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This article was submitted by my sister Sept. 24, 02. Her site offers Chiles, Spices, Seeds, Recipes, Herbal Info and other southwestern goodies! Click here to go to Sweet Freedom Farm.
HERBAL TREATMENT PLAN, FOR THE COUGH, COLD, AND FLU SEASON
Susan Quintana, RN
Ewwww. Here we go again...snorting, sneezing, sniffling, wheezing, hacking, coughing, weakness, fatigue, lethargy, partial to full body aches and pains, drippy noses, watery eyes, and the list goes on when describing symptoms of those nasty viruses that attack us in late fall, winter, and early spring.
Since antibiotics are not, I repeat, NOT effective against these invaders, except to possibly prevent a secondary infection in the most susceptible groups of people, those being infants, the elderly, and those with already compromised respiratory systems or other chronic diseases, there are many herbs that will help alleviate symptoms, and shorten the course of these illnesses. There are even herbal antibiotics that may help prevent colds and flu’s from turning into secondary infections such as pneumonia, or other serious illnesses, such as sinusitis, middle ear infection, or tonsillitis.
We catch colds, or they catch us, for a few reasons. Some people's resistance, or immunity, is lower when colder air arrives, especially if their immune system has been under some sort of stress, such as working long hours with little sleep, just recovering from another illness, or has a chronic illness, and, or, poor nutrition. It is also said that viruses seem to thrive in cooler air. Also, most people are indoors more, where the exchange of fresh air is minimal. People congregate indoors during the winter, more often than outside, and germs are spread easily in a closed, stuffy atmosphere. Whatever the case, coughs, colds, and flu’s are slightly to extremely miserable, and the flu can make you feel like you're having your last few days in this incarnation, not to mention being a very serious illness for the 'at risk' groups mentioned above.
WAYS TO AVOID VIRUSES
One of the best ways to avoid viruses is to wash your hands frequently, and avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth. Cold viruses, of which around 200 strains have been identified, are spread through droplets in the air after someone has sneezed or coughed, via hand contact with another person, or obtained from surfaces where germs may have landed after having been contaminated by a virus carrying person. Just think about all the ways of becoming infected. Passing money, picking up a pen at the checkout counter, ATM keypads and public telephones, doctor's offices, hospitals, and flying on commercial airlines, to name but a few potential sources of contamination. You breathe in the virus that's floating through the air, touch contaminated hands or surfaces, then rub your eyes, or scratch your nose, and then wham...a few days later, you KNOW you got da bug.
The next best way to avoid colds and flu’s is to get and maintain a healthy immune system. Our immune system is a miraculous fighting machine, made to fight off marauders. Our immune systems have special cells that are made specifically for the task of fighting infections, and one can increase the numbers of those cells and the immune system's response to invaders, by completely natural means, herbally, and by taking certain minerals and vitamins.
The third way to avoid the nasties, is to completely avoid people, and everything they may have touched, and the very air they may have sneezed or coughed in. In other words, 'drop out' for a few months. This would not be fun, but it would be mostly effective.
With all our technological advances, you would think there would be a cure for the common cold, but alas, there isn't, and may never be, due to the large number of strains circulating around. But, a holistic approach can be extremely helpful in getting us through the 'sick season' without becoming seriously ill, or ideally, not at all.
HERBS
An excellent herb, astragalus, has been found to be very effective for the immune system and is probably one of the most recommended herbs for building the immune system. It stimulates T-cell activity, (lymphocytes which play a major role in the body's defense against viruses, fungi, and certain bacteria), stimulates phagocytosis (the process by which unwelcome invaders are surrounded by, and ingested by phagocytes) while increasing the number of those cells and their aggressiveness. There have been many positive studies done on astragalus, and without a doubt, it is one of the best immune enhancing/stimulating herbs available, and also a superb protector of the liver. Over the millennia, there have been no reports of toxicity when taking astragalus. This herb can be taken to build overall immunity, strengthen the lungs, and for building resistance to colds, flu, and other infections, and can be taken for weeks or months as needed. Many people use the root in soups, broths, and rice dishes.
Garlic is strongly antiviral with many, many studies to verify its efficacy. It activates B cells, T cells and phagocytes. The list of bacteria, viruses, fungi, mold, and parasites that are killed or inhibited by garlic or its constituents, is amazing. Noted herbalist, Paul Bergner, states that garlic nose drops will kill influenza virus. The drops can be made by crushing enough garlic cloves to get some juice, then diluting that in 10 parts water. Crushed, raw garlic can also be taken in wine, vinegar, with honey, carrot and other juices. Garlic and honey make an excellent cough syrup. Dr. Michael Tierra likes to take raw garlic cloves and blend them in olive oil in the blender. He recommends a teaspoon every 1 or 2 hours to relieve the immediate cold symptoms, and to provide antiviral and antibiotic effects to help prevent the spread of the inflammation. Garlic oil is also effective for coughs and earaches. For earaches, moisten a cotton ball with the garlic oil and put into both ears, even if only one is affected, before going to bed.
Take garlic at the very first sign of infection, or even if you THINK you've been exposed.
