Cold and Flu Season is Here!
Are you staying well during cold and flu season? During Winter, it may seem like someone close to you is always sniffling and coughing their way through the day. Cold and flu can linger for weeks, or even months. If you’ve got a cough that won’t quit, or chronic congestion, now is the time to begin restoring your immune system, or in Chinese terms, your “protective qi”. Acupuncture can help boost immunity from the inside out, and expel pathogens in the case of common cold and flu, avoiding the need for over-the-counter medicines that can make you drowsy and foggy-headed.
Curing the Common Cold and Flu with Traditional Chinese Medicine
One commonly used formula is called Yin Qiao San. Taken at the first sign of a cold that involves “warm” symptoms such as fever and sore throat, it jumpstarts the body to start clearing out toxins and prevent further sickness. For more severe sore throat, try Gan Mao Ling, which is also to be used at the first sign of cold and sore throat. For stomach flu, there are many different formulas that you may benefit from; talk to your practitioner about your specific symptoms to find one that is right for your individual situation.
Preventative Health Care
Although we often wait until we feel as if we’ve been hit by a truck to take care of ourselves, the best time to “treat” cold and flu is to PREVENT them from happening in the first place. In Chinese medicine, we prevent colds by treating the protective qi I mentioned above. We do this by inserting needles into particular points on the body known to stimulate this protective force in the body, and by tonifying, or strengthening the body using combinations of herbs like Astragalus root, Siler, and White Atractylodes . This formula is called Jade Windscreen, and if taken over time as a preventative measure, will prevent cold and flu from being able to penetrate the body in the first place. This formula is best if taken in the months before the cold/flu season starts to bolster the body’s protective qi and prepare its defenses for the season ahead, but can certainly be taken during the winter months as well.
The best part about these formulas is that they’re affordable (under $10) and have few, if any side effects. You can take them every few hours and they will not make you feel drowsy, foggy-headed, or unable to concentrate. This is because the herbs treat your constitution, as well as your symptoms. These herbs can be taken in pill form (“patent” form), or your practitioner can personalize an herbal tea for you to drink over the course of a few days.
