Spring is the time of year when coughs are at their peak and are commonly associated with influenza, allergic diseases, and respiratory illnesses. There are many cough medicines available on the market, such as cough syrup, compound licorice tablets, and Chuanbei loquat. Cough medicines are divided into those that nourish Yin, moisten dryness and phlegm, remove cold and clear heat, etc. So how do you choose the right medicine for your cough condition?
How to choose the right medication for cough symptoms?
1. Identifying hot and cold
Wind-heat coughs are more intense and are characterized by a hoarse cough, thick and yellow phlegm, a sore throat, a headache, pronounced thirst, and a runny nose. For a wind-cold cough with an itchy throat, thin and white phlegm, aching limbs, headache, clear runny nose, and nasal congestion, choose a medicine that can disperse wind and cold. As a reminder, whether it is a wind-heat cough or a wind-cold cough, you should not prematurely use herbs with the ability to nourish Yin and astringent lungs to collect astringency. Although they can quickly relieve the symptoms of coughing, they will enclose the external evil in the body and prolong the course of the illness.
2. Listen to the sound
The sound of a cough can determine the type of illness. If the cough sound is heavy and muddy, it suggests a phlegm-damp cough or a wind-cold cough; if the cough sound is high in pitch, the breath is coarse and the cough is frequent, it is most likely a wind-heat cough. If the cough is dry and choking, often accompanied by a dry mouth and throat and no sputum, this suggests that dryness has invaded the body and that you need to choose moistening medication; if the cough sound is low and you sweat easily and are afraid of wind-cold, this suggests a lung deficiency cough.
3. Observe the sputum
A cough with little or no sputum indicates dry heat and yin deficiency; a cough with a lot of sputum indicates deficiency cold, phlegm heat, or phlegm dampness. If there is blood in the sputum or if you cough up rust-colored sputum, this indicates Yin deficiency or Lung heat hurting the meridians, so you may wish to use Nourishing Yin and Clearing Lung Pills or Autumn Pear Paste.
4. Remember the time
If the cough is concentrated in the morning and the cough sounds heavy and muddy and is alleviated after coughing up phlegm, suggesting a phlegm-heat cough or phlegm-damp cough, you may wish to choose Snake Gall and Chen Pi Oral Liquid or Compound Fresh Bamboo Liqueur Liquid; if the coughing symptoms intensify in the evening or late afternoon and the cough sounds slightly short, indicating a dry lung and yin deficiency, you may wish to choose Chuan Bei Lo Pa Lo or Nourishing Yin and Clearing Lung Pills.
5. Look at the illness
A sudden and frequent cough that lasts less than three weeks is usually external. If the cough appears occasionally, is not very violent, and lasts for more than two years, it indicates an internal cough.
Tips
If you are unable to determine this on your own, you will need to be treated by a Chinese medicine practitioner. Pay more attention to climate change and keep warm. Drink plenty of plain water, stay away from fatty, fatty and spicy foods, refuse to smoke or drink alcohol, and do not expose yourself to irritating gases; eat more foods with lung-nourishing properties, such as loquat, lily, yam, and radish. Take part in more exercises to strengthen your resistance; keep massaging the foot at San Li and Ying Xiang points.