A very powerful home remedy that I think was formulated by Dr. Michael Tierra, consists of 5 herbs. Echinacea, which studies have shown to be both bacteriostatic and antiviral, goldenseal root, which has powerful effects in drying the mucus membranes and inhibiting a wide range of hostile invaders, chaparral, which has been shown to have strong antimicrobial activity and decreases inflammation of the respiratory tract, garlic, already discussed, and which has been shown to be specific against the influenza virus, and astragalus, with it's deep, immuno-enhancing properties.
To make this remedy, combine equal parts of the herbs, and blend about 4 ounces of the combination into a pint of gin or vodka, in a wide-mouthed jar. Cover, and shake daily. After at least 2 weeks, strain off the herbs, and rebottle the tincture for use. The average dose is 30 drops, to one teaspoon, 2 or 3 times daily, more or less as needed. This is known as a tincture.
With this combination of herbs at hand, I think one could leap tall buildings with a single bound!!! Well, at least cut short any virus that makes it's way into a body.
A common, and highly effective remedy is yarrow, peppermint and elderberry flower tea, one ounce of the herbs in combination, infused in 2 cups of water. It can be sweetened with honey or raw brown sugar. This tea can work wonders when taken at the early onset of illness.
Ginger all by itself is good at the onset of a cold. It gently stimulates the body's vitality, and promotes perspiration. Ginger tea is effective, taken with honey in reducing the accumulation of phlegm and mucus, and will relieve nausea if it's present.
A very effective tea, to relieve symptoms of colds and flu are to use 2 teaspoons of sage, from right out of your cupboard, the juice of one lemon, a good sized pinch of cayenne pepper, and a tablespoon of honey. Pour one cup of boiling water over the sage and allow steeping for 10 minutes, with the cup covered. After the steeping time, strain out the herb and add the remaining ingredients. This can be taken as often as wanted. Hopefully your sage will be fairly fresh and still aromatic.
An herb that has helped my family in a big way is osha root. Pieces of this can be chewed, or a decoction made of the root pieces, or taken as a tincture. This herb, plus the sage tea above completely cured my husband of walking pneumonia, which was rapidly turning into a bacterial pneumonia. Osha root has been used for centuries by Native Americans, and is excellent for bronchial congestion and inflammation, is anti-viral, and wonderful for breaking up respiratory congestion.
There is a cough syrup, called Sambucol, which is made from elderberry syrup. This is an extremely effective herbal cough medicine. I would take the time and trouble to seek it out. Elderberry is a very well known anti-viral.
A folk remedy, that I've never tried, but probably will someday, is to slice a large onion, and cover all slices completely with brown sugar. Cover it up, and drink the resulting liquid the next morning. This is supposed to cure colds and bronchitis. Onions, as well as garlic, contain allicin, which enhances immunity, and helps ward off bacterial, fungal, and viral infections.
There are so many herbs that can help us get through the winter unscathed by viral infections. Marshmallow root, hyssop, mullein, licorice root, boneset, horehound, elecampane, slippery elm, pleurisy root, lobelia, and etc., etc., etc.
Some of the herbs, such as Echinacea, goldenseal, and astragalus are somewhat expensive, and, in the case of goldenseal, in danger of being over-harvested.
If one wants to go the cheaper route, garlic is surely available, and is extremely effective. The easiest way to take garlic is to slice up a clove, coat with honey, chew it up a bit if you want, and swallow. This can be done up to 3 times/day for prevention. Increase if infection actually sets in.
Ginger, sage, cayenne, lemons and honey are also cheap, effective home remedies.
As Linus Pauling discovered, taking large doses of Vitamin C can greatly reduce the severity and longevity of a cold. I take 4,000 mgs /day, but would increase that to 500 mg or more, every hour, if a virus infection set in. Also, taking 15 mg of zinc, twice daily is known to have good benefits when fighting off viruses.
There are no contraindications for any of these herbs, for which I've given recipes, when taken as directed except for a few exceptions. Some say Echinacea shouldn't be taken by people with autoimmune disorders, such as multiple sclerosis, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis, while others say it's okay for the short term. Others say Echinacea should be taken on a rotating basis, like, 7 to 14 days on, 7 days off. Others say it can be taken long-term without a break. I think it's probably best to rotate its administration. In any case, if taken at the first sign of a cold, it can definitely shorten its severity and duration.
Vitamin C can be taken safely, in large doses. In fact, it can be increased up to the point of it causing diarrhea, at which time, you'd want to back off until the diarrhea stops, and that would be your dose.
Zinc has been called the 'healing mineral'. Chelated zinc is the most easily absorbed, so look for a chelated type when you buy it. I had a patient with long-standing, non-healing, decubitus ulcers, start taking a zinc supplement, and after 3 months, the ulcers were healed. I'm sure she had a deficiency. The World Health Organization has said that zinc is the most likely deficiency in our modern diets.
Goldenseal is recommended for short-term use of 2-4 weeks only, and only in the recommended dose. It shouldn't be taken during pregnancy.
In the end, once a cold or flu has 'set-in', it may just have to run its course. But the duration, discomfort, and potential secondary infections can be considerably reduced by the use of herbs and supplements. I will have on hand this winter, osha root, and the 5-herb tincture. I've had 2 bouts with the flu in my life, and I don't EVER, want to revisit those viruses again.
I have a question or comment for Randy!
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