TCM, acupuncture gain popularity in Indonesia

Siswanto said TCM stores can also be found in Jakarta, the capital, and other large cities on Java, one of the main Indonesian islands. These outlets include Saras Subur Abadi, which is based in Jakarta and is one of the country's largest TCM importers.

TCM outlets are located in many parts of Jakarta, but are mainly found in Chinatown, the oldest part of the downtown area. These businesses include Tay Seng Ho and Ban Seng, which are respectively 100 years and 90 years old and whose medicines and tonics are produced with ingredients imported from China.

Ban Seng owner Yuan Chang said that the founder of the business, his great grandfather, came from China, and in 1933 he opened a TCM store primarily for Chinese immigrants during the Dutch colonial era. Like other such stores, Ban Seng has a loyal customer base among ethnic Chinese and other groups.

Ban Seng imports more than a dozen TCM ingredients from China, and mixes them according to customers' requirements.

Due to the pandemic, Ban Seng has only one sinshe, or TCM doctor, to check the pulse on a patient's radial artery to determine his or her condition and the medication that is needed. Pulse-checking is the method typically used by TCM doctors, who also consider prescriptions a patient is given by "modern" doctors.

Problems tackled

Acupuncture therapies are also popular in Indonesia, although they are not practiced in Merauke and other remote areas of the country.

Patients, including non-ethnic Chinese, use acupuncture, like TCM, for health problems such as headaches, pain, migraines, depression after childbirth, diabetes and obesity. They also ask acupuncturists to help improve their complexion.