Being sick is never fun. It not only makes you miserable, but also interrupts your life in unfortunate and unpleasant ways. The first thing you want to do when you get sick is to get well. Unfortunately, when you have the cold or flu, it’s going to last 7-14 days no matter how it’s treated. The best thing we can do is to treat the symptoms, so that we feel less miserable and are able to be somewhat functional. You don’t have to rely on over the counter medicines to do this either. You can alleviate many of the more irritable flu and cold symptoms by making your own remedies at home. Below are some of the best hot beverage cold and flu treatments that you can make at home using fresh ingredients.
Turmeric Milk
This is a very old curative used in Ayurvedic medicinal practices. Normally, it is recommended that you refrain from drinking milk while you’re sick because dairy products will cause you to build up mucus and can increase congestion in both the nose and lungs. Turmeric milk is a bit different though. It has natural anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-inflammatory properties, making it a true triple threat. It should help to decrease congestion, reduce the amount of harmful bacteria and viruses, and even treat the body aches that typically accompany the cold and flu.
Ginger-Honey Tea
There are two kinds of options when it comes to ginger-honey tea: store bought tea bags, and the homemade variety. The latter is the superior, because it utilizes fresh ingredients, which makes the active compounds inside the ingredients are more effective. Not only is the tea more effective as a medicinal tonic, but it’s also more intense flavor wise. You will be able to taste it and feel comforted by its pleasant flavors and aroma, even through your mucous coated tongue and congested nasal passages.
The ginger has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties which help to settle your stomach and combat any nausea you might be feeling. It also heats up the body which can help you sweat out the toxins. The honey helps everything go down smoother and has its own anti-bacterial properties. You can always use more anti-bacterial compounds when you’re trying to recover from a cold or flu.
Homemade Chicken Soup
Much like ginger-honey tea, chicken soup comes in a store bought and homemade variety. Chicken soup that comes from a can is still very effective, as chicken broth has great medicinal properties, whether its preserved or freshly made. It’s just that, homemade chicken soup tends to have a better balance of nutrients. Canned products normally have an excess amount of sodium to help with the preservation process.
The broth is the main source of health benefits in chicken soup. It is made by slowly cooking chicken (with the bones) and veggies over a long time, 4.5-24 hours. This makes it extremely nutrient dense, giving it anti-inflammatory and helpful digestive properties. The best thing about homemade chicken broth is you can add various ingredients to get the nutrients that you need the most. If you want more vitamin C, make your broth with bell peppers. If you want more lycopene, add tomatoes, etc. Its versatility is what makes homemade chicken soup one of the best hot curatives to drink when you’re sick with the cold or flu.
The Hot Toddy
Some people familiar with the hot toddy merely through reputation may think this is not a true treatment, and people are just indulging themselves, but somethings aren’t too good to be true. The hot toddy, a combination of whiskey and tea has been used as cold and flu treatment for centuries. It is believed by many to have originated in 17th century India, during the era of the Raj. It’s effectiveness as a flu treatment lies entirely in its simplicity. A true hot toddy is made with whiskey, black tea, a squeeze of lemon, and some honey. The tea and honey coat and sooth the throat, while opening up the nasal passages and easing congestion. The whiskey brings on drowsiness and helps the patient to doze off so that their body can more effectively focus on healing.
