There are many people with colds and coughs these days, and the cough often lingers and is difficult to heal. Its characteristic is that it is triggered by an itch. A scratchy throat and cough is a common clinical symptom. In the early or late stages of a cold, a sore throat may not be obvious, but a scratchy throat is, and the cough starts as soon as it itches!
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), this is seen as a manifestation of lingering Wind Evil. The TCM principle states, "Warm Evil attacks from above, and the Lungs are the first to be affected." "Warm Evil" is what is commonly known as Wind-Heat cold in the south. However, people in the south often have deficient constitutions, so the heat is not usually obvious (the sore throat is not severe), and it is more often accompanied by Cold Evil. This means the cold is usually caused by exposure to cold or wind. When there is a sore throat, it is often accompanied by the symptom of a scratchy throat.
Garlic is white in color and enters the Lung meridian. Its nature and flavor are pungent and warm, making it excellent at expelling Wind Evil from the Lung meridian. Therefore, it often has remarkable effects in treating coughs accompanied by a scratchy throat! Its usage is as follows; all have been tested and proven effective. Just choose one!Method 1: The simplest method is to buy a peeled clove of garlic, hold it in your mouth, and bite it gently from time to time. Once the garlic flavor is released, swallow it slowly. One clove should be held for an hour, and the scratchy throat will immediately lessen, and the cough can be cured.
Method 2: Take a dozen or so garlic cloves, pound them into a paste and place them in a cup. Add an appropriate amount of rock sugar and pour in boiling water. Drink it warm like tea once a day. For severe coughs, drink it twice a day. This remedy has a special effect for quickly stopping coughs and resolving phlegm.
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Method 3: Steamed garlic water: For a child's cough and wheezing, use 2-3 cloves of garlic; for an adult, use 7-8 cloves. Crush them and place them in a bowl, covering the bowl with a lid. Then, steam it in a pot. Bring the water to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low heat and steam for 15 minutes. For severe cases, this can be done three times a day. You can eat the garlic or just drink the water. The next time you make garlic water, add rock sugar: one piece for a child, two for an adult. Garlic is warm in nature and enters the Spleen, Stomach, and Lung meridians. Folk medicine often uses garlic to treat coughs, bronchitis, asthma, and tuberculosis.
Method 4: Boil garlic with rock sugar and water to drink. For a child's cold and cough, the effect is much better than getting a shot or taking medicine. Use 30 grams of garlic, 10 grams of rock sugar, and 200 ml of water. First, bring the water to a boil over high heat, then simmer over low heat for a few minutes, until it is reduced to a small bowl's worth for the child to drink. When a child's cough is severe, drink it three times a day (morning, noon, and night). It will be effective the next day and the cough will be gone in three days. [NextPage]
Method 5: Boil ginger, garlic, and brown sugar water: If the cough and wheezing are severe, with a large amount of thin, white sputum, it indicates a heavy invasion of Cold. While eating the above food remedies, also drink water boiled with ginger, garlic, and brown sugar. For a child, use 3 slices of ginger, 3 cloves of garlic, and half a spoon of brown sugar. For an adult, use 7-8 slices of ginger, 7-8 cloves of garlic, and one spoon of brown sugar. Place the ingredients in a pot with water, cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. For severe cases, this can be done three times a day.
Method 6: Take three or four heads of garlic, peel them, and slice each clove thinly. Before going to bed at night, arrange the sliced garlic cloves around the edge of a stove to roast them. By the next morning, the slices should be basically dry and yellow, but be careful not to let them become charred and black. Then, use a rolling pin to grind the dried garlic slices into a fine powder—the finer, the better. Scoop a tablespoon of the garlic powder into a teacup, add a little brown sugar, pour in boiling water, stir well, and drink it. Drink one or two teacups a day for two or three consecutive days, and the cough will be cured.
Method 7: Mash garlic cloves into a paste and fill an empty medicine bottle. Point the bottle's opening at your nose and try to inhale the pungent smell of the garlic. You can do this 4-5 times a day depending on your condition. Once the pungent smell fades, replace it with fresh garlic paste. The bottle should not be too large, just big enough to fit over both nostrils. Alternatively, you can peel and wash several garlic cloves, place them in a large jar filled with honey, seal the lid, and let them soak for about a week. Then, take them out and eat them.
Method 8: Applying garlic to the soles of the feet to treat coughs. This method is for dealing with "internal heat" (上火), coughs, etc. Every night before bed, wash your feet thoroughly, cut a garlic clove into thin slices, and apply them to the Yongquan acupoint on the sole of your foot (located at one-third the distance up from the heel). Secure them with medical tape. Because garlic can irritate the skin, the application time should not be too long, so it's best to remove them in the morning. This method has a certain effect on coughs, nosebleeds, and constipation. Continuous application for 7-10 days will yield better results. A small number of people may develop blisters on the area where the garlic is applied. It is recommended to stop the application at this time, wait for the blisters to break and the skin to heal, and then reapply. Generally, this will prevent the blisters from recurring.