Cold Remedies

Here in Denver, the weather took a sharp left and got cold and gloomy quickly. If you’ve survived the cold season from back to school to this point, you’re doing great! But with colder weather, comes the cold and flu season.

Here are my tried and true home cold remedies to help holistically resolve feeling like junk to avoid getting sick, shorten your cold, or simply feel better faster. Disclaimer: There are very few products that I use personally and trust enough to recommend, so these are well-deserving options.

First up, when you’re sick or feel something coming on, there are a couple things to avoid:

• Sugar

• Alcohol

It’s a short list, but not the most fun one. Sugar weakens our immune system be decreasing the responsiveness of neutrophils, our white blood cells responsible for fighting off infection. Avoiding sugar in the form of desserts, processed foods like pastries, bread, and pasta, and even fruit will help make sure that your immune system is best able to fend off whatever is attacking you. Alcohol is the other big one, which should seem pretty common sense. Alcohol of any form dampers your immune system, but also dehydrates you further, making symptoms like congestion much worse. When you’re facing sick, staying hydrated is vital and having anything that naturally dehydrates you will just be working against you.

Now for the things you can implement into your routine to help improve your cold symptoms:

Kick-Ass Immune

Wish Garden Herbs is a family-owned company right here in Colorado who harnesses the power of herbs to create this amazing tincture that has become a staple in our household. I am obsessed with Kick-Ass Immune and when I feel a cold coming on, it is the first thing I reach for. It has helped me fight off everything from the common cold, the flu, and some serious bacterial infections (hello, strep throat) for years now.

Don’t be put off my the taste - it gets better. I like to put a splash of water with the recommended dosage and shoot it quickly. By the time I’m about done with my cold, it actually tastes sweet and I enjoy it. It’s crazy. It’s my top pick and I highly recommend having some on hand at all times.

Garlic

Sometimes the best remedies are super simple, and garlic hits the nail on the head. Garlic contains a chemical called allicin that is anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-viral. It’s naturally anti-inflammatory and promote immune cell activity.

You can add it to your food, soup, or have it raw like I typically do. I like to take a clove of garlic in the morning and again before bed by cutting the raw garlic into pill-sized chunks. I’ll let it set on the counter for a few minutes to oxidize before swallowing them whole. Word to the wise: take these with a flavored beverage as taking them with water can be a little rough. Fresh garlic is always better than dried garlic when possible.

Echinacea

Echinacea root has long been a popular medicinal herb and has been used for various infections, snake and insect bites, and skin problems, but it’s also very popular for cold and flu preventention and treatment. Similar to garlic, echinacea is anti-bacterial and anti-viral, but is also capable of increasing white blood cell counts and the body’s ability to handle bacteria and viruses.

While there are a lot of ways to get echinacea, my personal favorite is through tea. My favorite tea is Traditional Medicinals, which is available almost everywhere. Warm tea when you’re not feeling so hot always hits the spot.

Bone Broth

Bone broth has a ton of health benefits and especially healing around cold season. We make our own at hoe and freeze it so that we always have some on hand when a cold sneaks up, and you can check out my recipe here, but know there are always ways to customize your bone broth. I love to sip it warm and add sea salt and minced garlic on top - bonus points.

Because of the minerals found in bone broth (magnesium, calcium, phosphorous) it’s especially helpful for keeping you hydrated and supporting your immune system in a weakened state.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is a given, but how you get your vitamin C is especially important. Vitamin C has been shown time and time again to stimulate the immune system and aid in the prevention and treatment of illness, along with being an antioxidant.

That being said, getting vitamin C through orange juice isn’t always the best option. As mentioned earlier, getting too much sugar can weaken the immune system. With the sugar and fructose found in oranges and orange juice (even if it’s no sugar added), you are essentially counter-balancing the benefits of the vitamin C in the juice. Getting a vitamin C supplement like this one can be the best way to make sure you’re getting enough for added support.

Zinc

Zinc is a mineral that many people are often deficient in already, and supports immune function by improving antibody response and increasing T lymphocyte production. It can help with a sore throat by using a zinc lozenge and prevent to progression of symptoms. It’s an anti-inflammatory that helps regulate our natural stress response as well.

This is one of my favorite combinations for immune support and for those with high stress levels overall to prevent deficiency and illness.