Treating Cold and Flu with Herbs
Hubby came home sick from work on Monday and has since gone to see the GP, but we decided that we’re going to try to treat his cold and flu symptoms with herbs rather than antibiotics. It just makes sense – running our own herb business and me becoming more and more knowledgeable on herbs the last five years.
Here’s what we’re doing to help Ricky get over his cold/flu and bronchitis:
Echinacea tincture - a.k.a Echinaforce (but you can make your own). 20 drops in a bit of water twice a day.
Cold tea – mixed elderflowers, yarrow and a bit of peppermint together as this is an old English remedy for colds and flu. One cup in the morning and one at night.
Cough tea – mixed equal parts of Plantain and Thyme and steep as a tea and drink every three hours. A teaspoonful of swedish bitters can be added to this.
Swedish Bitters – a cotton wool dampened with Swedish bitters is held in front of the nose and the mouth and deep breaths are taken. The same cotton wool is then used to wipe the sinuses.
Essential Oil Bath – Add 3 drops lemon, 2 drops eucalyptus, 2 drops thyme and 1 drop tea tree to a warm bath and relax, breathing the steam deeply.
I’ve not done this yet, but these are some of the other things I’d look at for helping with the symptoms of the common cold and to support your system to get over it sooner:
Rooibos Tea with Lemon and Ginger and Honey
Echinacea and Stinging Nettle Tea with Cayenne
So far the Thyme and Plantain tea seems to be a hit and helps clear the chest and stops the terrible coughing almost immediately after taking it. Since starting the regime, I have seen energy return to my husband and am sure that he is getting better with the help of these remedies.
PLEASE NOTE: All herbal information given here is subject to our general disclaimer on http://www.herbsonline.co.za/disclaimer.php