Exterminating Those Winter Bugs, Naturally

A few weeks ago, Kristy did a post on ways to boost your immune system. Sometimes for reasons out of our control, our immune system encounters a virus or bacteria that it cannot fight.

What do you do?

Take a Tylenol or some Nyquil and go to bed, right? Well, right on the “go to bed” part. ;) Rest is key when you feel like you are getting sick. You need to allow your body to use its energy to fight the microbes. Today, I am sharing some natural alternatives to treating some of the most common winter bugs – flu, colds, strep throat, etc.

Other Natural Remedies

ACV with “Mother”
One of my friends claims the magnificence of taking daily doses of apple cider vinegar with “mother.” For our blog readers and myself, I decided to find out exactly who or what “mother” is: strands of proteins, enzymes and friendly bacteria that give the product a murky, cobweb-like appearance. After reading about kefir, kombucha, and fermenting food over the last year or so, I know all those healthy bacteria and yeast are good for you. Over processing of food like honey (and in this case, vinegar) often kills some of the best properties of its natural makeup.

How to Use It
My friend mixes 2-4 teaspoons of ACV with raw honey and puts in a glass of water every day even for her kids. Whether you’re getting sick or trying to keep from getting sick, she guarantees it will help. Researching it, I also found those who mix the above (ACV with mother and raw honey) with fresh garlic to create what they call their Winter Wellness Elixir which has shown to kick the flu.

Bragg is the most popular brand of ACV with mother. I plan on buying this soon to keep in my natural medicine cabinet if I cannot find it at my local health foods store. (Shh, don't tell but sometimes I'd rather just stay home and do online ordering. Do you?)


Elderberries
Last year I read online about how to make elderberry syrup and how powerful it is in building your immune system to prevent sickness and in shortening the length of your illness.

Elderberry has been used for centuries to treat wounds topically and by mouth to treat respiratory illnesses such as flu and colds. WebMD states: “Elderberry is used for “the flu” (influenza), H1N1 'swine' flu, HIV/AIDS, and boosting the immune system. It is also used for sinus pain, back and leg pain (sciatica), nerve pain (neuralgia), and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Some people use elderberry for hay fever (allergic rhinitis), cancer, as a laxative for constipation, to increase urine flow, and to cause sweating.”

The elderberry fruit contains flavonoids which are full of antioxidants and may help prevent damage to the body’s cells. It also contains high levels of vitamins A and C (more than oranges even!) and has shown to stimulate the immune system, reduce inflammation and swelling in mucous membranes, such as the sinuses, and help relieve nasal congestion.

For further reading on some of the dangers of taking modern medicine to treat flu, read this article on Tamiflu.

Immune Boosting, Flu Preventing Elderberry Syrup
printable recipe here

3 cups water
1 cup dried elderberries
3 teaspoons ground ginger root
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 whole cloves
1 cup raw honey

Put water in a saucepan along with elderberries, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves; stir. Bring to a boil. Turn temperature down to low, cover, and let simmer for 30 minutes or until liquid has reduced to about half. Feel free to stir a couple of times during the simmer process and even mash those berries some with the back of the spoon to get out all that antioxidant, germ-fighting goodness.

Remove from heat and let cool about 30 minutes. Pour mixture through a mesh strainer into a glass bowl. Using the back of the spoon, to mash through any extra juice. Add the honey while it’s still slightly warm so it will dissolve into the syrup. You don’t want to add the honey while the mixture is simmering or it will destroy all the beneficial vitamins and enzymes.

How to Use It
Standard dose is 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon for kids and 1/2 tablespoon to 1 tablespoon for adults to boost immunity. Double the dosage and take every 2-3 hours if an illness has struck until symptoms disappear. Also, it tastes great on pancakes or ice-cream! I think it has a dried blueberry/raisin taste itself but with the cloves, cinnamon, ginger, and honey, it's pretty tasty for "medicine."

Note: You can use different forms of these ingredients. Such as fresh elderberries instead of dried, ground dried ginger instead of fresh, cinnamon sticks instead of ground cinnamon, and ground cloves instead of whole cloves. You can also omit the cloves and cinnamon (and ginger) if you want; I added them for their own healthy benefits. The variety of elderberries you want to buy are black elderberries known as sambucus nigra. These are the dried elderberries I bought off Amazon but if you do not want to make your own, a well-known ready made elderberry syrup is available too. It's known as "Sambucol." Realize, of course, it is cheaper to make your own but I know as well as you do that sometimes paying for convenience is worth it.


Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen Peroxide, also known as H2O2 (that’s what we call it at our house, don’t you? J/K), comes in different strengths. What you and I buy in the health section at the grocery store is 3% though. Many consider hydrogen peroxide one of the greatest household remedies after apple cider vinegar. Why? Because the added oxygen creates an environment where most diseases cannot thrive or even live. It also disinfects through oxidation making it a safe sanitizer. It fights infection, eliminates toxins, cures bacteria and viruses, and neutralizes germs.

How to Use It
The particular remedy using H2O2 I came across and wanted to share for this post is intriguing to me – when you feel something coming on or get sick (usually respiratory illnesses), put three drops of hydrogen peroxide in both ears for ten minutes (one at a time). You may hear it bubbling which is normal. All of the testimonials I read talked about how this kept them from getting a full-blown cold or the flu. If your ears are clogged with excessive wax, I read it can help clear them as well. Other people have had success with it helping to cure strep throat and allergy problems. One testimonial I read said they had “constant allergy/asthma symptoms of nasal drainage and scratchy sore throat, swollen glands, and low-grade infection-like symptoms have almost cleared up overnight” after using this method. (For further reading)

Caution: Do not put hydrogen peroxide in your ear if your ear drum is perforated.


