Recently, the number of seasonal flu cases has increased. With the motto “prevention is better than cure”, each person can improve their health by keeping the surrounding environment clean and using simple methods.
Seasonal flu with symptoms of fever, cough, runny nose... - Illustration: ABC NEWS
From the perspective of Oriental medicine, doctors of the Department of Traditional Medicine, Bach Mai Hospital have shared tips for preventing flu that are easy to implement and apply, helping people improve their health.
What is seasonal flu?
Seasonal influenza (influenza A, B) according to traditional medicine is an "epidemic" of the "epidemic pathology" theory and is called "cold and warm disease". Seasonal influenza is a contagious external disease that spreads rapidly in the community.
The main cause is exposure to "epidemic" factors, which often appear seasonally (epidemic season) in late winter and early spring. In addition, unusual weather is also a favorable condition for the disease to develop.
According to the principles of traditional medicine, along with clinical and paraclinical manifestations of the disease, it shows that the cause of seasonal flu is in the "lung" organ (respiratory system), the attribute of the cause of the disease is "low toxicity" (epidemic factors in a humid environment).
Depending on each person's vital energy or combined with other causes such as heat, dampness, phlegm... the time of onset, many types of disease and severity of the disease vary clinically.
Preventing seasonal flu according to traditional medicine
With the motto "prevention is better than cure", each person needs to improve their health and keep the surrounding environment clean.
To do this, traditional medicine methods are very effective. Some methods to prevent seasonal flu that people can easily apply are as follows:
Environmental sanitation (home, workplace):
Ingredients: Use medicinal herbs containing essential oils: lemongrass, lemon, cinnamon, coriander, grapefruit, cajeput, fresh ginger, oregano, perilla, soapberry... or essential oil preparations of these medicinal herbs.
How to use: You can use one type of medicinal herb or a combination of many types of medicinal herbs, each type from 100 - 400g depending on the type of medicinal herb and room area.
Put the herbs in the pot, add enough water to cover the herbs, cover the pot, bring to a simmer, open the lid to let the steam saturate the essential oil and diffuse into the room. Continue to simmer for another 30 minutes, close the door for about 20 minutes. Do this twice a day, morning and afternoon.
Note: Do not use essential oils in bedrooms with children under 30 months old, children with fever and a history of febrile convulsions, epilepsy, or people allergic to the above herbs.
Personal hygiene
Steaming: Use a pot to boil leaves with essential oils or other essential oils, cover your face and steam for about 15 - 20 minutes. Leaves with essential oils can be chosen: piper lolot leaves, betel leaves, tea leaves, five-color leaves, eucalyptus leaves, garlic, lemongrass, soapberry, ginger, grapefruit leaves... Essential oils can be chosen from eucalyptus essential oil, peppermint essential oil, lemongrass essential oil...
Steam inhalation into the nose, throat and lungs is an ideal solution to neutralize the virus infection in the early stages of infection, when the virus is localized in the nose, mouth, throat, and even the lungs but has not yet entered the blood.
High temperatures will attack viruses and prevent them from replicating.
Mouthwash: Take 10g of basil and boil with 200ml of water, use as a mouthwash twice a day, early in the morning and before going to bed.
Wash your nose and gargle with saline solution daily.
How to treat cough and sore throat
According to traditional medicine, garlic soaked in honey treats coughs and sore throats.
Honey-soaked garlic treats coughs and sore throats - Photo: BVCC
Ingredients: 200ml honey, 30g garlic (equivalent to 30 cloves of garlic), 1 300ml glass jar.
How to make: Peel the garlic, crush or chop it finely and leave it in the air for about 10 minutes, then put it in a glass jar containing 200ml of honey. Soak for 2 weeks before using. If you need to use it right away, steam the garlic honey mixture for 20 minutes.
Note: Although garlic has strong antibiotic properties, it is only effective for sore throats caused by viruses, allergies, or other non-infectious causes. Do not give honey to children under 1 year old or to people with diarrhea or bloating.
The above methods of environmental hygiene, personal hygiene, traditional medicine, exercise... are all aimed at preventing and treating mild diseases.
In the following cases, you need to go to the hospital immediately: high fever continuously above 39 degrees Celsius, not responding to antipyretics or convulsions; difficulty breathing, rapid breathing; or abnormal breathing, chest pain or severe muscle pain, purple lips and cold extremities; lethargy, fatigue, poor appetite, vomiting a lot...
In particular, the elderly over 65 years old, patients with chronic diseases such as chronic lung disease, chronic asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, people with diabetes, liver, kidney, heart disease, pregnant women, people with immunodeficiency...
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/cach-phong-benh-cum-don-gian-theo-y-hoc-co-truyen-ai-cung-lam-duoc-20250211164432279.htm
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