Cold and Flu Treatments Found In Common Foods

It's a fact that flu shots don't always work and there is no known cure for the common cold, but you can eat and drink foods that can help relieve symptoms and speed your recovery time.  So next time you start to feel a cold coming on, do yourself a favor and head to the grocery store or cupboards for help.

LEMONADE: 
This is wonderful to soothe sore throats, cleanse the blood, and loosen mucous. Add the juice of half a lemon and one teaspoon of maple syrup to a cup of warm water.

CHICKEN SOUP: 
Use of chicken soup goes back to the twelfth century, to a Jewish physician and philosopher, Maimonides, who recommended chicken soup to treat colds and flu.

MUSTARD: 
Mustard packs reduce fever, eliminate toxins and help heal the mucus membranes in the lungs.

GINGER: 
Ginger tea can help kill germs, as an antiviral and is also very good for an upset stomach. 
Boil two tablespoons of grated fresh ginger in two cups of water for fifteen minutes, remove from the heat and steep for ten minutes. 
Drink as needed. Adding ginger to a bath stimulates the lymph system and speeds lymph drainage. Pulverize a quarter cup of fresh ginger and place in cheesecloth and soak in the tub as water fills.

GARLIC: 
Common household garlic is great as a preventative and as a treatment for colds and flu. 
Raw
garlic has anti-fungal, antibacterial, and antiviral properties. 
Researchers in England found that garlic can speed up recovery from the flu and increase resistance.Garlic can cause increased bleeding, so those taking medications for bleeding should take care when adding extra garlic to the diet.

PEPPERMINT: 
Mint tea helps to break a sweat. Make a tea and go quickly to bed where you will sweat out the fever.

CASTOR OIL: 
A Castor oil pack placed on the chest can open the airwaves and bring circulation to the lungs. Massage Castor oil on the chest, cover with muslin or flannel, and place a warm hot water bottle over the chest.

ORANGES/VITAMIN C: 
Research has shown that Vitamin C found in orange juice, taken daily, can shorten the duration of the flu. 
A recent study showed that 1,000 mg of Vit C every six hours can effectively relieve, or even prevent, flu symptoms.

ELDERBERRIES: 
Elderberries have been used in medicine since the Stone Age. Recent research University of Jerusalem confirmed that taking elderberries speeds recovery time from a cold or flu.

HOREHOUND: 
Long used an ingredient of cough syrups, horehound tea can be used to soothe a cough.
HONEY: 
Honey has tremendous healing properties. 
It can be used to relieve coughs and to increase immunity. A simple cough syrup can be made with a spoon of honey and a bit of fresh lemon juice.

CUMIN AND GINGER TEA: 
Add a teaspoon of cumin seeds and a small amount of dry or fresh ginger to one glass of boiling water. Drink as needed.

SALT: Salt is an excellent gargle and can soothe a sore throat. Use warm water and perhaps add a bit of tumeric for extra anti-inflammatory effect. Another use of salt is in nasal irrigation, which uses warm salt water inhaled through sinues to help decongest the nose. Recent research suggest that nasal irrigation speds recovery from sinus infections.

KIWI: Kiwi can be beneficial in treating upper respiratory tract infections. It’s high in Vitamin C and seems to have a protetice effect on long conditions especially in children.

WATER/HYDROTHERAPY: Bathing increases circulation. A hot bath can help lower a fever. Or try a ginger bath. (See GINGER, above.)

SAGE: Sage mouthwash can used for sore thoats and has been approved in Germany for this use by their medical commission.

CHAMOMILE: Used medicinally for thousands of years, chamomile can be taken as tea or inhalant. Inhaling the steam from chamomile extract was been reported to help relieve cold symptoms.


Bookmark or share