I've only had two colds in over a year because of a healthy diet and my use of natural remedies to prevent and cure sickness rather than all of that over-the-counter crap. Since I'm all about helping others, I thought I'd share the most useful natural remedies with you so that you can feel better, too!
Apple Cider Vinegar - Controls appetite and reduces blood sugar.
Tea – Tea tannins are antioxidants and can aid in the prevention of cancer.
Fish Oil – Beneficial for the skin, brain and heart health.
Cinnamon – Helps to strengthen the immune system, lower cholesterol, regulates blood sugar, inhibits bacterial growth, boosts cognitive function and memory.
Ginseng – Increases blood flow and energy.
Niacin – Reduces cholesterol better than some prescription medications.
Salt – Reduces inflammation and kills bacteria.
Lemon – Potent anti-oxidant, and full of collagen-forming Vitamin C.
Aloe Vera - Useful for the healing of burns and digestion.
Calendula - Relieves cramps.
Echinacea - Reduces the duration and severity of the common cold.
Ginger - Decreases nausea or vomiting.
Green Tea - Slows the development of breast cancer, energy.
Chamomile Tea - Reduces smooth muscle spasms and reduces inflammation in the stomach and intestines.
Black Walnut - Removes parasites and aids in toxin elimination.
Chlorophyll - Improves and maintains a healthy colon.
Flaxseed - Contain Omega-9 and Omega-3 essential fatty acids and are a great source of fiber and protein with manganese, folate, Vitamin B6, magnesium, phosphorous, lecithin, zinc, and copper. It aids in curing colon and breast cancer, skin problems, asthma, diabetes, arthritis, sprains and bruises, obesity, as well as lowering high blood pressure and cholesterol.
Rasbery Leaf Tea and Black Tea - Relieves menstrual cramps or pain from ovulation.
Garlic - Kills viruses and prevents them from replicating in the body.
Vitamin C - Enhances and boosts the immune system.
Magnesium - Helps reverse osteoporosis, prevents cardiovascular disease, regulates high blood pressure, treats diabetes, treats migraines and insomnia, regulates body temperature, and helps form healthy bones and teeth.
HEADACHE
Water, massage, aromatherapy (sandlewood, peppermind, eucalyptus, lavender and natural oils), icing, sleep, exercise (increases circulation).
FEVER
Besides getting plenty of rest and drinking lots of fluids, another remedy to stop a fever is strange, but has been proven to work: Cut up an onion and put two or three rings on the sole of each foot, then put on socks. This will get rid of a fever by the time the onion turns brown.BLOATING
Peppermint, basil, ginger, cinnamon and chamomile, or boiled water with lemon helps to aid in relief from bloating. A few drops of clove or eucalyptus oils added to a glass of water is helpful as well. It is very important that you eat slowly and chew your food thoroughly as well.
COMMON COLD
The common cold is a viral infection that affects your upper respiratory tract, also known as the nose and throat. In spite of what doctors may say and the fact that those emergency z-pac antibiotics may knock it out faster, there is no official cure for the cold.
Drink: My old CrossFit trainer swears by this drink, and it almost always works for me: Boil a cup of water and add cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, lemon and honey. The peppers open your sinuses while the honey soothes your throat right away!
Steam: Boil a few cups of water, pour it into a metal mixing bowl, add a chamomile tea bag or fresh eucalyptus, cover your head with a towel, and breathe in. Its like a mini at-home steam session for your skin and sinuses, mmmmm!
Take: Besides drinking loads of water, getting lots of rest and eating more fruits and vegetables, there is plenty that you can do to feel better without going to the pharmacy. Avoiding over-the-counter medication is absolutely necessary, because those products are bad for your body and those companies just make money off of keeping you sick! When the body becomes "sick" with a cold, flu, etc., most people tend to rush to the pharmacy and take as much medicine as they can to get rid of it. What they don't understand is that the body must be allowed to do what it needs to do, because if you keep blocking the cold from leaving your body naturally, it'll just keep coming back!
No Nasal Sprays! They're worse for your nose than any drug (obviously anything you put up your nose is deadly), I'm not kidding. The last time I went to an ear/nose/throat doctor, he told me that the inside of my nose would get more torn-up if I kept using nasal sprays every time I had a runny nose or full-blown cold (which happened often in the past due to allergies). This freaked me out, because I had been using prescription and over-the-counter nasal sprays for years!
HORMONE IMBALANCE/ALLERGIES
Whether you are on birth control or not, hormone imbalances happen to women even before menopause. Certain allergic reactions can make you feel the same way, especially when it comes to your skin. I've been using the same at-home remedy for years, because it works every time! On a clean face, take yogurt (preferably Greek yogurt) and coat your skin anywhere that seems to be irritated (I've only done this on my face). Leave it on for an hour or more, rinse thoroughly, and voila! The cooling yogurt not only soothes your skin, but you are left with a smooth, well-balanced complexion. Fabulous!