As one of the best herbs that quell a cough in homeopathic remedy, tussilago farfara or coltsfoot is also known as Kuan Dong Hua in Chinese, which, literally translated, means "winter-arrive flower." And just as its name suggested, it is a kind of edible flower that blooms only during the winter solstice and early spring. From that you can picture how this small grass with golden yellow flowers brave the wind and snow in the coldest days of winter when all the other flowers have perished in the storm. Thanks to that cold-resistant quality, it is widely used for relieving cough and Asthma since these conditions are usually considered associated with pathogenic cold and wind. The logic here may sound odd but the tussilago farfara effects have been testified by generations of TCM doctor’s experience.

Tussilago farfara benefits
Traditional Chinese medicine believes that it covers both qi and blood aspects. And thanks to its nature of heatless warmness, moistening pungency, and unblocked sweetness, it is one of the perfect options for moistening lung, transforming phlegm, and suppressing coughing. Hence, it can be utilized in all the coughing related to lung disease no matter it is induced by interior and exterior, heat and cold, or deficiency and excess. And it makes more sense on treating cough caused by lung deficiency and lung cold accompanied with excessive phlegm. In addition, it also does its job in the cases of consumptive cough and hemoptysis due to lung heat. This herb is often fried with honey in order to enhance the efficacy. In terms of compatibility of medicines, Zi Wan (Radix Asteris) is its best partner and they often appear together. This is simply because coltsfoot is good at relieving a cough and Radix Asteris focuses on making expectoration easy. In this way they are very complementary. What’s more, it is necessary to mention that there is a bizarre ancient coltsfoot use, in which the smoking of coltsfoot is a good therapy for chronic cough.