Beat the Common Cold
by Molly @ 9:23 am 3 comments »
Winter ushers in cold weather, holidays, and cold and flu season. This year, I am determined to stay clear of the good ol’ Dayquil, Nyquil, Dayquil, Nyquil cycle. As we all know, the virus that causes the common cold has no cure. Echinacea, a popular natural remedy, has never been proven clinically effective, and there are potential side effects to ingesting the herb. Fortunately, there are several tried and true methods of relieving cold symptoms naturally. Doctors always recommend increasing fluid intake and getting plenty of rest. Here are several suggestions that will help you do just that! (read more)
When I feel achy and restless, a neck pillow draped over my shoulders and around my neck really helps relieve tension. Heating pads stuffed with organic buckwheat and lavender from Hip and Zen can be popped in the microwave for easy relief and long-lasting heat.
Although old fashioned, indulging in a hot bowl of chicken noodle soup actually helps restore fluids and sodium. It’s great for when you’ve lost your appetite because it’s easy on your stomach. Plus, chicken soup can be very simple to prepare (if you’re feeling well enough or taking care of someone with a cold!) Cut up chicken breasts, several drumsticks, several thighs (Free range organic, always!)
Organic butter
Organic minced onion, garlic, celery (about a cup total)
Organic peas and carrots
Dash of sage and thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
Plus or minus 8 Cups organic reduced sodium chicken broth
2 Cups water (ish!)
Organic egg noodles
I use this flexible recipe because you can adjust the amount of solids or liquids depending on your appetite. First, brown the outside of the chicken in a large stew pot with a pad of butter. Set aside. Next, sautee the onion, garlic, celery, sage, thyme and pepper until the onion is translucent. Add the peas and carrots until tender. Add broth and water and bring to a simmer. Drop in the browned chicken pieces and simmer for around 30 minutes. Salt to taste. Add egg noodles and simmer for another 11 minutes. You can enjoy the soup with whole chicken pieces, but the chicken will also fall off the bone easily if you like smaller pieces of meat. Bon appetite!
and one more thing…
- Drinking hot, decaffeinated tea soothes your sinuses and also restores water loss. Try healing, mellow, and smooth organic chamomile tea from Zhena’s Gypsy Tea. All teas are 100% fair trade and come in decorative tin canisters.
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Good suggestions for natural methods to cold relief. It would be good for our immune defenses to skip on the usual medicines for a while and treat the body using natural remedies and herbal supplements.
Echinacea’s effectiveness may not be clinically proven, but would it benefit the clinics doing the testing if it were? Might there not be a bias against most, if not all, herbal remedies? I take echinacea at first sign of immunity compromise and I have experience with maybe one cold virus every two or three years, if that.
Side effects? I’ve never had any from taking echinacea. I’m a bit surprised that an alternative consumer blog would be dismissing echinacea based on clinical trials and an unsubstantiated claim of “potential side effects”.
Why do you suggest I dismiss a product based on clinical trials? In fact, all studies I have encountered drawn the similar conclusion that echinacea plays no role in preventing or curing the common cold. As with all ingested medication, there is a risk of an allergic reaction with echinacea. Furthermore, a University of Washington study from 2004 an increased incidence of rash amongst test subjects upon ingesting the drug. I am not dismissing echinacea- I am just relaying what I have learned through my research. There is an inherent bias against herbal remedies, but this does not mean that scientific studies should be brushed aside- these are not preformed by drug companies and can give you sound advice. Its up to the patient to make the final call, and if echinacea helps you then by all means continue taking it.
-molly