Summer dampness cold and summer heat cold

Everyone may have discovered that the probability of catching a cold in summer is actually much higher than that in winter. This is mainly because summer colds are not just one type of cold. There are many reasons that can cause people to catch a cold in summer. Summer heat colds are two of them. The causes of these two types of colds are completely different, and everyone should distinguish them. So, what is the difference between a summer-heat cold and a summer-damp cold?

Summer cold symptoms

Colds that occur in summer generally include heat colds, summer-heat colds, and wind-cold colds.

1. Heat cold characterized by coughing with thick sputum and runny nose

Summer heat colds often begin with nasopharyngeal symptoms, with patients experiencing itchy and uncomfortable nasopharyngeal areas, nasal congestion, runny nose, headache, fear of wind, etc. The nasal discharge is clear watery at first, and becomes thicker after 2 to 3 days, followed by fever, cough, sore throat, heaviness and discomfort in the joints, etc. The course of a fever cold is 3 to 7 days. Heat colds occur all year round.

2. Summer heat cold is characterized by sweating without fever

The humidity in southern my country is relatively high, especially in summer. If a heat cold is mixed with humidity, it will form a summer-heat and dampness cold. The higher the humidity, the more susceptible the human body is to external pathogens and infection. Summer-heat and dampness colds only appear in midsummer. Its main clinical symptoms are: the fever increases significantly in the afternoon every day, the fever does not decrease after sweating, dizziness, heaviness and fatigue, irritability and dry mouth, chest tightness and nausea, yellow and greasy tongue coating, and small amount of yellow urine.

3. Wind-heat cold

Wind-heat exogenous infection often occurs in spring and summer. Spring is windy and the climate turns warmer, so wind and heat often coexist to cause illness; in summer, it is hot and stuffy outside and relatively cool inside, and the indoor and outdoor temperatures are uncertain, which also makes it easy to get sick. The main symptoms are worsening fever, headache, red, swollen, dry and painful throat, nasal congestion and yellow mucus, cough with sticky or yellow sputum, thirst and desire to drink, and fear of wind. The tip of the tongue is red, the tongue coating is thin yellow; the pulse is floating and rapid. It may also aggravate acne on the head and face, constipation, etc.

Treatment of summer colds

Because cold symptoms are classified differently, the treatments are also different. Only by understanding the types of summer colds can we prescribe the right medicine and cure the disease as soon as possible.

1. Summer heat cold

The therapy of clearing heat and promoting body fluid is adopted. Commonly used Chinese patent medicines include summer heat cold granules, cooling granules and Yinhuang injection, etc. Main prescription: Wang’s Qingshu Yiqi Decoction. Prescription: American ginseng, bamboo leaves, coptis root, dendrobium, ophiopogon, anemarrhena, licorice, japonica rice, lotus stem, and watermelon rind.

2. Summer heat and dampness cold

The main prescriptions used are those that clear away heat and dampness. Common Chinese patent medicines include Qushu Pills, Shushi Cold Granules, Jinyi Qushu Pills, Huoxiang Zhengqi Pills, Qingshu Yiqi Pills and Xiaoer Shuganning Syrup. Main prescription: Huoxiang Zhengqi Pills. Prescriptions: Patchouli, Poria, Citrus grandiflora peel, Perilla leaf, Angelica dahurica, Tangerine peel, Platycodon grandiflorum, Atractylodes macrocephala, Magnolia bark, Pinellia ternata, Licorice, etc.

The treatment mainly focuses on penetrating the surface with pungent and cool properties, clearing away heat and detoxifying. Common Chinese patent medicine preparations include antiviral oral liquid, Isatis root granules, Yinqiao Jiedu tablets, Niuhuang Jiedu tablets, and Fangganbaobao. Main formula: Yinqiao Powder. Prescription: Forsythia, honeysuckle, platycodon, mint, bamboo leaves, raw licorice, schizonepeta spicate, light black beans, and burdock seeds. Three soups for treating wind-heat colds are: mint porridge, mulberry, chrysanthemum and mint drink, and steamed pear with Fritillaria and Adenophora. They are easy to prepare and have good therapeutic effects.

It is easy to catch a cold in midsummer, and prevention is the key. Here are a few small details in life that can help you prevent it easily.

1. Pass

After getting up in the morning, open the windows in time to breathe fresh air outside while keeping the indoor air circulating.

2. Wash

Wash your face with cold water in the morning and soak your feet in hot water at night. Doing this for a long time can promote blood circulation and improve your body's resistance.

3. Move

After getting up every morning, jog for a quarter of an hour and do morning exercises to strengthen your physical fitness and increase your body's immunity.

4. Rinse

Rinsing your mouth with light salt water and tea every morning and evening can kill the cold virus in your mouth and keep your mouth clean and hygienic.

5. Wear

Add clothes in time according to the seasonal climate and weather forecast, and don't force yourself.

6. Smell

In summer, prepare a bottle of aged vinegar or white wine, open the lid and smell it frequently, which can refresh your mind and effectively prevent colds.

7. Smoked

Heat the aged vinegar, close the doors and windows, and fumigate the room every two weeks to effectively kill cold viruses and microorganisms.

To prevent summer colds, you should always have the following commonly used Chinese patent medicines at home.

1. Cold and fever granules

Fangfeng relieves exterior symptoms, clears away heat and detoxifies, and is used for wind-heat colds.

2. Yinqiao Jiedu Tablets

Fangfeng clears away heat and relieves exterior symptoms, and is used for wind-heat colds.

3. Huoxiang Zhengqi Soft Capsule

It can dispel dampness from the exterior, regulate Qi and harmonize the middle. It is used for symptoms such as headache, heaviness of breath, abdominal distension, vomiting and diarrhea caused by exogenous wind-cold and internal injury and dampness.

4. Isatis root granules

Clears away heat and detoxifies, used for wind-heat cold, fever, sore throat and cold.

Please take the above drugs according to the doctor's advice or relevant instructions. It is forbidden to take them without authorization and pay attention to the side effects of the drugs!