Echinacea
Echinacea is an herbal supplement that works to boost the immune system and suppress infections. Commercially, it is often found combined with goldenseal and/or zinc. It's one of the best selling herbal products in the United States. Several studies have shown it helps you to get over a cold and its symptoms faster. People allergic to plants in the daisy family (ragweed, chrysanthemums, marigolds, and daisies) are cautioned to either not use echinacea or watch for any reactions with the initial use.

How to Use It
Echinacea can be taken in small daily doses to help reinforce the immune system; higher doses can be amazingly effective when you feel the first tickle of a cold starting. Dosages vary from 10-30 drops when using tinctures but if you are trying to fight an illness, veer on the higher end for echinacea. Children's doses are usually 1/4 that prescribed for adults. If you do not want to make your own, here is one that I read is recommended by holistic physicians:

Garlic
Long touted for its legendary germ-fighting abilities, once it is eaten the garlic's oil is excreted through the lungs. "Garlic breath," anyone? This is the main reason it's used for fighting respiratory illnesses. That strong smell is a result of its sulfur compounds which are beneficial to respiratory and circulatory systems. It also acts as an expectorant making it easier to cough up mucous and clear the sinuses.

How to Use It
How to take your garlic like a big girl (or boy!) if you feel a cold coming on - make garlic soup. Bring about two cups of broth (chicken, vegetable, or beef) to a low simmer. Add two crushed garlic cloves. Drink! You can also add some noodles or rice to the mixture to make it more palatable but you do not want to boil the garlic too much or it could lose some of its active compounds. Drink this 2-3 times a day.

Another way to take it is garlic-with-training-wheels: "The other more palatable method is to crush up to two cloves and let the minced garlic rest for about 15 minutes, letting the garlic’s enzymes activate. Add honey (also healing) or a touch of olive oil (some say it neutralizes the smell) to the minced garlic and top a small slice of bread or cracker with the mix. Bomb’s away!" (source)


Nasal Irrigation
Several different types of products can be used for nasal irrigation. The most basic are a bulb syringe, squeeze bottle, or neti pot. With these devices, the user manually pours or sprays a mixture of salt and water into the nostril. The fluid flows through the nasal cavity and into the other nostril. More high-tech nasal irrigation systems propel the solution into the nose, allowing the user to control the spray and pressure.

How to Use It
I personally use a neti pot and can vouch for its benefits. My sister had given me a neti pot probably four years ago but I was always too chicken to use it thinking I would feel like I was drowning. A couple of months ago, I had a sinus infection starting. Well, desperate times call for desperate measures. I was in pain. The pressure in my sinuses was horrible, and my teeth were starting to hurt. I looked up the proper way to use it and tried it out. It worked first time around. I used it again two hours later and followed protocol on Everything Essential to add eucalyptus and rosemary essential oils. The eucalyptus especially helped to open up my passages.

When I was working on my post for Economical Ways to Get Art for Your Home, I came across this picture from an old book published in 1897. Hilarious.

The thing is, people have been doing this for yeeeeears!

Prices for neti pots, also searchable as "nasal irrigation" or "sinus cleanse" (among others), range from $4 to $200 (an electric version). This is the one I own and use, but I make my own saline solution mixing 1-2 teaspoons sea salt with hot water (and sometimes added essential oils). Mix until the salt dissolves.

Colloidal Silver
I had never heard of colloidal silver until about a year and a half ago. It is created by immersing tiny particles of silver in a colloidal base solution. Silver is thought to make the immune system more active and thereby more effective at fending off disease. It is most commonly available in a liquid form that is dispensed with a dropper. Clear or pale yellow colloidal silver is the best as the particle size affects the color of the solution and the larger particles produce a darker colored liquid but they aren't easily absorbed by the body. (source) The silver particles are small enough to penetrate on a cellular level therefore making them able to destroy pathogens of all types including bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungal spores.

How to Use It
It does not have a taste so I've read and my sister says. There have been no reported allergic reactions with other medications. It can be taken early with the onset of a cold, flu, or bronchitis to reduce symptoms and to get over it more quickly. The most common way of ingesting colloidal silver is mixing two to four drops into a large glass of water. Check package instructions on your bottle. (For more information on how to use colloidal silver, click this link.)

Here are some options if you want to look and buy on Amazon. This brand of colloidal silver is the one I own and bought through them. With researching I have learned it is known by other names such as Silver Hydrosol, Argentum Metallicum, Colloidal Silver Protein, Ionic Silver, Native Silver, Silver in Suspending Agent, Silver Protein, among a few others. As mentioned above concerning colors, there is a difference in quality. I went with one that had the most positive reviews, even reading the negative ones to see why the buyer did not like the item. (That's how I like to decide on new items I've never bought.)

There are so many other natural solutions that are used regularly to help fight off or shorten the length of illnesses (peppermint tea, liposomal Vitamin C, oregano essential oil), but I had to stop somewhere. Is there a remedy you use that I didn't cover? Tell me about it!