According to Chinese medical tradition, the Protective Qi(Wei Qi) is closely related to why people get colds. Wei Qi is produced by the digestion of food and water in the stomach (and spleen) and distributed from there to the rest of the body.

Wei Qi warms the tissues under the skin, moistens the skin, controls the opening and closing of pores and nourishes the space between the skin and muscles. But its most important function is the protection of the body from ‘outside invading evils’. If, for example, wind and cold invade the body, wei qi meets the invasion by producing the desire for warmth and raising the body temperature, producing the symptoms of fever. Sweat is emitted, the fever subsides and the invading forces are dispersed. If the invasion is successful however, the patient will fall victim to a cold.

Winter is settling in, and the weather feels colder day by day. After a recent evening of indoor swimming, my husband and I walked to our car through the bitter winds. My husband felt something wrong with his nose and I had pain in my head. We were aware that we might be getting colds. We drove straight to a pharmacy to get some Chinese herbs.

The following cold remedies can be found in a pharmacy near you: kǔ gān chōng jì (苦甘冲剂), yín qiào jiě dú chōng jì (银翘解毒冲剂)and chuān qióng chá diào yǐn (川穹茶调饮) If your symptoms aren’t very severe, these convenient herbs are your best choice. All three of these medicines are made of Chinese herbs and come in pill form to go down easily with water. Kugan chongji is used for general cold symptoms, and also comes as granules or premixed in a bottle. Yinqiaojie du chongji is taken for a light cold with redness, swelling and sore throat. Chuanqiong cha tiao yin should be taken for a light cold with headache.

After getting the herbs, my husband and I felt much better and had soon recovered fully. We plan to practice Taiji in the morning to prevent ourselves from catching cold again.

Survival Chinese: At the Pharmacy
Patient:
我感冒了 wǒ gǎn mào le / I’ve caught a cold.
应该吃什么药? yīng gāi chī shí me yào ? / What medicine should I take?

Doctor:
什么症状? shí me zhèng zhuàng ? / What symptoms do you have?

Patient:
我头疼 wǒ tóu téng / I have a headache.
喉咙疼 hóu lóng téng / I have a sore throat.
流鼻涕 liú bí tì / I have a runny nose.
胸口疼 xiōng kǒu téng / I have a pain in my chest.
咳嗽 ké sòu / I have a cough.

Doctor:
吃中药还是西药？chī zhōng yào hái shì xī yào ？ / Do you prefer Chinese or western medicine?

Patient:
我不要抗生素 wǒ bù yào kàng shēng sù / I don’t want to take antibiotics.

Doctor:
阿司匹林 ā sī pǐ lín / Aspirin
牛黄解毒丸 niú huáng jiě dú wán / bezoar pills
枇杷膏 pí bā gāo / loquat ointment
(an effective sore throat treatment that tastes good too!)

Patient:
这种/些药怎么吃？zhè zhǒng / xiē yào zěn me chī ？/ How do I take this medicine?

Doctor:
一天吃三次 yī tiān chī sān cì ? / three times per day.
一次吃两片 yī cì chī liǎng piàn / two tablets each time.

Also possible:
你最好去医院吧! nǐ zuì hǎo qù yī yuàn bā ! / You’d better go to a hospital!