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Traditional Chinese Remedy Cures Malaria — Meanwhile, New Malaria Vaccine Fails to Impress

  • April 26, 2017

Never underestimate the curative properties of traditional Chinese medicine and herbal remedies. A recent malaria study in Science Daily  demonstrated the amazing curative potential of the traditional Chinese cure for malaria. In an amazing demonstration of efficacy, 18 patients critically ill with drug-resistant malaria were successfully treated with the dried leaves of the Artemisia annua plant.

Treating malaria is serious business. It is a parasitic disease that is transmitted by the Anopheles mosquito. It is one of the greatest killers in history and still infects over 200 million people annually. Half of the world’s population is at risk for malaria, and it kills nearly half a million people each year.

The anti-malarial properties of Artemisia annua are well known in traditional medicine. It has been synthesized into chemical form and used to treat malaria for decades. Using Artemisia annua as a chemical extract represents the classic reductionist approach to healing. It is this sort of thinking that hinders the allopathic medical industry. Rather than relying on the leaves of this powerful plant as a whole, they isolate specific chemicals and use them in a mechanistic manner to treat symptoms rather than the underlying cause. 

In this study, the allopathic approach was not working. Doctors finally permitted the use of dried-leaf Artemisia (DLA) as a last ditch effort. After only five days of treatment with only DLA, the 18 patients fully recovered and tests showed the malaria parasite was no longer present in their blood.

This is not the first time that natural remedies have demonstrated their potency. Quinine, one of the most widely used malaria treatments, was first derived from the bark of the cinchona tree centuries ago.

With traditional cures proving so effective, why do scientists and pharmaceutical companies continue to pursue failed modalities such as vaccines and heavily synthesized derivatives of natural cures? The malaria vaccine has proven particularly ineffective. It requires a jab a month for three months and then a final booster 18 months later. Many areas impacted by malaria are underdeveloped and the residents have limited access to health care facilities.

Even if the vaccine were effective, this prolonged vaccination schedule is simply not logistically viable. Access to this flurry of injections is an issue, but the biggest issue is that the vaccine does not work all that well. In controlled studies, it has been shown to prevent only 4 in 10 cases of malaria. The most severe cases of malaria are reduced by only a third. And this is after four vaccinations. 

Protecting yourself from mosquito bites should be your first line of defense. It not only prevents that horrid itching, but can also lessen your chances of contracting several mosquito-borne illnesses, such as encephalitis, yellow fever, malaria, West Nile virus or dengue. Most commercial insect repellants contain a harmful chemical called DEET, which should be used with caution, if at all.

Fortunately, there are highly effective mosquito repellents on the market comprising natural botanical oils and extracts that are every bit as effective as DEET, but with none of the potentially harmful effects. You can also make your own repellent using cinnamon leaf oil, catnip oil and lemon eucalyptus. All of these have been shown to be more effective than DEET.