What Medications Are Beneficial for Lung Health?

There are many medicines beneficial for the lungs, such as Lily bulb, Fritillaria cirrhosa, Polygonatum odoratum, Radix Ophiopogonis, and Coltsfoot. It is recommended to use these medicines under the guidance of professional doctors.

1. Lily bulb has the effect of nourishing yin and lubricating the lungs, clearing the heart and calming the nerves. It is mainly used to treat chronic cough due to yin deficiency, blood in sputum, residual heat after the later stage of febrile diseases, or restlessness, insomnia, mental confusion, abscess, and wet eczema caused by mental disorders.

2. Fritillaria cirrhosa has the effects of clearing heat and lubricating the lungs, resolving phlegm and stopping cough, and dissipating masses and reducing swelling. As stated in "Ben Cao Hui Yan", "Fritillaria is a medicine that relieves depression, descends qi, and resolves phlegm. It lubricates the lungs, resolves phlegm, stops cough, and stabilizes asthma." It is often used to relieve dry cough. Fritillaria has a sweet, bitter, and slightly cold taste, and is effective in treating yin-deficiency dry cough.

3. Polygonatum odoratum has a sweet taste and neutral nature, entering the lung and stomach meridians. It has the effect of nourishing yin and moistening dryness, relieving irritability and stopping cough. It is used to treat conditions such as yin deficiency due to heat disease, dry heat in the lungs and stomach, little cough with phlegm, irritation and thirst, fatigue with fever, easy hunger after eating, frequent urination, cramps and spasms due to malnutrition of tendons and veins, congenital yin deficiency, rheumatic spontaneous sweating, and alternating chills and fever due to malaria. "Compendium of Materia Medica" introduces that this medicine is mainly used to treat "spontaneous sweating with fever due to wind-warmth, alternating chills and fever due to malaria, weakness of the spleen and stomach, frequent urination in men, spermatorrhea, and all kinds of deficiency."

4. Radix Ophiopogonis has a sweet, cold, and moist nature, with the function of nourishing yin, promoting the production of body fluids, lubricating the lungs, and clearing the heart. It is good at nourishing the yin of the lungs and stomach, as well as clearing heat in the heart meridian. It is a beneficial medicine that combines nourishing and clearing. It can also be used in pills, powders, decoctions, or tea. Traditionally, Radix Ophiopogonis without the heart is often used to nourish the lungs and stomach and promote the production of body fluids, while Radix Ophiopogonis with the heart is more suitable for clearing the heart and relieving irritability.

5. Coltsfoot is considered in traditional Chinese medicine to have a pungent and warm nature, entering the lung meridian. It has the functions of lubricating the lungs, descending qi, resolving phlegm, and stopping cough. Coltsfoot has a pungent and moist nature, warm without being drying, and is a good medicine for lubricating the lungs, resolving phlegm, and stopping cough. It is suitable for various types of cough and asthma, including both external and internal injuries, cold cough, and hot cough. Therefore, it is known as an essential medicine for treating cough. However, its characteristics of being warm without being hot, pungent without being drying, and sweet without being stagnant make it particularly suitable for chronic cough due to lung deficiency and cough with excessive phlegm due to lung cold.