Using tonifying herbs for common cold?

[hyunbb0]

Dear everyone,

I have been out of touch with TCM for a couple years, but I have started to treat someone again. She has got a flu. Do you think if I give her tonifying herbal formula e.g. Shi Quan Da Bu Tang, it is not appropriate? Would it tonify the pathogen? So, I really should wait until all the pathogen has been resolved first before treating her with Shi Quan Da Bu Tang?

[Feng]

No, you can not give a common cold patient the formula of Shi Quan Da Bu Tang. Shi Quan Da Bu Tang is for tonify the patient who has Qi & Blood deficiency also with a Yang deficiency pattern. In TCM, most of the common cold patients are excess condition, you can not use tonify way to do the treatment, you should use sedate way to do the treatment. Because the common cold energy is on the surface of the body, you should use the sedate herbs open the patients surface meridians to let the sick energy go out of the body. If you use tonify herbs formula, it will open the patients internal meridians and make the sick energy go deep of the body and lead the common cold become a internal pattern of illness.

[hyunbb0]

What if she doesn't have signs of heat; and she feels very weak in energy - despite having flu at the same time?

[Feng]

No matter what, you can not use Shi Quan Da Bu Tang on this case. common cold without heat could be on the very beginning of the condition, feel weak is normal feeling of common cold. You must cure the common cold first, increase body energy lately.

[yinyangthang]

Hi hyunbbO,

Can you give us a detailed case study analysis of the patient. Include symptoms of the cold (chills, fever, sweating, headache, dizziness, digestive/appetite/bowels, urination, sore throat), and most importantly, the pulse. Include all 3 positions on both hands. What level do you feel each of them (superficial/middle/deep). The level of the pulse can inform you as to how deep you can treat. The positions of the pathological pulses can also inform you as to which channels are involved, and hence which formula to use (e.g. A thin wiry pulse on the left guan points to Shao Yang, therefore a chai hu-based formula).

Are they always low energy or just now with the cold?