What to do if a child catches a cold? Massaging these acupoints can solve the problem

Spring is the most beautiful season of the year, but it is also the peak season for colds. Children, in particular, have weak immunity and are more likely to catch colds and fevers 6 to 8 times a year... They can get sick all year round. Every parent is worried about their baby's health, but if they take medicine, they worry about side effects. Next, I will introduce a cold treatment method without side effects, which is the acupoint therapy in traditional Chinese medicine. It can not only treat colds, but also enhance immunity.

When it comes to the prevention, treatment and care of children's respiratory infections, people always think of Western medicine first. However, on the one hand, some mothers are worried that the drugs will have side effects on the children. On the other hand, the children take a lot of medicine but do not get better, and are prone to recurrence.......

Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes the harmony of yin and yang and treating the symptoms while strengthening the root cause. In fact, in addition to drug treatment, traditional Chinese medicine also has many unique therapies for the treatment of common respiratory tract infections in children.

First, let’s take a look at the application of acupoint massage in treating common respiratory tract infections in children!

Eliminate food stagnation and prevent fever

Children with weak spleen and stomach function are prone to food stagnation and fever. Mothers can use some massage techniques to help their children improve the food stagnation situation.

Abdominal massage

Parents should rub their hands warm or soak them in hot water in advance, lay the child flat on the bed, place the palm of their hand or the index, middle and ring fingers on the child's abdomen, and move the wrist joint and forearm in a clockwise circular rhythmic motion repeatedly for 1 to 3 minutes each time.

Precautions

For this massage, remember to massage in a clockwise direction and never go in the opposite direction. The cecum is located at the lower right. We need to go clockwise along the cecum, ascending colon, transverse colon, descending colon, to the sigmoid colon, rectum, etc. below. This can promote the baby's defecation, improve the spleen and stomach function, and promote digestion and absorption.

Chiropractic

Let the baby lie prone on the bed. We can use our thumb and index finger to make a circle as shown in the picture, and lift the baby up from the coccyx, with skin and flesh. Each time you push forward three times, lift once, from bottom to top, alternating between the left and right hands, in the order of pushing, pinching, twisting, releasing, and lifting, pinch from the Changqiang point forward to the Dazhui point at the top of the spine, and you can do this 4 to 6 times.

Precautions

It is very helpful for children to open up their heart meridians, strengthen their spleen and stomach, promote digestion, and improve their body's immunity. If you can stick to this massage technique, your baby's physical condition will gradually improve, immunity will be enhanced, and he will be less likely to have a fever or catch a cold. If the child's skin is damaged, or has boils or skin diseases, do not do spinal massage. Don't do this when you have a fever. You can try other methods at this time.

Press and rub the Zusanli acupoint

For babies with weak immunity, there is an acupoint they need to learn, which is massaging the Zusanli acupoint.

Zusanli acupoint is an important acupoint on the spleen and stomach meridian of children. It is located on the Stomach Meridian of Foot-Yangming, which is on the front and outer side of the calf, below the knee. Measured with an adult's fingers, it is about two fingers below the knee, slightly one centimeter outside the calf bone. We massage Zusanli acupoint for children every day, which can also improve the digestive and metabolic function of their spleen and stomach and their immunity.

Press and rub the Banmen acupoint

When the baby stretches out his hand, the area from the base of the thumb to the transverse wrist line is called the thenar eminence, and its midpoint is called the thenar eminence.

Pressing and rubbing this acupoint can promote the baby's digestion and defecation. If the internal organs are unblocked and the bowels are discharged well, there will naturally be no lung heat accumulation in the body, and the baby will not catch a cold or fever. Therefore, frequently massaging the child's Banmen acupoint to promote the excretion of stool is very beneficial for preventing fever and colds.

At the onset of a cold, dispel wind and cold

When your baby first catches a cold, you need to differentiate whether it is wind-heat or wind-cold. In autumn and winter, wind-cold is generally the main symptom. Some children also have food accumulation and internal heat, but their external symptoms are all wind-cold.

Press and massage Yingxiang acupoint

When children catch a cold in autumn and winter, the first thing they will experience is a blocked nose and clear runny nose. As parents, we can use your index finger to gently massage the Yingxiang point next to their nose, which is the midpoint of the outer edge of their nose, in the middle of the nasolabial groove, about thirty to fifty times. Be careful not to use too much force.

The function of massaging the Yingxiang point is to dredge the meridians in the child's nose, relieve and treat the symptoms of nasal congestion and runny nose. This acupoint is very magical. For example, if a child has a stuffy nose, the nose will be unblocked after a while after massaging it.

Press and rub the Shenting point

There is also an acupoint called Shenting Point, which is located at the midpoint of the child's hairline, where the upper nasal septum meets the front edge of the hair. After pressing the Yingxiang point, press the Shenting point, which is very effective in treating children's nasal congestion.

