Treating sore throat in summer with Oriental medicine

The throat is the crossroads between the digestive tract and the respiratory tract, the gateway for air, food and water. Therefore, the throat is a very convenient place for foreign factors, viruses and bacteria to enter the body and cause disease.

In the summer, hot and humid weather combined with living and eating habits... can easily damage the throat mucosa such as taking cold showers many times a day, eating ice cream, drinking ice water, eating cold foods, using air conditioning incorrectly, the temperature difference between the air-conditioned room and the outside environment is too large, letting the fan blow directly into the throat, sweat seeping into the body causing a cold, swimming with chemicals from the pool water causing sore throat, especially sleeping in the air-conditioned room with deep cold and causing dry throat inflammation... all can be the cause of sore throat.

Symptoms of pharyngitis.

1. Common types of pharyngitis

MSc. Dr. Nguyen Quang Duong - Head of Oncology Department, Tue Tinh Hospital said that sore throat has many forms, including:

- Acute pharyngitis: The disease can occur in both adults and children, often with sudden onset causing acute inflammation of the entire mucous membrane of the throat. Patients often cough, have difficulty swallowing, and can have a high fever of 39-40 degrees Celsius, especially in children.

- Chronic pharyngitis includes:

+ Simple chronic pharyngitis with congestion: Examination of the throat shows red mucosa and many prominent blood capillaries.

+ Chronic exudative pharyngitis: The pharyngeal mucosa is also red and congested but has increased secretion and is slightly sticky to the mucosa.

+ Chronic hypertrophic pharyngitis: The throat mucosa is red and thick. The lymphatic tissue in the back wall of the throat develops strongly, overgrowth into large and small irregular patches, pink or red in color. Sometimes concentrated into a raised strip at the back and along the back pillar of the tonsils, looking like a second back pillar called a "false pillar", also known as granular pharyngitis.

+ Atrophic pharyngitis: The pharyngeal mucosa gradually atrophies, making the pharyngeal mucosa pale, dry, and forming thin, yellow, dry scales that stick together in clusters. The posterior pillars also atrophy, making the throat wider. Atrophic pharyngitis is often occupational pharyngitis or occurs in the elderly.

Myrobalan - a medicinal herb for treating sore throat in summer.

Pharyngitis is characterized by a painful swelling of the throat, the patient always feels itchy in the throat, and likes to spit. Then, if evil spirits invade the blood, it will cause fever or excessive phlegm secretion. More serious is the condition of painful throat, difficulty eating and swallowing, red swollen throat, red uvula, heat accumulates, causing the tongue to be red or pale pink.

The throat is the gateway to the lungs, where many meridians pass through, with the task of protecting the lungs from invading allergens. When the throat is invaded by external pathogens, there will be a conflict between the righteous and the evil qi, causing fever, sore throat and swelling...

According to traditional medicine, sore throat is caused by external wind and heat inside the body. Chronic sore throat is caused by long-term heat and phlegm that damages the lung qi and causes the disease...

Pressing the Dan Trung point helps treat sore throat.

2. Oriental medicine methods to treat sore throat

According to Master, Doctor Nguyen Quang Duong, to treat sore throat, Traditional Medicine uses methods to treat wind, clear heat, dissolve phlegm, and nourish yin and generate body fluids.

Drug use:

- For acute pharyngitis, with symptoms of red throat, dry and sore throat, slightly swollen throat mucosa with fever and headache: Treatment is to relieve wind, clear heat, and dissolve phlegm.

- For chronic pharyngitiswith symptoms of dry throat, feeling uncomfortable, throat mucosa has pale red congested spots with scattered lymphocytes (granular pharyngitis): Treatment method is to nourish lung yin, dissolve phlegm. Can use "Nhi tran thang" to treat chronic pharyngitis with a lot of phlegm...

Or we can divide the types of pharyngitis according to the cause of the disease, such as pharyngitis due to weak vital energy, using the formula "Bo trung ich khi thang gia giam" or pharyngitis due to weak spleen and liver depression, using the combination of "Quy ty thang" and "Tieu dao tan" to treat...

Some herbs that are effective in improving sore throat include xạ can, kha tu, mulberry, mint, cát cánh, kumquat, lemon basil...

Some good medicinal dishes for people with sore throats include burdock root powder, watermelon juice, Chinese yam bark decoction, steamed pear with honey, green banana with salt and pepper...

Non-drug measures:

Besides drug measures, non-drug measures such as acupressure massage, using foods that are effective in treating sore throat... are quite effective in supporting the treatment of sore throat.

Watermelon juice relieves sore throat.

Stimulating some acupoints that affect the throat can help reduce inflammation in the throat mucosa such as liet khuyet, da ling, dan trung, thai uyen, xich trach, phong tri, dai chuy, phong long, kun lon... Use your fingers to massage the acupoints for 2 minutes until you feel tension.

Foods can also make sore throats better and vice versa. In general, soft and nutritious foods are good for sore throats. Patients should eat porridge and soups such as: pork porridge, beef porridge, chicken soup, stewed chicken soup, vegetable broth, etc.

Vegetable and fruit smoothies are rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, helping to supplement nutrition and strengthen the immune system for patients who are tired due to illness or fever. Smoothies are also a liquid drink that is easy to swallow, making them ideal for use when you have a sore throat.

On the contrary, people with sore throat should avoid eating dry, hard, solid, spicy foods, cold foods, ice, drinking alcohol, beer, smoking cigarettes, tobacco, etc.

3. Preventing sore throat in summer

MSc. Dr. Nguyen Quang Duong notes the following to prevent sore throat in the summer:

- Hot weather often causes thirst, so you have to drink a lot of water. However, if the water is low temperature, the temperature difference when drinking will cause irritation of the throat and larynx mucosa, causing inflammation. Therefore, when using food, be careful not to let it get too cold, especially for people with allergies.

- In summer, it is necessary to keep the neck warm when using air conditioning at temperatures below 26 degrees Celsius. If the air conditioner is not cleaned regularly, it will be a favorable factor for fungi to grow and spread into the air in the house. When the throat mucosa is weakened, fungi will cause pharyngitis.

- Summer is the dry and hot season, so dust can easily spread into the air in large areas. Therefore, you should use proper labor protection when working in environments polluted with dust or chemicals.

- Wear a mask when going out. Strengthen your body's resistance by not staying up late, having a balanced, adequate, and reasonable diet, and doing appropriate physical exercise...