Cough can be divided into cough with lung heat and cough with lung cold. The causes, symptoms, and treatments for these two types of coughs are different. When treating a cough with your own medicine, you should be careful to distinguish whether it is a cough with lung heat or a cough with lung cold. 1. In terms of the cause. Lung-heat coughs are caused by wind-heat entering the body and rebellious lung qi. Smoking, drinking and eating spicy foods can lead to rebellious lung qi. A cold lung cough, on the other hand, is caused by catching a cold. Hot lung cough is most common in warm climates and regions. In contrast, lung-cold coughs tend to occur in colder seasons and regions. 2. In terms of symptoms. Patients with lung-heat cough have a yellowish runny nose, thicker sputum than those with lung-cold cough, thicker yellow tongue coating, and lighter cough symptoms at night than during the day. In contrast, a lung-cold cough has clear runny nose, thinner sputum, no sweating, a fever and headache, and a throat that feels itchy. 3. From the treatment method. Patients with lung-heat cough need to take medicines containing substances such as ephedra, licorice and almond. Patients with lung-cold cough, on the other hand, need to take medicines containing substances such as perilla and semen. These medicines evacuate wind and disperse cold, which are suitable for treating lung-cold cough, but not so suitable for treating lung-heat cough. These are some of the differences between the two types of coughs. After determining which one you have based on the difference in symptoms, please use the medicine promptly. If you cannot be cured for a long time, please go to a regular hospital for consultation.