Fighting Colds & Flus

While Cold FX is still popular
it isn’t a replacement for eating right. Besides, mother nature didn’t stop at American Ginseng (which Cold FX is derived from). Many herbs that live in the typical kitchen cupboard have their uses in fighting colds and flus. Of course they work best if they are of high quality and have been stored correctly. Just a few examples are:
Thyme, which has anti-viral and anti-spasmodic properties [1]
Cayenne is great for stimulating circulation and promoting the ability to maintain appropriate body heat. This does a couple of things – healthy circulation means that the cells of the body are receiving the nutrients they need, and the waste products of cellular metabolism are carried away. This also promotes the body’s own ability to maintain an appropriate temperature for fighting colds and flus. [2]
Ginger is also good for promoting circulation, but is also a wonderful anti-inflammatory [3][4][5] It is also great for settling a queasy stomach.
Sage is useful for sore throats. It can be made into a tea that is gargled periodically throughout the day. [6]
Outside of the typical kitchen cupboard there are numerous choices as well. Some of the better known and studied ones are:
Echinacea is a good immune balancer. It has the effect of in- creasing the white blood cells (which fight infection) and it has demonstrated a reduc- tion in duration and fre- quency of future colds and flus. [7][8][9]
Elderberry “neuters” the cold and flu virus’. While it doesn’t kill the virus it reduces it’s ability to reproduce (replicate), thus shortening the length of time it takes to get over a cold or flu. [10][11][12][13]
Oregano is a popular anti- microbial. Though most studies have been for gastrointestinal (especially H. Pylori) infections [14]

Elizabeth