Trials of four traditional coronavirus drugs developed by the AYUSH ministry and the research body CSIR will begin within a week, a central minister said on Thursday.

"These formulations will be tried as an add-on therapy and standard care for Covid-19 patients," said Shripad Naik, the Minister of State for AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy).

"I am sure and quite hopeful that our traditional medicinal system will show the way to overcome this pandemic," he said.

The @moayush & the @CSIR_IND are working together on validating four Ayush formulations against #COVID19Pandemic and the trials will start within one week. These formulations will be tried as an add-on therapy and standard care for COVID-19 patients.

— Shripad Y. Naik (@shripadynaik) May 14, 2020

No widely approved treatment exists yet for the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.

But a U.S. trial showed that Gilead Sciences Inc's remdesivir cut hospital stays by 31 per cent compared with a placebo, although it didn't significantly improve survival. The U.S. granted the drug authorisation for emergency use on May 1.

Japan, too, has granted emergency approval.

The World Health Organisation says some western, traditional or home remedies "may provide comfort and alleviate symptoms of mild Covid-19".

But there are "no medicines that have been shown to prevent or cure the disease".

"WHO does not recommend self-medication with any medicines, including antibiotics, as a prevention or cure for Covid-19," the UN body says.

Inputs from Reuters

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