Fall is here, which means that cold and flu season is just around the corner. Not that that’s something to look forward to, but it is good to be prepared for it!
I’m a big fan of simple living and natural wellness. I make sure my family gets a lot of immune-boosting nutrients in their diets, especially during the fall and winter.
Here is a collection of natural cold remedies to boost your immune system and help fight viruses and bacteria. These are all treatments that I’ve recommended to patients (in my former work as a nurse practitioner), and use at home for my own family.
Echinacea & Zinc
When it comes to relieving cold symptoms, some of the first things I turn to are echinacea and zinc supplements. Echinacea is a flower and zinc is a mineral, but I listed them together because they work well together and you can find them combined in supplements.
Echinacea is one of nature’s powerhouses for the immune system. It fights viruses that cause colds particularly well: it can shorten your cold symptoms by up to 50%! That means if it normally takes 10-14 days for a cold to run its course, taking echinacea can reduce that duration to 7 days.
Some studies have shown that echinacea increases white blood cell count and can help prevent colds, as well. You can take echinacea in capsules, teas, or chewable tablets, sometimes combined with zinc.
Zinc is an essential trace mineral which has many effects in the human body, including playing an important role in immune function. Zinc is directly used in making white blood cells, and it is part of hundreds of different enzymes which affect immune function.
Taking extra zinc when you’re sick is beneficial because your body is trying to make more white blood cells to fight off the bacteria or viruses. If you want to increase zinc in your diet instead of taking supplements, you can find it in meats, shellfish, legumes, seeds & nuts, dairy products, and whole grains.
Honey & Lemon Juice
This is an old home remedy that really works! I used to recommend a spoonful of honey with a squirt of lemon juice to my patients for sore throats. The honey soothes inflamed tissues and suppresses the cough reflex, while the lemon juice loosens mucus draining from the nasal cavity or sinuses.
This is especially great for kids, as a natural alternative to cough syrup. There are no dyes or high fructose corn syrup, and you don’t need to wait hours between doses. Plus, it tastes great! I don’t know any kids who will refuse a spoonful of honey!
*Important: Do not give honey to infants under 1 year of age.*
In addition to its throat-soothing effect, honey has strong antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antibiotic effects in the body. It has been used in traditional medicine for thousands of years.
Lemon juice is a good source of vitamin C and potassium, which is always good when you’re sick. The essential oil derived from lemon peel has more powerful immune-boosting effects, so using lemon and other citrus essential oils can help prevent illness from spreading.
Spiced Cranberry Tea
Who doesn’t love a hot drink full of the spicy flavors of cinnamon and cloves? This comforting beverage is similar to wassail, but it’s full of immune-boosting ingredients to help your body fight viruses and bacteria.
This tasty, rose-colored drink is very simple to prepare, and yields about three quarts. It freezes well, so you can pull a quart out of the freezer whenever you start to feel under the weather- or if you have been around people who are sick.
Cranberries, cinnamon, cloves, orange, lemon, and honey each have beneficial effects on the immune system. Combine them all in one drink, and you’ve got a recipe for wellness to sip all the way through cold and flu season! You can find the full recipe for spiced cranberry tea on my blog.
Homemade Chicken Soup
Don’t laugh at this one! Of all the natural cold remedies, this may be the most underrated. There’s a good reason why homemade chicken soup is nicknamed the “Jewish Penicillin.” Chicken soup has several different elements that can reduce inflammation in upper respiratory infections, according to some studies.
Plus, warm liquids are easy to consume even if your throat is sore. If you make the soup with bone broth, that adds even more nutrients to the mix. Bone broth has long been given to people who are ill or convalescing because of its healing effects.
Rose Hip Tea
Another great option for immune-boosting drinks is rose hip tea. This was traditionally used for treating scurvy! Rose hips contain a LOT of vitamin C: about 25 times as much as oranges! They also contain vitamins A, B, E, and K, as well as the essential minerals iron, calcium, and phosphorous.
To make tea from dried rose hips, crush as fine as possible with a mortar and pestle or a blender. Place approximately 1 teaspoon of rose hip powder or pieces into a teapot. Fill teapot with boiling water and allow it to steep for 5 to 10 minutes. (UAF Cooperative Extension)
Or combine rose hip juice with honey and lemon to taste for even more vitamins!
Salt Water Gargle
Gargling with salt water solution (5 mL salt to 500 mL purified water) can help prevent you from getting sick as well as relieve the discomfort of a sore throat.
Salt inhibits bacterial growth by maintaining a healthy pH balance in your mouth. If the pH level drops too much, it is easier for bacteria to grow and potentially cause disease or tooth decay. Gargling with salt water restores the pH balance and flushes bacteria out of the mouth.
Salt also acts as a natural remedy for sore throats because of its local anesthetic effect. It soothes the pain from swollen glands and raw surfaces in the mouth and throat. It can also decrease inflammation.
Rest & Fluids
When talking about natural cold remedies, I think these cannot be emphasized enough. People are so busy these days, and they don’t make rest a priority, even when they are sick. It is so important to slow down, lie down, and close your eyes more when you are sick!
Most of the body’s restorative processes happen while you are sleeping, so it makes sense that you need more sleep to recover from an illness, even a minor one. I know when I don’t take it easy because “it’s just a cold,” my symptoms last days longer than they do when I stay in bed longer and let the to-do list alone for a while.
Drinking lots of fluids is important too. Your immune system is busy killing bacteria or viruses, and fluids help by flushing the dead cells out of your body: clearing out the debris, as it were.
Warm, clear liquids like water, tea, and broth are best when you’re sick. Citrus juices have lots of vitamins, but they can be irritating to inflamed throats. Drinking lemon-infused water is better, because then you get the benefits of the oils in lemon rind. Do yourself a favor when you’re sick, and drink lots of extra fluids!
Conclusion
With these seven natural cold remedies, you will be well prepared to prevent and treat common respiratory illnesses. Even when you do get sick, these practices can help to shorten your symptoms and get you feeling better faster. It’s simple to help increase your immunity naturally by using these tips.
Live well and stay healthy!
~Kimberly
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