Blog Layout

Cold and Flu Home Remedies

Lisa Moore • Dec 06, 2018

Cold and Flu home remedies: Treat your cold at home

Being sick, even when you’re home in bed, isn’t fun. The combination of body aches, fever, chills, and nasal congestion can be enough to make anyone miserable.


There are plenty of home remedies that can alleviate your symptoms and get you back to normal.


Here's what cold and flu remedies you can conjure up at home.

Honey

Has a variety of antibacterial and antimicrobial properties. Drinking honey in hot water with lemon can ease sore throat pain. Research suggests that honey is an effective cough suppressant, too. In one study, researchers found that giving children 10 grams of honey at bedtime reduced the severity of their cough symptoms. The children reportedly slept more soundly, which also helps reduce cold symptoms.
Warning You should never give honey to a child younger than 1 year old, as it often contains botulinum spores. While they’re usually harmless to older children and adults, infants’ immune systems aren’t able to fight them off.

Lemon

Vitamin C plays an important role in your body and has many health benefits. Along with lemons there’s oranges, grapefruits, leafy greens, and other fruits and vegetables that all contain this vitamin, lemons are a good source of vitamin C and adding fresh lemon juice to hot water & honey may reduce phlegm when you’re sick.

Ginger

The health benefits of ginger have been touted for centuries, but now we have scientific proof of its curative properties. A few slices of raw ginger root in boiling water may help soothe a cough or sore throat, it’s a great expectorant so helpful with eliminating phlegm off your chest so add some to your honey & lemon drink.


Research suggests that it can also ward off the feelings of nausea that so often accompany influenza.

Echinacea

Native Americans have used the herb and root of this plant to treat infections for more than 400 years. Its active ingredients include flavonoids, which have many therapeutic effects on the body. For example, flavonoids can boost your immune system and reduce inflammation. Research on the herb’s effectiveness at fighting the common cold and flu has been mixed. But tests now show that taking echinacea may lower your risk of developing the common cold by more than 50 percent and it may also reduce the length of a cold.

Chicken Soup

That home made chicken soup may not be a cure-all, but it’s a great choice when you’re sick. Research shows that enjoying a bowl of chicken soup with vegetables, prepared from scratch (boiling the carcass) can slow the movement of neutrophils in your body. Neutrophils are a common type of white blood cell.


They help protect your body from infection. When they’re moving slowly, they stay more concentrated in the areas of your body that require the most healing. The study found that chicken soup was effective for reducing the symptoms of upper respiratory infections in particular and the bones also provide essential minerals and amino acids that our body’s need.

Eucalyptus

Some might not like the smell, but there’s quite a few products such as vapour rub, olbas oil and sinus inhalers that contain this essential oil. It reduces cold symptoms and relieves congested sinuses by acting on receptors in the nasal mucus membranes reducing nasal mucus and allowing the air passages to open up combating congestion and clearing the head. Sprinkle a few drops onto a handkerchief or the top corner of your pillow to allow easy breathing and improve sleep.

Warning do not use on children younger than 2 years. There is a product called ‘baby olbas oil’ especially formulated for babies and do not use if you suffer with epilepsy s it may trigger seizures.


Let’s hope we can all keep cold and flu free this winter and if we do happen to get one let’s act quickly and treat it at home.


