Natural Remedies for Allergies & Colds

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUIZ

April Showers bring:

(A) May flowers

(B) Hay fever

(C) Spring colds

(D) All of the above

If you answered “D,” give yourself a gold star. Spring and summer certainly are the seasons of both blooming roses and running noses. Before you start stockpiling the antihistamines, however, here’s a snoot-full of somewhat more “user friendly” techniques you might care to try...

HOT, SPICY FOODS: (if your digestive system can handle them) Red and black peppers, garlic, onion, mustard, curry powder and the like are all helpful for breaking up congestion and clearing out toxins.

PHYSICAL EXERCISE: Aerobic activity, even in small amounts, stimulates circulation, which sends blood and energy to all parts of the body, including the sinuses (hint, hint).

HEAT & STEAM: Sit outside in warm sunshine for a bit. Splash your face with warm water. Relax for 10-20 minutes with a hot compress over your forehead, eyes and the bridge of your nose. Take a hot shower or bath and inhale the steam—or simmer a pan of water on the stove, add a few drops of essential oil, and inhale the steam from that. Lavender, eucalyptus, and peppermint oils are a few that are generally considered good for congestion; although, many essential oils will offer at least a modicum of relief, provided they are genuine and not synthetic (synthetically produced fragrance oils can sometimes aggravate allergies).

DOUBLE-DUTY TRICK: Brew yourself a cup of tea from herbs with soothing, decongestant properties, such as chamomile with ginger, peppermint, mullein, or even Oriental tea (which contains theophylline, said to be one of the best bronchial dilators known). Drink it hot, breathing its vapors between sips. That way you receive the herb’s internal benefits, along with a mini steam treatment.

GOTU KOLA & PAPAYA ENZYME: Sniffing a little gotu kola powder (available at most health-food stores) is an Oriental remedy for a snuffed schnoz. But, if the thought of snorting an herb powder makes you “turn up your nose” with distaste, try papaya enzyme (also available at health food stores) instead. The standard adult dose is two tablets, four times a day. Extra Vitamin C may also be helpful.

ABOVE ALL: Even if your sinuses are throbbing, your eyes look like miniature roadmaps, and your nose feels like a twenty pound marshmallow, STAY CALM. Emotional distress will only aggravate and prolong your symptoms. As difficult as it may seem, you’ll feel better faster if you can relax. Bathe your face, sip your tea, focus on breathing as regularly and normally as possible. Fill your mind with pleasant thoughts (make some up, if you have to). Remind yourself that nothing has the power to unsettle you unless you give it that power. Keep the reins of your well-being firmly in your own hands, and don’t let anything turn you into a victim. You are stronger than you know.

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[DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is offered primarily for reference and personal enrichment. It is NOT intended to be a substitute for the advice of a licensed health-care practitioner. Since the actual use of herbs, therapies, etc. by others is beyond the author’s and publisher’s control, NO expressed or implied guarantee as to their effects can be given, nor liability taken.]