[한방칼럼] How to treat rhinitis that tends to occur in early winter?

The lush autumn leaves are all gone and the weather is cooling, and the early winter season is approaching. When winter comes, the most common symptom people complain about is rhinitis. This is because the low temperatures, dry air, and typical winter weather create the best environment for rhinitis to occur. This time, let’s take a closer look at this rhinitis and find out how to deal with it.

First, you need to know exactly what rhinitis is. Rhinitis refers to a disease where the mucous membrane of the nose becomes inflamed and causes sneezing, nasal congestion, or excessive runny nose. Among them, rhinitis, which often occurs in winter, is a symptom of sneezing, stuffy nose, and runny nose that occurs when you have a cold due to allergic rhinitis and rhinitis caused by a cold virus in early the winter.

Aggravating causes of rhinitis include changes in immune function due to cold weather, low humidity, malnutrition, overwork, stress, vitamin deficiency, and changes in the pH of nasal secretions. The reason why people catch a lot of colds in the changing seasons or winter is that the indoor air is not ventilated, and the possibility of virus transmission is high because many people gather in a place small compared to the time spent indoors due to the cold weather. . In addition, dry indoor air can reduce the ciliary motility of the nasal mucosa, leading to a reduction in nasal function. In addition, infected secretions from another patient’s sneeze or cough enter the nose, causing inflammation, and can sometimes be transmitted directly through kissing, food or hands.

To prevent rhinitis in winter, you must first control the temperature and humidity well. It is recommended that the temperature difference between inside and outside does not become much, and the indoor humidity is 50-55%, and it is good to hang a humidifier or wash wet clothes. Drink plenty of water to prevent your throat from drying out, and wear a mask when going out to reduce sudden temperature changes. In addition, since rhinitis due to a viral infection can occur, it is also useful to wash and shower thoroughly after going out, and keep the room clean and tidy.

In oriental medicine, rhinitis is called nasal secretion (鼻噴), acetabulum (鼻鼽), and rhinitis (鼻嚔). Acute suppurative rhinitis is considered to be caused by fire, and chronic rhinitis is seen as a symptom caused by a decrease in lung function, which focuses on the lungs. This shows a view similar to the recent trend which considers rhinitis, sinusitis, and lower respiratory tract asthma as one airway disease.

When treating rhinitis with oriental medicine, first remove the inflammation in the nose by using various methods such as acupuncture, nasal wet patch therapy, and herbal medicine that stabilize rhinitis and relieve mucosal swelling to make breathing easier. In addition, it is possible to prevent recurrence and complications by making the body healthy as a whole by performing basic treatment for the cause of rhinitis, such as strengthening lung function with herbal medicine, rather than treating the nose only.

Gwangmyeong Lee, Director of Daegu Gwangmyeong Oriental Medicine Hospital