I  frequently catch colds, and almost every time it goes into my lungs and causes a cough that lasts for a month or two. Can Chinese medicine help?    By Dr. Xia Chen of MindBody Synergy Health Centre  From a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) point of view, in our body there is a lung system which includes nose, throat, bronchi and lungs. The lung is the upper most organ, like an umbrella protecting other organs. When an external pathogen invades the body, the lung system is always the first one to be attacked resulting in a runny nose, sneezing, sore throat and cough. External pathogens, such as wind heat and wind cold in TCM are very much like virus or bacteria named in Western medicine. Our body also has a defensive Qi called Wei Qi. Wei Qi is like an army resident in the body surface to protect our body from invasion by the enemies (external pathogens). When a pathogen invades our body, if Wei Qi is strong and wins the battle, the pathogen will be dispelled from body surface and the cold will be fought off. If our Wei Qi is weak and loses the battle, pathogen enters into the chest and the cough will start. TCM works on a patient frequently catching colds and experiencing cough afterward by following these aspects: First, to strengthen Wei Qi to prevent external pathogen attack, acupuncture and herbal medicine can be used to enhance our Wei Qi (immune system). Jade Screen Powder, a classic formula to enhance Wei Qi (immune system) is often used in this case. Second, when a cold has already started and you are experiencing chills, fever, sneezing, sore throat and cough, this is a stage that pathogen is at our body surface. The treatment principle is to dispel the pathogen to prevent it entering into the lungs using formulas called Yin Qiao San and Sang Ju Yin. These two formulas often stop the further development of a cold into bronchitis. Third, if the treatment is not prompt, or body Wei Qi is not strong enough, the pathogen enters in the lungs. In this case, the patient will experience cough, with yellow thick mucous and chest pain. At this stage, from my experience, TMC can play a very important role if antibiotics are not your first choice. The unique thing about using TMC in this stage is that the herbs we use have both antibiotic effects and also, at the same time, it works very effectively to clear the phlegm and stop cough for acute bronchitis. For more details on this subject, please contact Dr. Xia Chen director of BodyMind Synergy Health Centre at 403.520.5258 or visit www.bodymindsynergy.com