Press and rub Fengchi acupoint

Whether it is wind-cold or wind-heat, the initial onset of a cold is usually caused by "wind". Fengchi acupoint is very good and has the effect of dispelling wind and cold.

Fengchi point is located under the baby's occipital bone. We use our thumb to find it. There is a mastoid process behind the ear. Along the junction of the occipital bone, there is a depression on each side. You can use your thumb to massage the child.

Fengchi point has the functions of dispersing wind, dispersing cold, and relieving exterior symptoms. Massaging it at the beginning of a cold has a therapeutic effect.

fever

When your baby has a fever, there are several Chinese medicine massage techniques that you can try:

Push Tianmen acupoint

Where is the "Heavenly Gate"? It means pushing from the child's eyebrows and brow point from the bottom to the hairline.

We use the thumbs of both hands to push the Tianmen alternately. The fingers should be dipped in some oil, otherwise the skin will easily be damaged. You can use any olive oil or even soybean oil at home. Don’t use safflower oil. Johnson’s moisturizing oil will also work.

This can improve children's headache, fever, and hot forehead, and has a therapeutic effect.

Press and rub Laogong acupoint

When the child stretches out his hand, you can see that there is a Laogong point in the palm of his hand, called the inner Laogong, and there is a outer Laogong point on the back of his hand. By massaging the Laogong points inside and outside the child, you can achieve the effect of clearing away heat and relieving exterior symptoms.

Some people asked, is it okay to dip my hands in white wine? If it is a high-proof liquor, it is recommended to add some warm water. Liquor has a dispersing effect, but if the alcohol concentration is too high, some children's body surface will easily absorb it, so the liquor should be slightly diluted with hot water.

Press and massage the Hegu point

After massaging the Laogong point, we see an acupoint called Hegu point at the base of the thumb.

Hegu point itself has the functions of clearing away heat and relieving exterior symptoms, promoting gastrointestinal motility and promoting defecation. Therefore, when a child has a fever, massaging the Hegu point is very helpful. Of course, this massage should be done at least thirty times, and generally fifty times, and you need to control the strength well.

Push Tianhe Water (Clear Tianhe Water)

The first sign of a fever or cold is that external evil has invaded the lung meridian. The Qingtianhe water can dissipate the lung heat. What does lung heat include? For example, this technique can be used to treat common colds and fevers, children's coughs, tracheitis, bronchitis, and even pneumonia.

You should also apply some oil in advance, and then use your index finger and middle finger to push from the center of the wrist transverse line to the center of the elbow transverse line.

Take the Jianjing point

The technique of holding the shoulder well is to use the thumb, index finger and middle finger to pinch the child's shoulders. The Jianjing point is located above the shoulder blade, in the middle of the line from the neck to the shoulder.

Massaging a child's shoulders and neck can clear the meridians in his back, which can help relieve fatigue and aches caused by coughs and colds.

Cough and headache

If the baby coughs severely, there are several acupoints that are very useful: massage the acupoints on the back

From the picture you can see the acupoints on the child's back. Our thumbs run from the lung point below the shoulder blade along the shoulder blade. With both hands facing each other, the two thumbs form an X shape and massage the child from bottom to top. The acupoints that are massaged include the lung point, wind gate point and shoulder well point. This kind of massage can unblock the lung meridian and cure cough.

Press and rub the Tanzhong point

The Danzhong point is where you draw a cross at the intersection of the line connecting the child's two nipples and the midpoint of the sternal manubrium. Pressing and rubbing this acupoint can mainly dredge the lung meridian and help resolve phlegm and relieve cough.

Massage Tiantu acupoint

There is another acupoint above the Tanzhong point, located between the two clavicles, called the Tiantu point. Gently massaging the Tiantu point with your thumb is also very helpful in treating cough.

Massage Baihui and Sishencong points

When a cold first occurs, some children will feel headache and feel very uncomfortable. At this time, you can press and rub the Baihui and Si Shencong points.

The midpoint of the line connecting the two ears and the intersection of the body's central axis is the Baihui point; there are four points one inch away from the Baihui point, called the Si Shen Cong;

Massaging these five acupoints for children can help wake up the brain, relieve headaches, and also refresh the mind and improve intelligence.

Special reminder

Autumn and winter are the peak seasons for respiratory diseases in children, but they are actually also important times for children's care.

However, Dr. Yuan also reminded parents that massaging the acupoints on the baby's head should only be done after the baby's fontanelle has closed and the skull has been fully formed. Massage of other parts of the limbs should also be done in moderation.

For younger children, use gentler force and fewer times. For slightly older children, you need to put more effort into it, and the number of times should be at least fifty, so that there will be no effect.