Both of us recovered quickly, and I'm inclined to believe that this ancient herbal remedy helped. Doctors tend to scoff at such statements. Our two case studies are merely what the scientists often dismiss as anecdotal evidence.

All right, so our cases don't really prove anything. But there's more to honeysuckle--and other herbs--than just anecdotes. And these days, there are a lot of scientific studies to back that up. In 1993, for example, Chinese researchers divided 96 children with bronchiolitis, a children's form of bronchitis, into three groups. One-third of the children were given the herbal formula shuang huang lian, which consists of honeysuckle, forsythia and skullcap. Another third got only antibiotics, and the remaining third were given both herbs and antibiotics.

The children who were given the herbs alone showed improvement in chest symptoms, cough, fever and wheezing. Compared with those on antibiotics, the herbs-only group fared better in some ways: They had fewer days with fever and less wheezing and coughing. No adverse reactions to the herbs were noted.

That's the good news. The bad news, to my way of thinking, is that the herbal infusion was administered intravenously for seven days. Nowhere do I recommend herbal injections. For treating bronchitis, taking herbs in the form of tea or tinctures is safe and often quite effective.  And tell your doctor to save the antibiotics for emergencies. The downside of antibiotics is that they make any "bugs" that survive more resistant to treatment.

This Chinese study is good enough to give me confidence in suggesting honeysuckle and forsythia as treatments for respiratory problems because it confirms centuries of folkloric use. But apparently it hasn't budged the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which does not list either honeysuckle or forsythia on the list of herbs generally regarded as safe (GRAS), let alone as treatments for bronchitis. The ways of the FDA are a mystery to me. I regard honeysuckle and forsythia as safe and effective, and I wouldn't hesitate to use them for bronchitis and the chest congestion of colds and flu. But because they are not GRAS, all I can say to other people is, try them at your own risk. Bronchitis has several possible causes. It may be bacterial or viral, or it may be caused by some chronic irritant such as cigarette smoking or exposure to certain chemicals. Children are more likely to develop bronchitis (and asthma) if their parents smoke or if they are exposed to high levels of formaldehyde, one of the chemicals that give cars and home furnishings that "new" smell. Sometimes the germs and irritants work together: A smoker catches a cold and the cough turns into bronchitis.

Bronchitis may clear up by itself without any treatment, but it can also linger and sometimes become chronic. That's why I favor treating it. Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica) and forsythia (Forsythia suspensa) are two of my favorite natural bronchitis remedies, but there are many others. Here are some to try.

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