As rainfall decreases and the air becomes drier, this is the time of year when people are most likely to suffer from “autumn dry cough”. For this type of cough, if it is not treated properly, it often lasts for several months and is not cured, and there are no abnormal findings on chest films and other imaging in these patients. If you have a history of allergic rhinitis, at this time, as the autumn breeze tightens, you may also have morning sneezing and coughing at night. Clinically, the use of antimicrobial, antispasmodic and anti-allergic drugs is not effective in these patients, while Chinese medicine can often obtain significant results by clearing dryness and moistening the lung, dispelling wind and promoting pharynx.
For example, a female teacher surnamed Chen, 30 years old, with a history of chronic pharyngitis, had a cough attack in the autumn season, and her cough worsened when she spoke. Therefore, do not take dry cough lightly ……
So, what are the causes of dry cough in autumn?
According to traditional Chinese medicine, the lungs are the main source of qi, which is responsible for respiration, and the main propagation and purification. Once the wind and dryness attack the lungs, the lungs lose moistening, which can easily lead to coughing in the upper lungs (especially for people with chronic pharyngitis or lung deficiency).
Therefore, once a person suffers from cough in autumn, it is necessary to clarify the cause, and for those who have excluded tuberculosis, tumors and other causes, and only belong to dry cough in autumn, we can follow the principle of differentiation and treatment, and adopt the methods of clearing and moistening the throat and warming and dispelling the wind to treat them respectively.
(1) “Warm and dry” cough:
Symptoms include dry cough, choking cough, itchy throat, dry throat, dry mouth and nose, thin, dry tongue with little moss, red tongue, and other “dry” features.
Representative formula: Mulberry and Almond Soup [Wu Jutong’s “Discernment of Warm Diseases”].
Mulberry leaf 10 grams, almond 10 grams, South ginseng 15 grams, Zhe Bei Mu 10 grams, Gardenia 10 grams, Radix Platycodon 5 grams, raw licorice 5 grams.
How to use: Decoction with water, twice a day for 5-7 days.
Effects: Moistening dryness and promoting lung circulation, relieving cough and resolving phlegm.
Mulberry leaf – draining wind and moistening dryness
Almond – moisten the lung and lower the Qi
Southern ginseng – nourishes Yin and moistens the lung
Zhe Bei Mu – resolving phlegm and dispersing knots
Gardenia jasminoides – Clearing heat and relieving irritation
Radix Platycodon grandiflorus – promoting the lung and throat
Licorice – clearing the throat
It is used for dry cough due to dryness injury to the lung and loss of moistening of the lung.
Example: A patient with dry cough in autumn had a cough characterized by “dryness”, such as dry cough, itchy pharynx and dry mouth and lips.
(2) “Cool and dry” cough:
Symptoms: thin cough and sputum, dry mouth and lips, fear of cold, nasal congestion, dry and moist tongue, and other characteristics of both “dryness” and coldness, mostly seen in late autumn.
Representative formula: Apricot-Su San [Wu Jutong’s “Discernment of Warm Diseases”].
Su Ye 10 grams, Thornbush 10 grams, Almond 10 grams, Chen Pi 6 grams, Aster 10 grams, Qian Hu 10 grams, Bai Bu 10 grams, Ginger 5 grams, Jujube 10 grams.
How to use: Decoction with water, take 2 times daily for 5-7 days.
Effects: Lightly promoting cold and dryness, resolving phlegm and relieving cough.
Indications: External cold and dryness, headache, cold and wind, cough with thin phlegm, nasal congestion, white fur and string veins, etc.
Su Ye – evacuating wind and dispelling cold.
Almond-moistening the lung and lowering Qi.
Chen Pi-Regulating Qi and resolving phlegm.
Aster-warming and relieving cough.
Preceding Hu – promoting the lung and relieving cough
Radix Bupleurum – moistens the lung and suppresses cough
Ginger-warming and dispersing wind and cold.
Jujube – warming and nourishing the lung.
This formula is used for coughs that are both dry and cold due to cold and dry lung injury and loss of lung circulation.
