Research progress on non-pharmacological therapies of traditional medicine for depression

Abstract

Depression is a prevalent neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by persistent sadness, anhedonia, guilt, fatigue, and impaired concentration. Although pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy can be effective, their utility is limited by adverse effects and significant inter-individual variability. Non-pharmacological therapies from traditional medicine have emerged as promising adjuncts owing to their favorable safety profiles, minimal side effects, and high patient compliance. These therapies, including acupoint stimulation, meditation, and yoga, produce antidepressant effects by reducing neuroinflammation, modulating neurotransmitter release, enhancing neuroplasticity, and regulating the gut-brain axis. This review summarizes clinical applications and mechanistic insights of traditional medicine’s non-pharmacological therapies for depression, providing a scientific rationale for their integration into comprehensive management.

Keywords

Clinical applications / Depression / Non-pharmacological therapies / Research progress / Traditional medicine

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Funding

This work was supported by the Beijing Natural Science Foundation (7244491), Beijing TCM Science and Technology Development Fund Project (BJZYON-2023-05), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Public Welfare Research Institutes (ZZ15-YQ-048, ZZ-YQ2023006), Innovation Team and Talents Cultivation Program of National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine (ZYYCXTD-D-202409), Science and Technology Innovation Project of the Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences (CIZJS2025023).

Author contributions

Qing Zhou, Ningyi Zou, Yanan Zhao, and Shaoyuan Li were involved in the review concept, drafting of the manuscript, editing of the manuscript, and preparing figures of the manuscript. Yuzhengheng Zhang, Gerhard Litscher, Ruoyi Wu, and Guojian Gao were involved in drafting and editing the manuscript. All authors contributed to the revision of the manuscript and approved the final submitted version.

Ethical approval of studies and informed consent

Not applicable.

Acknowledgments

None.

Data availability

Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no datasets were generated or analyzed during the current study.

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