Colds & Flu

TCM subdivides colds and flu into 3 types: Cold / Hot / Damp. Cold type is predominantly associated with chills, muscle aches and sneezing. Hot type with sore throat and high temperature and Damp type with digestive upset. Over the centuries TCM has evolved effective strategies for dealing with each of these categories. In each case energy should be conserved and heavy meals avoided with soup being preferred.

Cold - Cover up, drink lots of ginger tea.
Nepeta +12
Chuan Xiong Cha Tiao San - where headaches predominate.
Heat - Drink mint or chrysanthemum tea.
Forsythia +8
Damp - For upset stomachs chicken stock with ginger is useful.
Perilla Leaf +11