Undercover investigations by a leading Chinese media outlet are underscoring the need to be vigilant as to some of the claims made by those said to be practitioners of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Beware of “just going for a massage”.
中国一家主要媒体的秘密调查凸显出需要对那些据称是中医从业者的一些说法保持警惕。谨防“只是去按摩”。
On the face of it, many massage or Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) parlours appear to have great credentials. Plaques and pennants may adorn their interiors. But the tale of one highly-respected TCM practitioner in Lianyungang of our very own Jiangsu Province is a cautionary one.
从表面上看，许多按摩店或中医（TCM）店似乎拥有很高的资历。匾额和三角旗可能会装饰其内部。但江苏连云港一位备受尊敬的中医从业者的故事却具有警示意义。
Yu Xingbing was once rated as an “intangible cultural heritage inheritor” by Lianyungang City. Today he operates his “9 Generations of Single Line Meridian” TCM outlet to teach apprentices and heal the public, claiming that he can cure even terminal illnesses. Yu has also asserted in his live broadcasts that various afflictions can be cured by acupressure alone, saying, “The effect is faster than taking medicine”.
于兴兵曾被连云港市评为“非物质文化遗产传承人”。如今，他经营着自己的“九代单线经络”中医馆，授徒治病，声称连绝症都能治。于先生还在直播中声称，仅通过穴位按摩就可以治愈各种疾病，并称“效果比吃药更快”。
He is typical of the so-called “miracle doctors” who claim to be able to “cure cancer with one needle”, luring in customers to buy both online and offline courses costing tens of thousands of renminbi.
他是典型的所谓“神医”，声称能“一针治癌”，吸引顾客购买价值数万元的线上线下课程。
In mid-August 2024, Shanghai-based media outlet The Paper came to Yu’s practice in Guannan County of Lianyungang, under the pretext of being a potential customer. The reporter heard from Yu that his therapy, combined with TCM for internal use, can regulate uremia, infertility and other diseases.
2024年8月中旬，上海媒体澎湃新闻以潜在客户为借口，来到了于连云港灌南县的诊所。记者从于先生那里了解到，他的疗法结合中药内服，可以治疗尿毒症、不孕不育等疾病。
Bold claims, but it is also public record that Yu himself has not obtained a medical practitioner certificate.
大胆声称，但公开记录显示于本人并未取得医师执业证书。
With the smell of cigarette smoke and sweat hanging in the air, Yu’s practice is not large, but its walls are covered by silk banners supposedly from satisfied patients. Honorary plaques such as “Famous Chinese Medicine Teacher of Chinese Medicine Meridian Therapy” and “Famous Chinese Doctor” hang from the ceiling opposite the door.
空气中弥漫着烟味和汗水的味道，余的诊所规模并不大，但墙上挂满了锦旗，据说是满意的病人挂的。门对面的天花板上悬挂着“中医经络疗法名师”、“中医名医”等荣誉牌匾。
Public record has it that Yu is the fifth-generation inheritor of meridian therapy. Yu told the reporter in confidence that spending ¥30,000 to become one of his disciples is a sure win. “You don’t need a medical qualification; just a business license plus my inheritance certificate, which is recognised everywhere in the country”, he said.
据公开记载，余先生是经络疗法第五代传承人。于先生自信地告诉记者，花3万块钱成为他的弟子，已经是稳操胜券了。 “你不需要医疗资格；只需要营业执照和我的继承证明，这是全国各地都认可的”，他说。
Yu repeatedly emphasised that the disciple inheritance certificate issued by him is certified and protected by the State, claiming it is more valuable than other Chinese massage certificates on the market. “Whoever doesn’t learn is stupid. Spending money is buying the second half of your life”, he said.
余一再强调，他颁发的弟子传承证书是受国家认证和保护的，比市面上其他中医按摩证书更有价值。 “谁不学习，谁就是傻子。花钱就是买下半生”，他说。
Although Yu always claims that he can treat diseases with acupressure alone, when pressed he revealed that it is also actually necessary to take Chinese medicine orally. His specially prepared concoctions can cost an additional ¥3,000-4,000 per month.
虽然余总声称单靠穴位按摩就可以治病，但在追问下，他透露其实口服中药也是必要的。他特制的调酒每月可额外花费 3,000 至 4,000 日元。
Yu pointed to a banner on the wall. “We helped this couple give birth to a boy before”, he said. “It’s very simple to treat infertility.”
At a cost. The promise of having a child within 2 years runs to ¥50,000.
余指着墙上的横幅。 “我们以前帮助这对夫妇生过一个男孩，”他说。 “治疗不孕症非常简单。”但要付出代价。两年内生孩子的承诺高达5万日元。
The whole practice is also skating on thin ice from a legal perspective. The Intangible Cultural Heritage Law of the People’s Republic of China implemented in 2011 stipulates that “the protection of traditional medicine, traditional arts and crafts, etc., shall be in accordance with other laws and administrative regulations unless otherwise provided”.
整个做法从法律角度看也是如履薄冰。 2011年实施的《中华人民共和国非物质文化遗产法》规定，“传统医药、传统工艺美术等的保护，除另有规定外，依照其他法律、行政法规的规定”。
Liu Xin, a professor at the Institute of Evidential Science at the China University of Political Science & Law, pointed out that TCM must meet that stipulated by the “Physician Law” and other regulations. Hence, TCM inheritors of intangible cultural heritage should obtain the corresponding license.
中国政法大学证据科学研究所教授刘欣指出，中医必须符合《医师法》等法规的规定。因此，中医药非物质文化遗产传承人应当取得相应的许可证。
Dean of the Mental Health Centre affiliated to the School of Medicine of Shanghai Jiaotong University Zhao Min, and director of the Tumor Radiotherapy Diagnosis & Treatment Centre of the Shanghai Armed Police Corps Hospital Pan Mianshun, both spoke to The Paper. Each said that it is impossible for acupressure to cure various diseases or treat infertility.
上海交通大学医学院附属精神卫生中心院长赵敏、武警上海总队医院肿瘤放疗诊疗中心主任潘勉顺均接受澎湃新闻采访。各说穴位按摩不可能治愈各种疾病或治疗不孕不育。
Pan added the claim that opening up the body’s “qi” and its meridians can cure cancer is pseudoscience and not to be trusted.
潘补充说，打通人体“气”和经络可以治疗癌症的说法是伪科学，不可信。
