TCM can help students to stay healthy

EAST CHINA'S ZHEJIANG PROVINCE has made traditional Chinese medicine a compulsory subject for grade 5 students. On Monday, local media outlets said TCM textbooks are being printed and will soon be dispatched to the primary schools. 

Zhejiang is the first province to make TCM a compulsory subject in schools. According to reports, the province even plans to introduce the course in middle schools, and many middle school teachers are undergoing training at Zhejiang Chinese Medical University to learn how to teach TCM to young children.

The move has aroused mixed feelings among netizens. Some say TCM is empirical in nature, that is, based on practical experience, not scientific proof. Others fear that some students might try some unproven herbs to cure an ailment. Such doubts are unnecessary because the TCM course in the primary schools will be mainly about how to prevent diseases and stay healthy.