Hello! I'm Shin Jeong Won, doctor at Tong-in Korean Medicine Clinic. 😊
As we entered winter, Korea has seen a sharp rise in cold and flu cases. According to reports, this year’s flu cases are about three times higher than last year’s and are projected to reach the highest level in the past decade. 😢
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people in Korea experienced how herbal medicines like Galgeun-tang and Eungyo-san helped relieve symptoms. Even after COVID ended, more people continue visiting Korean medicine clinics for cold symptoms or inquiring about herbal cold remedies.
Now, just as people say "Give me ibuprofen" at pharmacies, many patients naturally remember and request somewhat difficult herbal medicine names at Korean medicine clinics—"I'll take Galgeun-tang" or "Eungyo-san, please!"
As the weather got colder, I—a Korean medicine doctor myself—caught a cold last month. 🤧
So today, I'll share my personal experience with treating a cold and Korean medicine methods for overcoming a cold in 3 days! 😊
Top 3 Herbal Medicines: Korean Cold Essentials
The key to herbal medicine treatment is that prescriptions consider not just 'symptoms' but also your overall condition—stamina, digestion, sleep, and more.
This is the biggest difference from Western medicine, and the most effective herbal medicine can vary depending on each situation!
🍵 Galgeun-tang – Early-Stage Cold with Chills & Muscle Pain
One of the most beloved herbal medicines during COVID. About 2 hours after taking Galgeun-tang(갈근탕), you'll break a light sweat and feel that neck stiffness melt away.
Also, if you take it at the first sign of a cold, it can help prevent the symptoms from progressing into full-body aches. 😌
When to Take
- Within 0-24 hours of cold onset
- Initial stage with "chills + stiff shoulders/neck"
- When you feel cold, shivery, and body aches coming on
- When you have little to no sweat and feel beaten-up muscle soreness
Key Ingredients
- Kudzu root, ephedra, cinnamon twig, peony, licorice: Relax muscle tension and induce gentle sweating to release heat
Patients Who May Benefit
- People with naturally low body temperature and getting cold easily
- Those whose body aches hit first in early colds
- Patients complaining of shoulder/neck stiffness
- Not suitable for severe cold symptoms; brief use in early body-ache colds
🍵 Eungyo-san – The Early-Stage Throat Inflammation Fighter 🔥
One of my personal favorites for throat colds! When the weather turns cold, and my throat feels scratchy, I take Eungyo-san preemptively. By the next day, symptoms subside and don't worsen.
For patients with these symptoms, I also recommend sipping warm honey water frequently to help prevent throat dryness! 😌
When to Take
- When your throat hurts first (prickling, painful when swallowing)
- When you feel a low-grade fever or heat sensation
- When your throat is dry and scratchy, but your runny nose and cough aren't severe
Key Ingredients
- Honeysuckle (金銀花) + Forsythia (連翹): Powerful antiviral and anti-inflammatory effects
- Mint, burdock seed: Reduce throat heat sensation
- Soybean, schizonepeta: Gently cool early fever, improve circulation, and reduce membrane swelling from inflammation through diuretic action
Patients Who May Benefit
- Easily run fevers and have dry-type constitutions
- Symptoms begin with throat irritation after fatigue or poor sleep
🍵 Ssanghwa-tang – Best for Energy Restoration
Because Ssanghwa-tang helps with chronic inflammatory fatigue, it's also widely used as a tonic.
When I was young, I always took a combination of cold medicine with Ssanghwa-tang for a cold. These days, I don't do that—I take it when the cold is basically gone! As the final 'finishing touch.'
When to Take
- When your cold/body aches are mostly gone, but your energy hasn't recovered, and you're tired
- When lingering body aches and residual symptoms remain after overwork
Key Ingredients
- Angelica root · Cnidium: Increase circulation, promote muscle microdamage recovery, antioxidant/anti-inflammatory action to improve muscle pain and malaise persisting after infection
- Astragalus · Peony: Support immune recovery, anti-fatigue effects, increase stress resistance
- Licorice · Cinnamon twig: Relax muscle tension through peripheral vasodilation and help stabilize the autonomic nervous system
Patients Who May Benefit
- Recover slowly from fatigue after having a cold and are prone to post-viral fatigue
- When lingering body aches and muscle pain last long after overwork, with continued fatigue
- When mental fatigue + physical fatigue hit simultaneously
👉 Surprisingly, we generally don't recommend it for early-stage colds!
Ssanghwa-tang is most effective when administered during the recovery phase when infectious inflammation has mostly subsided.
The herbs in Ssanghwa-tang increase blood flow to aid fatigue recovery. However, during high fever periods, it can trap body heat and worsen symptoms, so timing is important!
Acupuncture & Moxibustion: Immune System Boosters
Acupuncture and moxibustion treatments also greatly help cold treatment.
They help your body respond better to colds by regulating nervous, immune, and blood flow (microcirculation)!
🪡 Acupuncture Points Used in Treatment
🔹 Hapgok · Gokji
- Hapgok: between the thumb and index finger
- Gokji: at the outer end of the elbow crease when the arm is bent
These points are associated with the vagus nerve (parasympathetic system) and are reported to help reduce excessive inflammatory mediator release. They are commonly used to relieve headaches, body aches, and fever-related symptoms.
🔹 Pungji · Pungmun
- Pungji: in the hollow just below the skull
- Pungmun: along the upper spine
These points help regulate neck lymphatic circulation and autonomic nervous system balance, which may reduce muscle tension and chills commonly seen in the early stages of viral colds.
🔹 Taeyeon · Yeolgyeol
- Taeyeon: on the front of the wrist
- Yeolgyeol: on the thumb-side of the wrist
Located along lung-related points, these are known to help reduce bronchial mucosal hypersensitivity and stabilize cough-related nerve pathways.
They may be particularly helpful for patients with severe postnasal drip or reflux, especially those who describe a persistent “lump in the throat” (globus sensation).
🔥 Moxibustion: Activating Immune Cells
At Tong-in Clinic, we primarily use mugwort moxibustion on the lower abdomen below the navel (Gwanwon point).
The warm stimulation increases blood flow in the gut, thereby strengthening immune cell activity. It also relieves diarrhea and indigestion, which often accompany colds.
Gwanwon point is where sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves meet, so warming it stabilizes the temperature regulation system—no reason not to get it, right? 🔥
Lifestyle Management Tips to Fight Colds
I'll also share 3 lifestyle management rules I always follow at home when I have a cold. 😉
① Warmth & Humidity – Top Priority for Cold Recovery 🧣
When your feet, abdomen, and back get cold, peripheral blood vessels constrict, slowing recovery. So keep these three areas warm.
Definitely wear socks, and keep your body warm with a light cardigan or scarf, even indoors. Keep indoor humidity between 40% and 60%.
② Adequate Hydration
Drink warm water frequently. Warm honey water with strong mucous membrane protective effects is also good. Sometimes people drink ice water to cool down a fever, but while it lowers the fever itself, it actually slows your body's recovery response. 🥶
Drinking warm water frequently helps maintain the moisture layers of the throat mucosa, increases blood flow and dilates vessels so heat can naturally dissipate, and reduces irritation to reduce coughing.
③ Quality Sleep
Immune cells are most strongly activated while sleeping. Research also shows sleeping well doubles recovery speed! Go to bed at 10 PM, or at the latest before midnight.
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I had so much to share that this ended up being my longest article ever!
Wishing you a healthy, cozy year-end—and Merry Christmas in advance! 🎄✨
- Author: Shin Jeong Won
- Editor: Sia
