Colds Viruses and Flu: Simple Remedies that Works

Colds Viruses and Flu: Simple Remedies that Works offers what some may call generational or folk remedies. As you may know doctors often dismiss ‘folk remedies’ as quaint, not effective or potentially unsafe. Research has now found that some traditional natural remedies work as well, or even better, than prescribed and or over-the-counter drugs.

The traditional remedies (also known as folk remedies) are safer than drugs because they rarely cause side effects or interact with other medical treatments. My sister and I grew up on a farm where we learned at early ages of the plant and root medicinal powers that can be grown from the earth.

As I’ve stated on other hubs in earlier childhood year’s grandmother was what my sister and I lovingly call her “the root doctor” of the family. Grandmother always had a remedy for whatever ailment an individual might have. My sister the nurse an RN, MHA (Masters Health Care Admin), CCM (Certified Case Manager) decided to put together some of the folk remedies that scientists now believe works for colds, viruses, and flu.

Common Colds

Please note I have not tried the remedy suggested in the above video so I'm not sure if it works. However, there is a good reason that mothers have long advocated chicken soup as an effective cold remedy. Studies have confirmed that chicken soup increases the activity of antiviral immune cells and at the same time reduces throat and sinus inflammation.

Garlic (Allium sativum), like other plants, has an exquisite defense system composed of as many different components as the human immune system. Garlic is a natural antibiotic with antiviral, antifungal and antiseptic properties. In order to protect itself from insects and fungi, garlic enzymatically produces its chemical compound allicin, (an organo-sulfur compound) released when it is injured. In the body, allicin act as a decongestant and an expectorant. So, when you have a bad cold, what is even better than chicken soup? Try chicken soup with a minced clove of raw garlic.

A cough results when nerves in the respiratory tract are irritated by a cold, flu or other type of illness. Coughing is your body's way of removing foreign substances and mucus from your lungs and upper airway passages. A cough that’s wet contains mucus and or phlegm, which when loosened, can be exported (coughed) from the respiratory system.

For a wet cough try this:

Bring about 4-6 cups of water in a pot to a rolling boil. Turn off the heat, and add three drops of eucalyptus oil. Lean over the pot with a towel draped over your head. Inhale the steam breathing deeply in and exhaling out several times. The eucalyptus oil infused with the steam from the water helps to open nasal and bronchial passages and expel phlegm.

A hot shower will also help to loosen congestion in the sinus cavities and upper respiratory system. Try either remedy twice a day and or a combination of both. Also see Therapeutic Essential Oils for Colds, Flu, and Sinus Allergies for more healing and soothing herbs and plant oils to assist in treating a cold and or preventing the flu.

For a dry cough try this:

It’s really true, hot tea will soothe not only a sore throat, but will also help to loosen congestion in the respiratory system. Try making a cup of tea from wild cherry bark. Just measure one teaspoon of dried, chopped cherry bark into an eight-ounce cup, and pour boiling water over the bark. Cover the cup, and let steep for 15 – 20 minutes. Drink one cup three times a day.

A sore throat usually is a symptom of getting a cold or illness. To treat a sore throat, there are a variety of remedies available.

Try something sweet: Honey and Tea

Honey and Tea for a sore throat have been recommended for hundreds of years. This old fashioned cure for a sore throat is quite simple. Take one tablespoon of honey and mix it with hot water and lemon, or tea. Then drink slowly. The honey will soothe your throat, and reduces the inflammation.

Try something sour: Apple Cider Vinegar

Mix two teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in one glass of warm water. Gargle a mouthful, spit it out, and then swallow a mouthful. Keep doing this until you finish the glass. Repeat the entire process every hour. Within three to four hours, the sore throat usually starts to feel much better.

Still sore? Try a combination of sweet and sour

Try drinking pineapple juice. It contains healing enzymes that soothe irritated throat tissues and may help them heal faster.

Sinusitis

Sinusitis is an infection of the sinus cavities behind the facial bones around the nose and eyes. It can cause difficulty breathing as well as facial tenderness and headaches.

What you can do

Add one-half teaspoon of salt to eight ounces of warm water. Cup some of the solution in your palm and sniff deeply into each nostril. Do this up to three times a day to reduce swelling of the sinus lining, promote better drainage and inhibit growth of harmful organisms. Or you can use a commercially prepared saline spray and or a Neti pot. Also, you might like to read more about seasonal allergies on the hub titled, Home Remedies for Seasonal Allergy Symptoms.

In the meantime

Avoid milk, cheese and other dairy foods during sinusitis flare-ups. Dairy triggers the production of excess mucus and excess mucus plugs the sinus cavities, limiting sinus drainage, which leads to accumulation of bacteria and ultimately infection.

Cure A Sty on the Eye?

The increased stress from having to deal with a cold or flu, plus the added bacteria attacking the body could cause an individual prone to get a sty to have one. As soon as you feel a sty coming on, rub the area a few times with a gold ring. The gold may prevent it from becoming one of those atrocious, full blown infections that can linger for a week or more.

