| Healthy living | |
| JANUARY |
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Having a cold? Every one of us has been afflicted with a cold in the past. It is the most common illness for time lost from work or school. In Western medicine, it is just a cold but in TCM the cold is either a wind-heat or a wind-cold one. Symptoms between these two types differ significantly. The wind-cold symptoms are cough with thin clear phlegm, stuffy runny nose with clear mucous, headache, mild fever without sweating, hoarseness of voice, scratchy throat, no thirst, body and joint aching. The wind-heat symptoms are cough with sticky yellow phlegm, runny nose with yellow mucous, headache, high fever, sweating, swollen and painful throat, sneezing and thirst. Usually, any cold starts as a wind-cold flu and within two days changes into a wind-heat cold. According to the specific type of cold, TCM offers a variety of treatments and herbal remedies to soften the symptoms and support the healing process. Wind-cold is often treated with warming and stimulating herbs like ginger, cinnamon twig, coriander, licorice and jujube. TCM recommends drinking a big mug with fresh ginger tea and sweating it out. Herbal remedies for a wind-heat cold usually contain cooling herbs like chrysanthemum flower, lemon balm, white dahlia root or peppermint. In the following passage, two warming and two cooling herbs will be explained in further detail: A warming herb - Cinnamon twig or bark (gui zhi 桂枝)  Everybody knows cinnamon for its use in preparation of Christmas baked goods, cereals or Mediterranean desserts. Besides its delicious sweet taste, cinnamon is an effective remedy in TCM for the wind-cold and several other sicknesses.
The cinnamon plant is domestic in South East Asia, and the herb is nowadays affordable and readily available everywhere. The medical functions and effects of cinnamon are supporting the treatment of wind-cold by:
New studies show that cinnamon also has a significant effect on lowering cholesterol and supporting the treatment of diabetes. Its characteristics are sweet and acrid. It has a warming effect on the body. Channels (Meridians) that are entered are heart, lung, and bladder. A warming herb - Ginger (sheng jiang 生薑)  Ginger is a diverse root for the cure of many illnesses, not only wind-cold. It is also very famous as treatment for nausea and digestion problems. Even early pregnant women can use it to heal morning sickness in the early stages of pregnancy.
The ginger root naturally grows in the regions of India, Malaysia and China. In Europe, it is grown artificially due to the high consumption and need for the root. For the treatment of wind-cold, ginger promotes sweating so that the body can get rid of the evil energies wind and cold. The medical effects of ginger are as follows:
Besides the use in herbal mixtures (prescribed by your doctor), ginger tea is famous as a folk remedy for the wind-cold. We would recommend trying ginger tea with a spoonful of honey. Its characteristics are acrid and warm. Channels (Meridians) that are entered are lung, spleen, and stomach. A cooling herb - Peppermint (bo he 薄荷 )  In the Western world, peppermint is often used in candy, gum and toothpaste to freshen up the mouth. As tea it is a folk remedy used for a cold. In China it is mixed into a remedy for healing wind-heat colds.
Peppermint is native to Europe and Asia. It was brought to North America, and grows wild in moist and warm areas. For the treatment of wind-heat cold, peppermint cools down the body; the medical effects of peppermint are as follows:
Channels (Meridians) that are entered are lung and liver. A cooling herb - White dahlia root (bai shao 白芍)  The white dahlia root is the root of the famous dahlia rose. It is cultivated artificially and has a light whitish color. The root of wild dahlia rose is of a darker color. Both plants have been traditionally used in TCM since 500 A.D.
For the treatment of wind-heat cold, the medical effects of white dahlia root are as follows:
Its characteristics are bitter, sour and it has a cooling effect. Channel (Meridians) that are entered are spleen and liver. If you have questions about these herbs and the treatment with herbal remedies in general, please feel free to contact us. We are very happy to help! For people who recently moved to Shanghai it is important to see a doctor immediately when getting a cold. Your body is not protected against the new forms of bacteria and viruses here. Prevention is best in that case. |
