Centre should consider traditional Indian medicines for COVID-19: Dr Anbumani Ramadoss

Former Health Minister and Rajya Sabha member Dr Anbumani Ramadoss has requested the government to consider traditional Indian medicines for treating COVID-19 patients.

"As a western medical practitioner, I do not see anything wrong in it. When COVID-19 was at the highest level, China used traditional Chinese medicine with western medicine," Anbumani said in a statement.

Anbumani further said the traditional Indian medicine has been helpful to cure and prevent dengue, malaria among others.

"At the same time, there has been a misconception about Siddha among some officials. It has to be changed and the central and state governments should pursue it to control the spread of the pandemic," Anbumani said.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India has climbed to 1965 on Thursday, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

It was reported on January 28 earlier this year that a Siddha doctor from Tamil Nadu claimed to have formulated a herbal medicine that can cure coronavirus.

Dr Thanikasalam Veni of Rathna Siddha Hospital in Chennai has 25-year of vast experience in field Siddha and Ayurvedic medicines.

Speaking to ANI, he had said: "We have formulated a medicine from an extract of herbs. It is very effective to cure any type of viral fever. Coronavirus has no medicine."

"Our herbal extract medicine is used to treat dengue, multi-organ fever and acute liver fever... our medicine is very effective in treating multi-organ failure in corona fever condition," he said.

The Siddha doctor claimed that the medicine formulated by him along with his team treats infections caused by the virus within 24 to 40 hours.

"When we treated the dengue virus with our medicine, many patients with reduced platelets count, acute liver failure, immunity deficiency and low white blood cell (WBC) were cured within 24-40 hours," said Dr Veni.