Colds Viruses and Flu: Simple Remedies that Works

The flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death.  Some people, such as the elderly, young children, and people with compromised health conditions, are at a higher risk for serious flu complications.

Every year in the United States, on average:

 •5% to 20% of the population gets the flu;

•more than 200,000 people are hospitalized from flu complications, and;

• about 36,000 people die from flu.

My sister believes the best way to protect your love ones and yourself against influenza viruses, and or the flu, is by proactively getting a flu vaccination each year. She has been clinically taught that in order to help prevent a flu epidemic, and or seasonal flu panic, everyone should receive the seasonal flu vaccine. The viruses in the vaccine change each year based on international surveillance, CDC, and scientists’ estimations about which types and strains of viruses will circulate in a given year (seasonal flu). About two weeks after vaccination, antibodies that provide protection against influenza virus infection begin to circulate through the body.

If you read some of my previous hubs then you know that I’ve stated that I do not take the flu vaccination. So, I guess you can see that my sister (although she’s the nurse) and I have a difference of opinion on this matter. We have learned to accept and respect each other’s views and allow the other to make the decision for herself. I have to mention that my sister usually has a bout with the flu every year and I normally do not. Again the only two times that I’ve been put to bed with the flu for weeks was when I took the flu shots. So, as far as the flu shots are concerned, “Do you.”

Of course, if you are under constant care of a physician there’s a 99.9999 percent chance that he or she will definitely agree with my sister, however, perform your own research, take your other illnesses into consideration, look at your past history, and whatever else you need to do to make a decision that is right for you.

Vitamin C

In the 70’s everyone was encouraged to take lots of vitamin C whenever the first symptoms of a cold began. However, researchers’ years later are still attempting to discount and or valid that vitamin C is good for treating a cold. According to the WebMD a study in July 2007 attempting to resolve this question by reviewing 60 years of clinical research; their findings revealed that taking vitamin C after a cold starts does not help to make the cold shorter or less severe.

However, 8% of adults and 14% of children that take vitamin C as a routine daily supplement does receive benefits of having a slightly shorter cold duration. It also revealed that people who were in extreme conditions like marathon runners, who took vitamin C daily cut their risk of catching a cold in half. This study seems to agree with the researchers that say vitamin C can assist in building the immune system. So, vitamin C can be a proactive prevention step to take in keeping one’s immune system strong to fight catching a cold or flu.

My sister and I do agree that good health habits like:

• Covering your mouth when you cough and washing your hands often can help prevent respiratory illnesses like the flu.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Stay home when you are sick.
• Cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze.
• Clean your hands.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth due to the spread of germs.

Practice other good routine health habits, in order to maintain a strong immune system:

• Get plenty of sleep
• Be physically active
• Manage your stress
• Drink plenty of fluids be sure to include green tea
• Eat nutritious food like berries that are high in antioxidants
• Implement good bacteria into your diet by drinking probiotics

Seek natural and herbal remedies early by being proactive and purchasing products and having them on hand at the being of the cold and flu season. Keeping your immune system high and well supported is one of the key factors to avoiding the flu. This year I learned that therapeutic essential oils can fight against bacterial and viral germs that can colds, viruses, and the flu. If you are exposed to someone who is ill, try these natural remedies for a few days to boost your immune system:

Echinacea herbal extract - Extracts or liquid form hold their potency better than pills and can sit on shelves for months. However, don’t take Echinacea for more than a week at a time or it will lose its effectiveness. During the cold and flu season in the past I have taken Echinacea routinely one week out of a month as an immune booster. I usually try to pick a week that I know is going to be stressful and take the extract.

Elderberry extract – This extract is used to kill a virus before it gets hold of the body; however on must be sure and take elderberry with some food to avoid possibly getting an upset the stomach.

Garlic- That’s right fresh garlic fights and defeats virus’ in your body. As discussed earlier this herb packs a powerful punch in assisting with an illness as well as can be used to prevent bouts with colds and flu. The flu season is a good time to have fresh garlic butter routinely.

Cayenne pepper- Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) states that if you have a cold you should heat your body. So spice it up by making a bowl of soup and putting as much cayenne pepper in it as you can tolerate. Or try adding additional cayenne pepper to one of your favorite black or green teas.

A homeopathic remedy for the flu is Oscillocococcinum, which comes in small vials of powder and should be taken within a certain time period once you believe you have been exposed to a viral infection.

This concludes Colds Viruses and Flu: Simple Remedies that Works and as always its been a pleasure to share writing a hub with my sister. I hope you have found this hub useful and informative. Perhaps your family has a traditional cold remedy that you would like to share in the comments below.

Namaste'

Disclaimer: This information is solely for informational purposes. IT IS NOT INTENDED TO PROVIDE MEDICAL ADVICE. Before engaging in any complementary medical technique, including the use of natural or herbal remedies, you should do your own research, and then consult your present physician. If your doctor does not believe in alternative medicines and you would like to give them a try then find a reputable doctor, TCM specialist, certified herbalist or naturopathist familiar with alternative medicines that can assist you in deciding what treatments might meet your specific needs.