Sanjiu Cold Medicine is a well-known cold remedy. Because it feels so familiar, few people take the time to understand it. Is Sanjiu Cold Medicine really a universal cold medicine?
First, let’s take a look at its ingredients: triple bitter, calendula, wild chrysanthemum, Gongmei, caffeine, paracetamol, chlorpheniramine, and peppermint oil.
From the ingredients, it can be seen that Sanjiu Cold Medicine is not purely a traditional Chinese medicine but a compound preparation of both Chinese and Western medicines. A considerable number of people still believe it to be a traditional Chinese medicine.
Triple bitter has a bitter and cold nature, which can clear heat, detoxify, and dispel wind and dampness;
Calendula has a sweet and slightly bitter taste, cool nature, and can clear heat, detoxify, and cool blood to stop bleeding; it should be used with caution in those with a weak cold spleen and stomach;
Wild chrysanthemum is bitter and spicy, slightly cold, and has a heat-clearing and detoxifying effect;
Gongmei is bitter and slightly sweet, cool in nature, with effects of clearing heat, detoxifying, generating fluid, soothing the throat, and alleviating pain.
From the above analysis of the medicinal properties, it is clear that the Chinese medicines in the formulation are all cold in nature. According to traditional Chinese medicine theory, heat is treated with cold, and cold is treated with heat. These Chinese medicines correspond to heat syndromes rather than cold syndromes.
Therefore, strictly speaking, Sanjiu Cold Medicine is not universally effective for both wind-cold and wind-heat colds, but is more suitable for patients with wind-heat colds or those with accompanying heat syndromes.
So why do many people feel that Sanjiu Cold Medicine is very effective? This brings us to the Western medicine components.
Paracetamol is a common antipyretic and analgesic that can reduce fever and relieve pain, targeting symptoms such as headaches, joint pain, and muscle pain;
Chlorpheniramine, known as chlorpheniramine maleate, belongs to the class of antihistamines and can relieve symptoms such as sneezing, runny nose, and watery eyes;
Caffeine can stimulate the central nervous system and alleviate the drowsiness caused by chlorpheniramine.
The effectiveness of this medicine largely depends on its Western medicine components, which directly target symptoms and act quickly, while traditional Chinese medicine treats imbalances in the body.
As for why many people believe Sanjiu Cold Medicine can treat both wind-cold and wind-heat, it may relate to the description of its effects in the instructions.
Effects: antipyretic and analgesic, used for headaches, fever, nasal congestion, runny nose, and sore throat caused by colds.
From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, this description does not indicate whether it is suitable for wind-cold or wind-heat colds, which is why many people think it is a universal cold medicine.
In fact, there is also a note regarding precautions: those with a weak cold spleen and stomach, presenting with abdominal pain, a preference for warmth, and diarrhea should use it with caution. This also indirectly suggests that this medicine is cold, and those with a weak cold spleen and stomach are not very suitable for it.
In summary, Sanjiu Cold Medicine is suitable for patients with a tendency toward wind-heat colds. One way to judge is to check for a sore throat. If it is the early stage of a cold without signs of heat, then it should not be used; patients with a weak cold spleen and stomach should use it with caution.
