Brookline Acupuncture: How to Stay Healthy During Cold and Flu Season

In Chinese Medicine, each season is connected to an organ, and the particular qualities of that organ (body functions & emotions ruled by that organ) are dominant during those seasons.

Fall is what we call Lung time.  Lungs control the skin and immune system and its emotion is grief.  People are more susceptible to illnesses (colds/flus), allergies, skin rashes, eczema, psoriasis and also unresolved grief tends to come to the surface around this time.

Chinese medicine uses acupuncture, diet/foods, as well as herbs and supplements to strengthen the Lung to boost the immune system and help process grief.

A commonly used herbal formula for preventing colds and flus is called:  Yu Ping Feng San.  It can also help to prevent allergies.

A great herbal formula to use once you start feeling the signs of a cold (eg. sore throat, aches, etc), is called Yin Qiao San.  It is best taken at the first signs of a cold.  It can prevent the symptoms from progressing in to a full blown cold.

Both of these herbal formulas are great to have in your medicine cabinet at home.  My family and I keep bottles of them in our kitchen cabinet and use them to keep us healthy.

Regular acupuncture treatments can also keep the immune system stealthy to prevent colds.  If regular sessions aren’t realistic for your schedule, it can be very helpful to do a series of treatments back to back just before and during flu and allergy season.