[최승용 함소아한의원 원장] Most growing children have weak respiratory and digestive systems. This is because viral colds often last a long time, and in the case of the digestive system, gastrointestinal problems can easily occur due to the high activity and energy consumption required for growth. Therefore, when cold or rhinitis symptoms worsen, digestive symptoms such as abdominal pain and diarrhea often appear together.
The most common cold symptom along with digestive symptoms is the ‘eating’ symptom. Our firefighters move in a rhythm of emptying and filling in such a way that when the upper side is full, the lower side is empty, and when the upper side is empty, the lower side is full . When the rhythm is broken or tired, the stomach becomes tight, called sikjeok. When phagocytosis occurs, the stomach itself moves upwards.
|
It raises and puts stress on the respiratory system. In this case, there may be a lot of phlegm or a stuffy nose, but if you abuse antibiotics or anti-inflammatory drugs at this time, you will put more burden on your stomach, leading to a vicious cycle where your system respiratory. gets worse again. This is a representative reason to consider digestive symptoms in children’s cold treatment.
In particular, children who catch colds repeatedly or who do not recover need to look at the digestive system, because if the stomach is uncomfortable, the immunity is also lowered. Children often eat a lot compared to their body size, because running, laughing and talking all day uses up a lot of energy and their desire for growth is strong. There are many children who eat food at any time of the day, and it is common to have an extremely strong appetite before going to bed, and they also only find sweet food, and can create accumulated problems in the child’s stomach. Therefore, oriental medicine prescribes medicines that do not burden the stomach while relieving respiratory symptoms when treating colds in children. Also, in the case of fever, the priority of treatment is to treat the body and help circulation throughout the body rather than cooling.
In addition, mental stress also greatly affects immunity. In particular, during the new semester, during the period of adaptation to a new environment, or when a younger sibling is born and feels a sense of loss, symptoms that differ from the usual cold pattern may appear . First of all, fever becomes common. There are also children who say that their head and legs hurt, and that the pain throughout the body comes often. In this case, control that helps psychological stability and sleep takes more than half of the cold treatment.
Finally, you should also look out for cases where the inside of your nose is dry and dry. Children who have been taking cold medicine to dry their runny nose for a long time often have a dry, sticky and itchy nose. In this case, it is easy for a cold to lead to chronic rhinitis if the treatment to restore the most appropriate mucosal moisture is not treated, rather than the treatment to catch a runny nose or cough.
In oriental medicine, cold treatment also takes into account the child’s physical makeup. Children who are constitutionally energetic are busier, smarter, and change their emotions quickly. In this case, long-term treatment for a cold can further promote this phenomenon, leading to eye congestion, sore throat, nose stuff, headache, and itching all around. the neck etc. may appear. In this case, if a cold persists for more than two weeks, it is useful to prescribe a restorative medicine such as Yukmijihwangtang.
At home, it is important to allow children to drink water often to protect their stomach from frequent colds. Children often do not feel thirsty. Water is important for the respiratory system, and the habit of drinking cold water should be avoided. This is because immunity is likely to drop as the stomach cools. It’s good if parents tell you to ‘drink water’ often enough to be slightly annoying. Also, when you have a cold, it’s good to stop drinking milk. The nature of milk is cold and wet, so phlegm and a runny nose tend to last longer.
Make sure you have enough time to fast before going to bed. You can sleep on an empty stomach and it is good for immunity. After waking up, wear a neck towel and socks to warm the neck and feet to help maintain respiratory health. If possible, instead of using frequent antibiotics and antipyretics for colds, the immune system will be stronger if you can overcome the fever on your own.
