More and more people are suffering from health problems caused by a modern lifestyle which cannot be treated with modern medicine. Some people think that a return to traditional medicine should be encouraged. To what extent do you agree?

There is no doubt that natural

medicine

may hold a lot of benefits in the management of modern lifestyle-related health problems like obesity, diabetes, cancer and hypertension. While some argue that since these conditions can not be treated with orthodox

medicine

, a return to traditional

medicine

should be advocated for.

This

essay shall explain my option that due to the superiority of orthodox

medicine

, occasioned by the huge investment in its

research

and

study

, traditional

medicine

does not stand a chance against modern

medicine

in the

treatment

of the above-mentioned conditions.

To begin

,

although

natural

medicine

gave birth to modern

medicine

, perhaps due to years of neglect, traditional

medicine

has become far inferior to orthodox

medicine

.

This

is because orthodox medical fields are widely being researched and studied in laboratories and institutions all around the world.

Furthermore

, annually billions, even trillions of dollars are invested into

research

in pharmacy, radiology, cancer care and surgical procedures and treatments for diseases.

Furthermore

, various universities around the world have standardised curricula for the

study

of various branches of modern healthcare professions, aimed at expounding the knowledge base to tackle contemporary health challenges.

This

is not the case in natural

medicine

, which does not attract as much attention and

research

investment.

Secondly

, the decades of

research

breakthroughs in orthodox

medicine

have made its procedures and

treatment

very standardised. For illustration, dosages of drugs for specific age and weight classes of patients, standard surgical equipment and procedures, specific radiological

treatment

options and dietary plans have been discovered, all thanks to the efforts of medical researchers.

In contrast

, in Nigeria,

for instance

, natural

medicine

and

treatment

are still at their crude stage. It is commonplace to see herbal drug vendors selling in markets, crowded motor parks and unhygienic places, claiming to have herbs that cure multiple diseases, sometimes all common diseases. I,

therefore

, opine that more financial and

research

investments must be made to improve the level of practice and

study

of natural

medicine

if it's to be compared to modern

medicine

. If

this

is done, alternate, or even, better

treatment

options and even novel treatments could be discovered in conditions where modern

medicine

might have failed. In conclusion, traditional

medicine

requires more standardisation and organisation, and more attention and huge investments to favourably compete with orthodox

medicine

in the

treatment

of lifestyle health problems.

Besides

, a structured curriculum for the training and

study

of natural

medicine

in tertiary institutions would

also

be necessary.