By Lisa Moore 11 Feb, 2024
Our last Mind, Body & Soul event was such a success its back!
By Lisa Moore 01 Nov, 2023
Connect mind and body through breath, movement and sweat.
By Lisa Moore 28 Sep, 2023
Chiropodist or a Foot Health Practitioner: What is the difference?
Injury Prevention Techniques
30 Mar, 2023
Therapy and Fitness Centre have outlined in this guide, you will avoid causing long-term, career ending injuries such as strains, torn ligaments and muscles.
How to Relieve Tension in Your Neck
19 Jan, 2023
At Therapy and Fitness Centre, we’ve put together a guide on how you can ease, prevent and eliminate long-term neck tension before it progresses.
28 Sep, 2022
Whether you’re struggling with the symptoms of everyday stress, or are experiencing a big change in your life that is activating feelings of anxiety, it can have an adverse affect on your emotional and physical wellbeing. When your mind is in turmoil, it can be difficult to figure out how to diffuse the feelings of stress, so why not try taking the focus off the things you can’t control, and instead concentrate on the things you can. At Leamington Therapy and Fitness Centre , we’ve put together this list of our top 8 stress relievers to help you relax.
06 Sep, 2022
Where is fascia located in the body? Fascia is a sheath of stringy connective tissue that surrounds every part of your body. It provides support to your muscles, tendons, ligaments, tissues, organs, nerves, joints and bones. Does massage help fascia? Massage therapists can help with a technique called Myofascial Release that uses sustained pressure to loosen and lengthen constricted fascia. Cupping therapy is another technique that stretches and lengthen fascia with the use of vacuum cups. What does fascia massage do? Fascial release therapies are known to increase tissue flexibility and joint mobility. Massage therapists can help with a technique called Myofascial Release that uses sustained pressure to loosen and lengthen constricted fascia. How is myofascial release performed? Using light, manual pressure, your therapist will massage and stretch the trigger point, sometimes holding that point for a few minutes. Your therapist may repeat this process a few times on each trigger point they find, until they feel a full release. What can I expect from myofascial release? Myofascial release can be an intense experience. During a session, a massage therapist will massage, knead and gently stretch the muscles and fascia to work out knots. This bodywork technique also involves applying pressure to the tight or sore areas to get them to relax. What should I expect after a myofascial massage? You may feel tired or relaxed after your myofascial massage, however, most people experience an immediate feeling of relief. Aches and pains are common for for around 24 hours after your treatment as the body flushes the toxins that have been released out. What are the benefits of myofascial release? Myofascial release offers a host of benefits to your health and well-being, including: Reduces soreness and improves tissue recovery. Improves neuromuscular efficiency. Increases blood flow. Maintains normal functional muscular length. Improves joint range of motion. Decreases overall effects of stress on the body. What is the difference between myofascial release and massage? First of all, they each have a different focus. Massage works with soft tissue and the overall system of muscles in the body to relieve stress and tension. Myofascial release works specifically with the connective tissue (fascia) to relieve the tightness that causes muscle restrictions. What does myofascial massage feel like? During a massage treatment, when we stretch this tight tissue you could feel a burning sensation. This is a myofascial release sensation and is generally short lived and quite normal, but not felt by everyone. What happens when fascia is tight? Healthy fascia is smooth and flexible. However, when the body undergoes physical trauma, such as muscle injuries or surgery, the fascia is placed under stress and tightens up, causing muscle pain. What causes fascia pain? Factors that cause fascia to become gummy and crinkle up (called adhesion) include: A lifestyle of limited physical activity (too little movement day after day) Repetitive movement that overworks one part of the body. Trauma such as surgery or injury. What can damage fascia? Accidents, abnormal posture, repetitive movements, overextension injuries, or inactivity can all lead to fascial damage. What does damaged fascia feel like? However, when the fascia is damaged through injury, overuse, or dehydration it often has a domino effect, causing a series of painful symptoms to appear over time. You may experience stiffness, reduced range of motion, and increasing chronic pain. How long does it take for fascia to heal? Most injury to fascia heals within a six to eight weeks period. Occasionally chronic inflammation and pain affect fascia. This may cause problems such as painful movement or fibromyalgia. What makes myofascial pain worse? Myofascial pain may worsen if it is left untreated for a prolonged period of time. Additionally, you may also feel more pain if the trigger point or affected muscle is strained or stretched. What happens if myofascial pain syndrome is left untreated? Untreated, the myofascial pain syndrome leads to a reduced extensibility of the involved muscle with consecutive decrease of the range of motion and development of a muscular imbalance resulting in a disturbance of complex movement and evolution of a chronic pain disease. Should you exercise after myofascial release? Many therapists recommend clients avoid strenuous exercise for at least 24 hours after a bodywork session. Exercising after a session can both increase muscle soreness and compromise the value of the soft-tissue work you've just received. What happens to fascia as we age? As you age, your body produces less and less collagen. This has a dramatic effect on the fascia throughout your body. With less collagen, the fascia starts to dry out and tighten. It becomes restrictive, making it more difficult for the body to move efficiently. Can tight fascia cause nerve pain? As fascia stiffens through adhesion, fascia—rich in nerve endings in and of itself—can entrap surrounding nerves, leading to radiculopathy and a host of painful consequences. Who should avoid myofascial release? Contraindications for MFR include – but are not limited to – those with malignancy, aneurysm, acute rheumatoid arthritis, advanced diabetes, severe osteoporosis, and healing fractures. Your physical therapist can help determine whether or not MFR is an appropriate course of treatment for you. Can you do myofascial release on yourself? SMFR methods do not require the assistance of a physical therapist or fitness professional but can be performed by the individual itself and are considered an effective rehabilitation tool. Can you overdo foam rolling? When it comes to foam rolling, yes, you can overdo it. Excessively using a foam roller on a specific area can increase injuries and leave you in more pain. Instead, limit foam rolling to 30 to 90 seconds per muscle group and include 10 seconds stretching in between each roll.
How to Improve Posture
05 Aug, 2022
The most common cause for bad posture is a slouched seating position. With most of us working at a desk all day, it can be difficult to mindfully correct posture, and it may feel uncomfortable at first.
28 Jul, 2022
Come and try our new Yoga Classes in August
28 Jul, 2022
Golf is a physically demanding sport. Golfers require strength, stability, explosive power, flexibility and athletic ability to perform an effective golf swing.
More Posts
Share by: