TEHRAN – A total of 569 articles were submitted in the second national congress on Persian medicine, indicating a forty-percent growth compared to 390 articles handed in the first national congress on Persian medicine, according to the scientific secretary of the congress.

Among the submitted articles, 24 were accepted to be presented in the form of lectures, and 433 as posters at the congress, the health ministry's website quoted Hossein Rezaeizadeh as saying.

The official made the remarks while addressing the closing ceremony of the second national congress on Persian medicine, held from November 12 to 14 in Tehran.

Some of these studies will be published in the international magazine of ‘Traditional and Integrative Medicine’, he noted.

Based on scientific achievements and participants’ feedback, the executive committee of the second congress on Persian medicine is planning to add new research topics to the third congress, planned to be held from November, and boost cooperation with international magazines to lay the ground for specialized training and promote the structure of the Committee, he added.

The second national congress on Persian medicine brought together experts in Persian medicine, traditional pharmacy, and the history of Iranian traditional medicine.

It was centered around Preventive medicine and lifestyle medicine; Personalized medicine, precision medicine, reticulotype and Persian medicine; Food, nutrition, medicinal cuisine; Traditional, herbal, natural medicines, and pharmaceutical formulations; Rational prescription of drugs in Persian medicine; Technology, diagnostic and therapeutic tools; manual therapy techniques; Persian medicine tourism; History of Persian medicine and medical sciences; Persian medicine and the art of living; as well as Integrative and complementary medicine.

Addressing the second congress, Nafiseh Hosseini-Yekta, the director of the health ministry’s Persian medicine office, said that a recent survey has shown that 83.8 percent of people in the country tend to benefit from Iranian traditional medicine.

The survey’s findings have confirmed people’s positive attitude towards Persian traditional medicine. However, only 10 out of 83.8 percent use traditional medicine and supplements for the treatment of their illnesses, she added.

The first national congress was held in May 2024. The main goal of the congress is to foster a deeper understanding of traditional medicine to promote collaboration among specialists in different fields of medicine. It also aims to globalize Iranian medicine by showcasing the latest achievements and findings to scientific communities worldwide.

Iran ranks third in traditional medicine trials

Like many ancient medical systems, Persian medicine takes a holistic approach to health, emphasising lifestyle factors such as adhering to a proper diet, moderate exercise, sufficient sleep, and mental/emotional balance.

According to a report by the World Health Organization (WHO), Iran ranks third in traditional medicine trials in the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP), highlighting the country’s status as one of the world’s pioneers in traditional and complementary medicine.

China and India rank first and second, respectively, the health ministry’s website reported.

The share of clinical trials in traditional and complementary medicine in Iran makes up about three percent of all clinical trials registered in the country, while just about 0.3 percent of the healthcare staff are experts in traditional and complementary medicine. The report shows the high capacity of Iranian researchers to move towards evidence-based medicine.

MT/MG