This constantly changing weather seems to have everyone around me coming down with or just getting over a cold or the flu. I have posted some of these great natural methods for cold and flu prevention before, but so many of you have asked about natural remedies that I am posting more today!
- Antioxidants are our best armor against the flu, so add lots of blueberries, strawberries or cranberries to your breakfast, and sprinkle them with cinnamon or cloves which also help to boost our immune system! Also, cooked red beans and cooked artichokes are very high in antioxidants, who knew?! So you can eat antioxidant rich foods all day!
- I take 1000 mg of vitamin C twice daily, morning and evening, to boost my immune system. And if I start to feel a cold coming on, I immediately increase that to 4 times a day.
- Drink plenty of water and drink all day long, not just in the evening, to keep your body hydrated.
- Keep moisture in the air as well with a humidifier or vaporizer. Not only does moist air heat easier, helping your pocketbook, but it also keeps our noses in good shape so that those little nose hairs can do their filtering job better.
- Garlic is good for you, but you don’t have to wear it around your neck to keep the cold and flu vampires away, just eat some every day! It’s delicious as well as a natural antibiotic. In recent studies, garlic has been touted as a potent resource for fighting seasonal flu, including serious strains such as the H1N1 virus. In the January 2010 issue of Life Extension Magazine, author William Faloon, who compiled the medical reference book “Disease Prevention and Treatment,” emphasizes garlic as a low-cost means of boosting immunity. Faloon also refers to a Chinese study in which garlic proved more effective, at least in the test tube, than the prescription antiviral drug Ribavirin. I knew there was good reason I LOVE garlic!
