Herbs: Traditional Medicinals Children’s Cold Care, Gypsy Cold Care or Traditional Medicinals Throat Coat are often a quick fix to help relieve the symptoms of the common cold or flu. The following herbs may also be use to help fight underlying infections associated with colds.
- Antibacterial herbs- Clove, Oregano, Goldenseal, Oregon Grape Root, Cinnamon, Thyme, Raw Garlic, Honey, Ginger
- Anti-viral herbs: Clove, Calendula, Cat’s Claw, Chinese Skullcap, Licorice Root, Astragalus Root, Olive Leaf, Oregano, Milk Thistle, Ginger
Homeopathy: At the very first sign of a cold or flu, I try to dose myself with a homeopathic remedy. If the sickness seems to suddenly appear and hit like a ton of bricks, I typically use Aconitum Napellus. If the sickness seems to slowly creep on, I use arsenicum album. If for some reason, these remedies do not work and we develop a full-blown cold and/or flu, we use specific acute remedies or the Oscillococcinum Homeopathic Remedy (I would NOT advise taking these unless you’re working under the care of a practitioner). We’ve dosed this with only 4 dry pellets, instead of the full vial.
Essential Oils: Natural defense EO’s like OnGuard or Thieves, rosemary, sage and thyme
Other: Homemade Elderberry syrup (if you’re local to me, Sweet’s Syrup is a fantastic option! She has even made sure there are no sources of free glutamate in her products), cold fighting pineapple ginger drink, ginger, raw local honey and lemon tea. We also up green juices to get extra nutrients in. If they won’t drink, try making popsicles out of the juice and use the opportunity to sneak some elderberry syrup or herbal tea into the mix.
Black Cumin Oil: This wonder oil was suggested to be by a dear friend of mine because of its incredible anti-inflammatory properties. Not only does this oil help to lower glutamate and increase GABA, it helps with anxiety, seizures, blood sugar regulation, inhibits cytokine production and has anti-microbial and anti-parasitic properties. Click here for a great article on the benefits of black cumin oil. We use a drop or two per day, or slightly more when sick.