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How does traditional Chinese medicine threaten wildlife?[1]

中醫是如何對野生動物造成威脅的？

The world’s oldest healthcare tradition has helped to drive some animal species to the brink of extinction.

世上最古老的醫療傳統卻是造成動物瀕臨滅絕的推手。

Traditional Chinese medicine, often referred to as TCM, is a system of health care that dates back to the third century B.C. It grew out of the writings of ancient healers, who began recording their observations of the body, its functions, and its reactions to various therapies and treatments, including herbal remedies, massage, and acupuncture. For more than 2,000 years, generations of healers and scholars added to and refined the knowledge. The result is a canon of literature dealing with practically every sort of health issue—from the common cold to cancer, pregnancy to old age.

傳統中國醫學，通常被稱為中醫，是一個能夠追溯至西元前三世紀的醫療照護體系。中醫源自於古代醫者的著作，這些醫者記錄他們對身體的觀察、其功能、其對各種療法與治療的反應，包括草藥、按摩和針灸。兩千多年以來，數代的醫者與學者們增添完善這些知識。最後產出的文獻典籍幾乎囊括了所有類型的健康問題，從普通感冒到癌症，從懷孕到年老。

Though China has long embraced science-based medicine, TCM remains popular throughout the country and is often offered in hospitals and clinics alongside science-based medical treatments. TCM has also become popular beyond China’s borders and can now be found in more than 180 countries worldwide, according to some counts, and has an industry value of more than $60 billion a year.

雖然中國已採用醫療科學很長一段時間了，但是中醫在該國各地仍然相當普及，醫院和診所也常會一同提供中醫與醫療科學的治療。中醫在中國境外也越來越受歡迎，據統計，現在在全球180多個國家中都有中醫，其每年擁有超過600億美元的產業價值。

Despite its long history and increasing popularity, TCM has been criticized by the medical community for lacking efficacy in many of its applications, by the conservation community for its use of substances derived from animals, and its role in increasing the demand for species threatened by extinction.

儘管中醫歷史悠久且越來越受歡迎，但是醫學界卻批評中醫在許多應用方面都缺乏療效，而保育界則批評其使用源自動物的材料，以及這些日益增加的需求，對瀕臨絕種的物種所產生的影響。

TCM’s effect on animals

中醫對動物的影響

Growing demand for TCM products has had devastating consequences for many species of wildlife. In some cases, poaching animals to use their body parts for traditional medicine is the primary reason why an animal faces a risk of extinction.

對中藥產品的需求不斷增長卻對許多野生物種造成無法挽回的後果。在某些情形中，動物面臨滅絕風險的主要原因就是因為偷獵動物並將其器官用於傳統醫學之中才會如此。

This is the case with pangolins, millions of which have been poached between 2000 and 2013. The small ant-eating creatures are in demand for their scales, which are ground up into powder or paste and are said to help with lactation, arthritis, and many other ailments. Also suffering major losses are rhinos and tigers, sought after for their horns and bones, which are believed to hold healing properties. However, there is scant scientific evidence that suggests those treatments are effective, though in some cases patients may see results because of the placebo effect.

穿山甲的例子就是如此。在2000年至2013年間偷獵了數百萬隻的穿山甲，就只是因為需要這種小型食蟻生物的鱗片，這些鱗片會被研磨成粉或糊，據說對通乳、關節炎和許多其他疾病都有幫助。同樣因偷獵而大量死亡的是犀牛和老虎，主要是為了牠們的角和骨頭，因為這些都被認為具有治療功效。可是，卻很少有科學證據能說這些治療方法是有效的，雖然在某些個案中有出現功效，但這可能與安慰劑效應有關。

Desire for TCM products has also led to poor treatment of animals in addition to their losses in the wild. Sun bears and Asiatic black bears are captured from forests or captive-bred so that traders can extract bile from their gallbladders. Bile is a yellowish liquid that may help some liver conditions and other ailments. During the process, the bears are usually locked in tiny cages and live with a permanent catheter to drain the bile that can rust or otherwise degrade.

除了因野外偷獵所產生的死亡之外，對於中藥產品的渴望也導致了虐待動物的發生。馬來熊與亞洲黑熊會在森林中被捕捉或是透過人工繁殖的方式，使售賣商可以從牠們的膽囊中提取膽汁。膽汁是一種淡黃色的液體，它可能會對一些肝臟疾病和其他疾病有所幫助。在這個過程中，熊通常會被關在小小的籠子裡，還得與用來放乾膽汁的永久導管共存，膽汁還會腐蝕或是降解導管。

Reducing the use

減少使用

In response to the poaching crisis, countries have banned the killing and capture of many animals used in traditional medicine, and a global wildlife treaty called CITES has barred or restricted commercial trade in some of these animals and their parts. Poaching has continued despite these regulations, however, and wildlife trading—for TCM and other uses—has become a dangerous and sophisticated black market worth billions of dollars a year.

為了應對偷獵危機，各國禁止殺害和捕捉許多傳統醫學中所使用的動物，而一項名為CITES的全球野生動植物條約禁止或限制某些動物及其器官的商業貿易。可是，儘管有了這些規定，偷獵的情形仍然持續下去，而野生動植物的貿易(用於中醫和其他用途)已經成為一種危險而複雜的黑市交易，每年產生數十億美元的價值。

Many in the TCM community have tried to dissuade the uses of animal-based remedies. In 1993 rhino horn and tiger bone were removed from the traditional Chinese pharmacopoeia, and in 2010 the World Federation of Chinese Medical Societies released a statement urging members not to use tiger bone or any other parts from endangered species. In addition, many reputable TCM practitioners now prescribe substitutes for animal-based remedies, although some shops and restaurants still market products derived from animals.

許多中醫界的人都設法勸說不要再使用以動物入藥的治療方法。犀牛角和虎骨於1993年時，從《中國藥典》中除名；2010年世界中醫藥學會聯合會發表了一項聲明，力勸會員不要再使用虎骨或是瀕危物種的任何部位。此外，儘管一些商店和餐廳仍會販售源自動物的產品，許多信譽良好的中醫師現在會對以動物入藥的治療方法開出替代藥品。

Businesspeople in China and other Asian countries have also started government-sanctioned bear and tiger farms as a way to prevent poaching of them in the wild. But farming has proven an inadequate solution: evidence has shown that many of the animals on these “farms” are captured from the wild, treated inhumanely, and are often killed to supply the black market for animal body parts.

中國和其他亞洲國家的商人也會經營政府所批准的熊和老虎養殖場，當成一種用來防止在野外偷獵牠們的方法。但是，這種養殖場的飼養卻是一種劣質的解決方法：證據顯示，許多「養殖場」中的動物都是從野外捕捉來的，牠們會受到不人道地對待，還經常會被宰殺來提供動物器官給黑市交易。