Example: I met a patient with a cold and dry cough, who had a cough characterized by dryness, such as thin phlegm, fear of wind and cold, cough when cold, itchy throat and dry lips, etc. Many cough suppressant, anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic drugs were ineffective.
In addition to taking herbal medicines, you can also choose to eat autumn lung moistening fruits according to your own constitution;
Pear – moistening the lung and relieving cough.
Grapes – moisten the lung and dispel rheumatism.
Sugar cane – moisten the lung and promote the production of body fluid.
Citrus – moisten the lung and dissolve phlegm.
lung moistening foods: such as silver fungus, lily, white radish, water chestnut, fresh lotus root, yam, etc..
You can also make some homemade lung and throat remedies to prevent and control autumn dry cough has a positive effect.
(1) Mulberry leaf and chrysanthemum tea.
Take 10 grams of mulberry leaves, 10 grams of chrysanthemum, 10 grams of green fruit, washed and dried, put in a cup of boiling water and steeped for 20 minutes, drink as tea in portions. With moistening and pharyngeal effect, can be used for chronic pharyngitis patients with chronic cough, itchy throat, dry throat, sore throat in autumn.
(2) saxifrage lily porridge.
Take 15 grams of ginseng, 10 grams of almonds, 15 grams of lilies, wash and wrap with gauze, boil with 100 grams of round-grained rice into a porridge, remove the bag of medicine, can be eaten, served twice a day.
It has the effect of nourishing Yin and moistening lung, removing dryness and stopping cough, and is suitable for chronic dry cough, dry lips and dry tongue.
(3) five juice drink.
Take 30 grams of white radish, 1 snow pear (remove the core), 30 grams of fresh lotus root, 30 grams of water chestnut, 30 grams of sugar cane, squeeze the juice with a pulp press, mix and eat, 30 ml each time, drink 2-3 times a day.
It has the function of moistening lung and nourishing yin, removing dryness and stopping cough, and is suitable for those with yin deficiency, dry and itchy throat, dry lips and nose, sputum as sticky as silk, or even blood in sputum.
(4) Ginger and date drink.
5 grams of ginger, 10 grams of jujube, 10 grams of aster, add water to decoction, remove the dregs, add 30 ml of honey and drink twice a day. It has the effect of warming the lung and moistening dryness to stop cough, and is suitable for those who have dry cough for a long time, aggravated by cold, stuffy nose and fear of wind in late autumn.
(5) Radish and yam stew with black bone chicken soup.
Take 30 grams of white radish, 30 grams of yam, black bone chicken (remove the hair and internal organs, wash) 1, add the right amount of water stew until the chicken rotten, add the right amount of salt to eat. With lung and spleen, cough and phlegm effect, but also for the elderly cough, coughing, short of breath and weakness.
(6) Snow pear cough cream.
Take 100 grams of fresh lily, 100 grams of silver fungus, 3 autumn pears, 60 grams of yucca, 60 grams of white radish, 100 grams of southern ginseng, 60 grams of fresh lotus root, 50 grams of Chuanbei mother, 50 grams of orange red, 60 grams of walnut flesh, 100 grams of almonds, the above medicine with water decoction 3 times, remove the slag and take the juice, add the appropriate amount of rock sugar, honey slowly close the paste, 2-3 tablespoons each time, served 2 times a day. It has the function of nourishing yin and moistening the lung, producing fluid and phlegm, stopping cough and moistening dryness, and is suitable for all kinds of chronic and prolonged cough and yin deficiency and lung dryness.
Precautions.
In the diet and living also need to regimen, because the autumn chronic dry cough is mostly due to yin deficiency loss of moistening, diet should be as little as possible to eat spicy food: pepper, chili pepper, leek, garlic, onion, star anise, fennel and other spicy food, condiments, as well as hot pot, frying and baking, etc., so as not to aggravate the symptoms of autumn dryness; people with a history of allergies crab and seafood should not be eaten, so as not to cause allergies to cough. In addition, because of the increased temperature difference in autumn, it is important to pay attention to climate change in time to prevent cold-induced cough. Of course, for the autumn cold should also comply with the “spring cover autumn freeze” principle of health, should not wear too much clothing too early, need to moderate cold exercise, enhance the ability to prevent sensation.