Common Cold- Home Remedies

A common cold is an infection of your upper respiratory tract. It is relatively harmless in low-risk populations, but it usually doesn’t feel that way. Any one of more than 200 viruses can cause a common cold, so symptoms tend to vary greatly. Adults are likely have a common cold 2-4 times per year; while children tend to have one 8-10 times per year (especially preschoolers).

Using common sense can help reduce your chances of ‘catching a cold’:

• Wash your hands thoroughly and often, and teach your children the importance of hand washing. Sing the ABC’s with younger children while washing hands to teach the proper time they should be lathering. Use a paper towel rather than a cloth one to dry your hands.

• Keep kitchen and bathroom counter tops, desks, phones, toys and computer keyboards clean with sanitizing wipes.

• Wash children’s toys.

• Teach your children to always sneeze and cough into tissues. (Discard immediately.) You can also teach children to sneeze into the bend of their elbow when they don’t have a tissue.

• Don’t share drinking glasses or eating utensils with others.

• Avoid others who are sick.

• Choose your childcare center wisely. The setting should have a sound hygiene practice and clear policies about keeping sick children home.

• Make a serious effort to manage your stress, which lowers immunity and may make you more susceptible to illness.

• Take health days rather than sick days.

• Boost your natural immunity with regular exercise, a healthy nutrition and holistic chiropractic care.

If you do experience a cold there are many things that have been known to help ease the symptoms:

• Drink lots of fluids- pure water, herbal tea and warm soup are all good choices. Avoid alcohol, caffeine and cigarette smoke, which can cause dehydration and aggravate our symptoms.

• Chicken soup- generations of parents have spooned chicken soup into their sick children. Now scientists have put chicken soup to the test, discovering that it does seem to help relieve cold and flu symptoms in 2 ways per the Mayo Clinic. First, it acts as an anti-inflammatory by inhibiting the movement of neutrophilis-immune system cells that participate in the body’s inflammatory response. Second, it temporarily speeds up the movement of mucus through the nose, helping relieve congestion and limiting the amount of time viruses are in contact with the nasal lining.

• Get rest- consider staying home from work yourself or with your child. This will give you a chance to rest as well as reduce the chances that you’ll infect others.

• Soothe the throat- gargling with warm salt water several times per day or drinking warm lemon water with honey may help soothe a sore throat and relieve a cold. Also, colloidal silver may soothe a sore throat, strep throat, pink eye, minor cuts and bruises… we like Sovereign Silver at whole foods.

• Vitamin C- taking lower doses 200-300 milligrams- may shorten a cold’s duration. Amounts exceeding 2,000 milligrams may cause diarrhea and nausea. Ask your pediatrician how much to give your child.

• Echinacea- supports the immune system.

• Zinc- an essential nutrient that plays an important role in the maintenance of the immune system and cell growth and repair. Large range of zinc products on the market, including lozenges, nasal sprays and ice blocks for kids.

• Garlic- can help prevent colds and help reduce symptoms because t contains a potent antibiotic call allicin. Best to consume fresh garlic within an hour of chopping it.

• Fresh Pineapple- is wonderful for colds, less acidic not upsetting the stomach. It contains more vitamin C and breaks down mucus better.

• Grapefruit- helps detoxify the liver which is the front line to the immune system and when the immunity id impaired, you need something that is alkaline and not acidic to detoxify it.

• Adjust your room’s temperature and humidity- keep your room warm but not overheated. If the air is dry, a cool-mist humidifier or vaporizer can moisten the air and help ease congestion and coughing. Be sure to keep it clean to prevent the growth of bacteria and molds. Cold viruses thrive in dry conditions-another reason why colds are more common in the winter.