The common cold and flu are acute viral infections of the upper respiratory tract that typically involve symptoms such as runny nose, cough, headache, joint pain and chills and fever. Conventional medications can help to ease these symptoms, yet cannot resolve them. This is where Chinese medicine excels. Rather than treat every cold with the same medication, Traditional Chinese medicine seeks to understand the person’s overall constitution and how this translates into a particular manifestation of the common cold and flu. For example, a person with a cold whose constitution and primary symptoms are more heat-based (e.g. cold or flu symptoms accompanied with fever, yellow nasal discharge, sore thoat, and a cough with thick yellow sputum) would be treated with a different herbal prescription and acupuncture protocol from someone who suffered from a cold and yet whose constitution is more cold-based (e.g. cold or flu symptoms accompanied by a mild fever, sneezing, clear nasal discharge and an aversion to cold temperatures). Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine can be used not only for treating these symptoms but also as preventative measures by boosting the immune system.
Common anti-viral herbs that are used in conjunction with other herbs to address the common cold and flu include: Woad Root (Ban Lan Gen), Woad Leaf (Da Qing Ye), Forsythia Fruit (Lian Qiao), Honeysuckle Flower (Jin Yin Hua), and Baical Skullcap Root (Huang Qin).
Between acupuncture treatments, massaging acupressure points such as Yintang, LI 4, LI 20, Taiyang and GB 20 can help alleviate symptoms such as headache and nasal congestion. Prevention of cold and flu through proper rest, diet, exercise, and regular hand washing are key components in the fight against these highly contagious infections. In some conditions vaccinations should also be considered.
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