Interestingly, treatment often involved spiritual and magical elements, reflecting the belief that illnesses could be caused by evil spirits or divine punishment. Physicians combined physical remedies with prayers and chants to expel the cause of coughing.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)
Traditional Chinese Medicine has an extensive history of treating cough that spans thousands of years. Early Chinese medical texts, such as the “Huangdi Neijing” (Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon) dating to around 200 BCE, describe cough as a symptom of imbalance in the lungs and body’s qi (vital energy).
Herbal remedies were central, with ingredients like licorice root (gan cao), apricot kernels (xing ren), and loquat leaves (pi pa ye) used to moisten the lungs and relieve cough. Acupuncture and moxibustion were also employed to stimulate healing and restore balance.
TCM practitioners categorized coughs based on their qualities (dry, productive, acute, chronic) and underlying causes, tailoring treatment accordingly—a sophisticated approach that resonates with modern personalized medicine. shutdown123