Be cautious with ginger soup for colds, as it might backfire.

People often say that when you catch a cold, drinking a bowl of hot ginger soup, adding more clothes, and sweating it out under a blanket will make you recover the next day. In fact, not all colds are suitable for treating with ginger soup and inducing sweat. Be cautious with ginger soup for colds, as it might do more harm than good.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), based on the nature of the pathogen the patient is affected by, colds are categorized into different types such as wind-cold colds and wind-heat colds. A wind-cold cold is caused by the invasion of wind and cold pathogens, leading to a dysfunction of the lung's Qi. It is more common in the cold autumn and winter seasons, and its main symptoms include a strong aversion to cold, mild fever, no sweating, headache and body aches, nasal congestion with a clear runny nose, coughing with thin, white sputum, no thirst or a preference for warm drinks, and a thin white tongue coating. A wind-heat cold, on the other hand, is caused by the invasion of wind and heat pathogens, leading to a disharmony of the lung's Qi. It is more common in the hot summer season, and its main symptoms include a high fever, a heavy headache, sweating, a sore, red, and swollen throat, coughing with thick or yellow sputum, nasal congestion with a yellow runny nose, a preference for cold drinks, a red tip and sides of the tongue, and a thin white or slightly yellow tongue coating.

Brown Sugar Ginger Soup

For wind-cold colds, TCM mainly uses methods that release the exterior with pungent and warm properties. Drinking hot soups or congee while taking medicine helps induce sweat, which aids in dispelling wind and cold, and supports the body's healthy Qi to expel pathogens. Ginger is a common daily spice that can also be used as a medicine. Its medicinal nature is pungent and warm, capable of inducing sweat, releasing the exterior, dispelling wind, and dispersing cold. Its effect is mild, making it suitable for mild cases of wind-cold colds. If one is affected by wind-cold in the winter, drinking a bowl of hot ginger soup, or simmering it with brown sugar to make ginger water to induce slight sweating, can indeed be effective for treating the cold. However, if it is a wind-heat cold, ginger soup should not be used. This is because in a wind-heat cold, the body is already affected by heat pathogens. Taking a warming herb like ginger at this time is like adding fuel to the fire and will inevitably have the opposite effect. For wind-heat colds, TCM mainly uses methods that release the exterior with pungent and cool properties, and drinks like mint tea can be used as an adjunct treatment.

By the same logic, treating cough with ginger soup also requires syndrome differentiation. For a cough in its early stages, characterized by a severe cough with thin, white sputum, often accompanied by symptoms of a wind-cold cold such as nasal congestion, a clear runny nose, no sweating, and headache/body aches, ginger soup can be used as an adjunct treatment. However, it is not suitable for wind-heat coughs, which feature yellow or sticky sputum, or for chronic, internal injury coughs.

Therefore, treating a cold requires carefully distinguishing between different types based on their specific symptoms and applying treatment according to the syndrome. One must not simply rely on the method of "drinking ginger soup and inducing sweat" for all cases. If you are unsure of the type, you should seek help from a professional doctor.