Finding the Cure in the Pantry
There’s no shortage of remedies for Cold and Flu symptoms these days. Whether you’re looking for an over-the-counter drug or a more natural remedy, your options are endless. And while some of them are quite effective, it’s nice to know that there are plenty of home remedies that can get you feeling better on those occasions when you can’t make it out to the store. It’s important to remember that while most people make a distinction between herbs and food, there are actually quite a few similarities. In fact, in most herb-based systems of healing, herbal formulas are prescribed along with specific foods that enhance the medicinal properties of the herbs. If such dietary guidelines are not followed, the herbs are often not as effective and the person does not experience the full potential of the treatment.
We have compiled a list of 5 of the best home remedies for various seasonal ailments. Sometimes they can be extremely effective, and other times they can just help you get through the day until you have time to get to the doctor.
The Top 5 Home Remedies Anyone Can Use
1. Garlic—Aside from being a tasty addition to many meals, garlic has a great deal of medicinal properties. It is an excellent choice for anyone suffering from the common cold. A study done in 2001 found that garlic consistently performed better than placebo in a group of 146 people. The group receiving the garlic had significantly fewer occurrences of cold symptoms, and those who did get sick recovered much faster. Probably the easiest way to get garlic in your system is to put it in soups or any other foods.
2. Honey—Far from being just a natural sweetener, good quality honey has all kinds of medicinal properties. It can be used as a first aid for minor cuts, scrapes and burns, and internally to ward off infections. Not all honey is created equally though. Most store-bought honey is not even real honey, or at least very low quality honey. Check out our blog on honey:
http://www.willneratlanta.com/2012/01/02/the-benefits-of-manuka-honey/
For medicinal purposes, you can’t find anything better than manuka honey. It has unique properties that set it apart from regular honey, making it superior in its antibiotic properties. A common home remedy borrowed from ayurvedic medicine is to take some freshly ground black peppercorns and mix them into a honey base. According to ayurveda, black pepper is good for drying up fluids of any kind. This mixture can be good for any symptoms that involve mucus overproduction, no matter where it is in the body.
3. Ginger—This pungent herb is one of the best things you can use for acute symptoms. Ginger has a number of properties that are helpful when fighting off a cold or a flu. It is anti-inflammatory, which is good for inflamed mucous membranes of the sinuses and throat. It’s very warming, which can be very helpful for someone who is experiencing chills. It also has diaphoretic properties (makes you sweat) when taken as a tea, which can help expel toxins through the sweat. It’s almost universally known as an anti-nausea remedy, and it has been shown to be helpful for sore throat as well.
4. Onion—Onions are great for breaking up mucus in the head and chest, increasing circulation and fighting inflammation, all properties that are necessary to fight of cold and flu symptoms. Many people will make an onion-leek soup and consume it regularly until symptoms abate. It would also be a good idea to add garlic to this soup to make it even more effective.
5.Coconut Oil—It’s not just a fat! Coconut oil is actually high in lauric acid, which has it’s own antiviral properties, but also turns into monolaurin in the body. Monolaurin is one of the most potent natural antiviral substances that we know of. Lauric acid is also found in large amounts in human breast milk, and it’s very important for building a baby’s immune system. Coconut oil is probably the best source of lauric acid other than breast milk. It can be taken straight off the spoon, or mixed into other foods. It’s best not to cook with coconut oil, although it is very commonly done. Regardless of how you decide to take it, using it on a daily basis can be very beneficial during the fall and winter months.
There are numerous other home remedies out there, but these 5 are some of the most powerful. They can all be taken freely, because they are all foods! While they don’t replace a visit to the doctor, these remedies can hopefully reduce the amount of visits to the hospital, or at least help you get rid of your symptoms faster.