Natural remedies for the flu

This year’s flu season is in full force! I see sick people. I mean every where I go, I see sick people and I live in sunny Southern California. I cannot imagine what it is like in other parts of the country that are being hit the hardest.

Snow is such a rarity in these parts…but would you believe that we are getting mornings as low as 21 degrees? I haven’t felt this cold in a long time.

The Center For disease (CDC) has a few tips to prevent the flu this season. They say the flu has started earlier this year and has reached epidemic proportions.

Here are a few tips from CDC:

* If you get sick with flu-like illness, stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone except to get medical care or for other necessities. (Your fever should be gone without the use of a fever-reducing medicine.)

Photo from Craftgossip.com

* Practice proper cough and sneeze etiquette to prevent the spread of germs.

* Wash your hands regularly.

Photo from CDC

* Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth

* Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces at home, work or school, especially when someone is ill.

Making homemade disinfectant is easy and affordable. With only 2 ingredients, you can wipe up a batch in no time.

I generally buy my essential oils online on amazon but check your local health food store.

Here is what you need:

4–8 drops essential oil (I suggest the known-antiseptic essential oils listed below)
1 cup purified or distilled water
Combine ingredients in a spray bottle; shake to blend.

Use liberally on non-staining surfaces or simply spray in the center of the room, being sure to avoid contact with eyes.

6 Germ-Killing Essential Oils

You can change the essential oil blend of the formulas above as you like, but the following list of essential oils are known to be highly antiseptic.

Cinnamon – cozy, comforting
Clove – spicy, warming
Lavender – relaxing, soothing
Rosemary – invigorating
Thyme – refreshing, purifying, herbal, peppery
Balsam pine – purifying, vitality-promoting

Be sure to check the effects of the essentials on small children as some are not recommeded.

I was looking around to find some great natural remedies that you can make at home and the flu bomb is one that kept coming up. Have you heard of it? I have seen it with essential oils and without them. Here is the recipe for the flu bomb without essentail oils.

Kate’s Flu Bomb

This will definitely scare away symptoms. Please be careful and use at your own risk. I am not a doctor and cannot give you advice for your flu symptoms.

1 cup of boiling water
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 Tablespoon honey
1 Tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 whole lemon, squeezed or cut up
cayenne pepper, to taste

Blend all ingredients together. Press pulp through sieve.

Put all liquid in mug. Add as much cayenne as you can handle.

Combine well. Drink.

Have you ever heard of the Neti pot? It seems to have gained a lot of popularity these days. I see them everwhere.

According to eHow, a Neti Pot is used to cleanse the nasal passage. This is especially good during allergy season and with sinus problems. Most Neti Pots come with solution to start you off with but here is a homemade solution to keep you going.

Here is what you need:

Pour eight ounces of warm water into the Neti pot. distilled or purified water. Use warm, not hot water once you are ready to use your Neti pot. Hot water can be painful and damaging to the nasal cavity. Heat water to the temperature you would heat a baby’s bottle. Test a little on the underside of your forearm to determine if it’s too hot.

Using cold water is fine, but it won’t feel as good as warm water. If you are trying the Neti pot for the first time, you may want to make the experience as comfortable as possible.

For every eight ounces of water, place ½ teaspoon of salt into the water and mix until it’s dissolved. Some people swear by only using kosher, sea salt or non-iodized salt since these salts do not contain additives. Plain table salt generally contains iodine and other agents to prevent the salt from clumping.

Along with the salt, some suggest that mixing in ¼ teaspoon of baking soda can lessen the severity of the nasal wash and be a little more comforting.

Easing a sore Throat: Adapted from Discovery Health

1: Keep Your Nasal Passages
The most common causes of sore-throat pain are postnasal drip and a dry throat that results from sleeping with your mouth open when your nasal passages are blocked.
Invest in a humidifier to run in your bedroom at night.

2: Rest, rest, rest
If your symptoms do not need medical attention, give your body the time it needs to heal.

3: Gargle
Gargle raspberry tea. Raspberry leaf tea can make a great gargle. (To make, pour 1 cup boiling water over 2 teaspoons dried leaves. Steep for 10 minutes, then strain. Allow to cool.) If you also have a fever, the gargle can be used as a fever-reducing drink, too. Do not drink any liquid you have used as a gargle.

Gargle with sage. This curative herb is a great sore-throat gargle. Mix 1 teaspoon in 1 cup boiling water. Steep for 10 minutes, then strain. Add 1 teaspoon each cider vinegar and honey, then gargle four times a day.

Gargle with turmeric. Try this gargle to calm a cranky throat. Mix together 1 cup hot water, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Gargle with the mixture twice a day. If you’re not good with the gargle, mix 1/2 teaspoon turmeric in 1 cup hot milk and drink. Turmeric stains clothing, so be careful when mixing and gargling.

Gargle with warm saltwater. If you can gargle without gagging, make a saline solution by adding 1/2 teaspoon salt to a cup of very warm water. Yes, when your mother told you to gargle with saltwater, she knew what she was talking about. It cuts phlegm and reduces inflammation. Dissolve 1/2 teaspoon salt in 1/2 cup warm water, and gargle every three to four hours.
Gargle with Listerine. Another good gargling fluid is Listerine mouthwash. If you share the product with anyone else in your household, don’t drink straight from the bottle; instead, pour a small amount into a cup (and don’t share that, either).

4: Drink Cider Vinegar
This sore throat cure is found in several different remedies. Note: (Do not give it — or any other honey-containing food or beverage — to children under two years of age. Honey can carry a bacterium that can cause a kind of food poisoning called infant botulism and may also cause allergic reactions in very young children.)

Here’s what you need:

1 tablespoon honey, any kind
1 tablespoon vinegar, preferably apple-cider vinegar
8 ounces hot water
Mix all the ingredients together in a mug and sip slowly (but don’t let it get cold). Use as often as desired.
For gargling: You’ll need 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 cup cider vinegar, and 1 cup warm water. Dissolve the salt in the vinegar, then mix in the water. Gargle every 15 minutes as necessary.

5: Use Citrus
Sip lemon juice. Mix 1 tablespoon each of honey and lemon juice in 1 cup warm water and sip away.
Drink lime juice. Combine 1 spoonful with a spoonful of honey and take as often as needed for a sore throat.

6: Drink Hot Liquids
Especially if you’re not good at gargling, drink hot fluids, such as coffee, tea or hot lemonade. Coating the tissue in your throat with warm liquid provides a benefit similar to applying hot packs to infected skin.

7: Steam Tent
A steam tent is when sitting with your face over a bowl of steaming hot water and your head covered with a towel to keep the steam in. Adding 1 to 2 drops eucalyptus oil can be soothing.
Several scientific studies have shown that steaming can actually shorten the duration of a throat infection.
8: Drink lots of Fluids
Drink as much fluid as possible — at least eight to 10 8-ounce glasses per day. Keeping your throat well lubricated with soothing liquids can prevent it from becoming dry and irritated and may even help banish the infection faster.

9: Suck on Garlic
Peel a fresh clove, slice it in half, and place 1 piece in each cheek. Suck on the garlic like a cough drop. Occasionally, crush your teeth against the garlic, not to bite it in half, but to release its allicin, a chemical that can kill the bacteria that causes strep.

10: Grab Some Hard Candy
Think of a sore throat as an excuse to indulge your sweet tooth. Some doctors say that sugar can help soothe a sore throat and the ticklish cough that may come with it. If nothing else, sucking on hard candy, can help keep your mouth and throat moist, which will make you feel more comfortable.

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