbs but also medicinal liquors and ointments, commonly used for tui na (a form of Chinese therapeutic massage), which has gone up by a whopping 150%,” he added.
This led to a negative impact on the development of TCM as there were patients who avoided going to TCM clinics because of the cost.
Southern University College (Southern UC) TCM clinic department head Teo Chee Fung said me­­dicine like the tai zhi shen (a root herb), cost about RM140 per kg which was a sharp increase compared to the beginning of the year when it was sold at RM50 per kg.
He said the wu wei zi or Five Taste Fruit, which improves memory and the nervous system, went up by two-fold from RM60 per kg in January to about RM120 per kg by year end.
As for common root herbs such as dang gui and dang shen, usually used in tonics and soups, he said the prices went up by about 10% to RM110 per kg and RM140 per kg respectively since the begining of the year.
A check at Chinese Medical Halls showed other common herbs increased by about 5% to 10% since the beginning of the year such as the price of jing ying hua (honeysuckle flowers) which went up to RM55 per kg, chrysanthemum flo­wers (RM50 per kg) while red dates went up slightly to around RM10 per kg.
Southern UC TCM management committee chairman Lim Boon Hime said besides the high demand in traditional medicine, another contributing factor was the improvement of China’s economy, lifestyle and standard of living in recent years.
Many Chinese herb farmers have given up agriculture causing a blow to the global TCM industry.

“A trip to a TCM hall or clinic used to cost about RM20 to RM30 but nowadays it is common for the bill to come up to more than RM100,” he said, adding that certain herbs increased by a huge percentage from RM20 per kg to thousands of ringgit.
/theSTAR 27-12-2016
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Ministry of Health destroys RM2mil worth of expired Drugs



The Health Ministry has disposed of nearly RM 2 mil worth of expired or spoilt drugs and medicines over a two-year period from 2014.
Most of the medicines had been returned to government pharmacies by patients under the Minis­­try’s “Return Your Medicines” (PPU) programme, said Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.
Some of the drugs which the Mi­­nistry disposed of, including anti-venom, were rarely used but Govern­ment hospitals need to have them in stock for emergencies. Other medicines had to be disposed as they had been damaged or spoilt due to disasters such as floods.
Among other reasons were patients ended up with expired or unused medicines was a change or discontinuation of a treatment. In other cases, patients ended up receiving a supply of the same me­­dicine from multiple sources as they might have "followed-up" appointments at different facilities.
Some returned medicines on behalf of patients who had died, while others had expired medicine either because they experienced side effects and stopped taking them or because they did not comply with the prescribed regiment.
The PPU programme was introduced in 2010 so that patients can return their unused or excess medicine for safe disposal by the ministry.
Dr Noor Hisham said the most common form of medicines which were returned by patients under the PPU programme were those used to treat diabetes, hypertension, high-cholesterol and gastritis. 
Among the steps taken by the ministry to reduce wastage was to supply patients’ medicine on a monthly basis. Patients, said Dr Noor Hisham, were also advised to inform their doctor or pharmacist if they still have the same medicine as prescribed at home.
“Patients are also encouraged to bring their medicines from home every time they come for refill so that we only top-up the supply accordingly instead of giving them extra.
“It is important for all parties, including patients and healthcare providers, to play their role in ensuring no wastage of medicines,” Dr Noor Hisham said.
“Patients are advised to be compliant towards their medication therapy while supports from the healthcare providers are available for patients if they have any issues with their medicines.”
Dr Noor Hisham said RM1.8mil worth of medicine were disposed of in 2014, equal to 0.075% of the mi­­nistry’s budget for that year.
Last year, medicine worth RM105,000 or 0.005% of the ministry’s budget were thrown out.
                                                                                                                                                                                        /theSTAR 27-12-2016
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Obesity, Diabetes, Cholesterol, Hypertension



One in two Malaysian adults is either overweight or obese, with the number increasing by four-fold in the last 20 years.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam said Malaysians are facing a health problem due to their unhealthy lifestyle. "A national health and morbidity survey shows that obesity is prevalent among Malaysians above 18, with the numbers drastically rising."

"The number of obesity cases in 1996 was 4.4% (of the population), rising to 14% in 2006. This rose to 15.1% in 2011 and 17.7% last year," he said in his speech when opening the Fruits and Vegetables Eating Campaign at Malaysia Agriculture, Horticulture and Agrotourism 2016 (MAHA 2016) here Tuesday.

He added some 30.3% of adults suffered weight problems. As a whole, one in two Malaysian adults is overweight or one in five is obese.

"In 2015, nearly half of Malaysian adults or 47.7% suffered from high cholesterol or hypercholesterolemia," he said.

Dr Subramaniam said an unhealthy lifestyle had also resulted in the number of diabetes cases in Malaysia to rise since 1996. "The disease will not be seen now but in 15 years when they come to hospital and end up losing an eye or having a limb amputated," he added.

The survey also revealed that diabetes cases rose from 11.6% in 1996 to 15.2% in 2006 and 17.5% last year.

However, he said there was a slight drop in hypertension cases - from 32.2% in 1996 to 32.7% in 2006 and 30.3% last year.

He noted that these ailments are linked to the unhealthy dietary habits of Malaysians who do not eat enough fruits and vegetables.

"Only 6% of Malaysian adults take enough fruits and vegetables, or two servings of fruits and three servings of vegetables as suggested by the Malaysian Dietary Guidelines 2010," he said.

He said that those who consume more greens and fruits are less susceptible to cancer, by between 5% and 12%.

Dr Subramaniam said the Government has introduced several awareness campaigns and programmes to encourage Malaysians to eat more fruits and greens. This includes the Healthy Cafeteria programme to get food operators to offer more fruits and greens on their menu.

He added that the National Plan of Action on Nutrition Malaysia III, covering 2016 to 2025, will ensure healthier eating habits by Malaysians.


At a press conference later, Dr Subramanian said a survey will be conducted in five years to see how effective the healthy diet campaigns have been.

/theSTAR 07-12-2016

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