The weather is lovely, the flowers are blooming

But the Sinusitis is horrendous!

We are definitely in the season of sinusistis, just walking down the road and witnessing the vibrant colour of flowers displayed in all the wonderful gardens.  Lately, the the weather changes rapidly: one day we are wearing jackets and cardigans, the next singlets and sandals! This sort of change wreaks havoc on your immune system, allowing for the surface of your body to be easily irritated, generally in the form of sinusitis.

You can actually do something about it

Usually, sinus infections begin with a cold due to factors such as weather changes; or an allergic response that causes swelling of the mucous membranes and increased production of watery mucus. When the mucus changes from clear to a yellow or green color, it means a bacterial infection. What this basically means is that we have:

· Stuffy nose

· Sticky-yellow nasal discharge

· Nasal congestion

· Diminished sense of smell

· Headache or a feeling of heaviness in the head

· Facial pressure around the cheeks, eyes, and forehead.

Widely-used herbs for sinusitis include skullcap (huang qin), magnolia (xin yi hua), and cocklebur (cang er zi). huang qin, or baical skullcap root, is traditionally used for clearing Heat from the upper respiratory system, and Damp Heat from the gastrointestinal system. It has an inhibitory effect against bacteria such as staphylococcus aureus, pseudomonas aeruginosa, and streptococcus pneumoniae. Research also found that staphlococcus aureus which has become resistant to penicillin will remain sensitive to skullcap.

Wouldn’t you love to live without the blocked, stuffed up nose, and the headaches? Wouldn’t it be wonderful to take a deep breath of the vibrant jasmine flower and not have to worry about a sneezing attack that results in red, itchy eyes. This is all possible with acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine; you just have to make that call and book an appointment.