With pollution, weather transition and temperatures dropping comes the real nightmare: Common Cold! Unlike any other infection, the common cold is viral which makes it easily contagious and much more stubborn to recover from easily. It can last typically about 3 days with proper care or up to 2 weeks if unattended.
Common cold or the flu easily identifiable and usually the symptoms include congestion, repetitive sneezing, running nose and sometimes abnormal rise in body temperatures, known as fever. Personally, its an awful time when you have a cold. Not to worry, in this post today I am going to go over some easy home remedies for Common cold directly from my grandmother’s kitchen. These remedies have been in our family for generations and I guess it’s time to share!
My Grandmother’s 10 Home remedies for Common Cold or Flu
- Ginger and Spice Tea
Ginger is one of the oldest herbal medicine known to mankind and having it with a hot tea just makes it one of the best home remedies for common cold. On a side note, adding spices like Cardamom (Hindi: Elaichi) and Pepper (Hindi: Kali Miri) provides relief to the inflamed throat. You can add crushed ginger, pepper, cardamom to your Green tea or Milk tea of your choice.
Grandma’s Note: Try to this tea at least twice a day as this helps in loosening up the mucus in the sinus regions and clears congestion.
- Hot Water/Steam Inhalation
Half of the battle is won when the congestion is down. Whenever I or someone in my family got a common cold, my grandmother always used to heat the water till it boils and add 2-3 drops of Eucalyptus oil (Hindi: Nilgiri ka Tel) to it. Steam the face for 3-4 minutes. Eucalyptus oil is an amazing fighter against cold and cough and hence is one of the amazing home remedies for common cold.
Grandma’s Note: Try to do it at home using a steamer or hot water twice a day. This helps with congestion and runny nose. If you don’t have Eucalyptus Oil you can also try Vicks Vaporub or Amrutanjan Balm.
- Ginger Lemon Water
Ginger has made this list again! Ginger is known to contain gingerols and shaogals which help in soothing the inflamed throat and also has properties to eliminate the rhinovirus thus making it an amazing ingredient in our home remedies for common cold. Lemon, on the other hand, contains Citric Acid and Vitamin C which helps in making the virus weak and letting the Immune system fight against it.
Grandma’s Note: Add 2-3 cubes of Crushed Ginger and juice from half a lemon to warm water. Have it at least twice a day, this helps with congestion and sore throat.
- Flaxseeds with Honey
Flaxseeds have been known to be one of the oldest and well-known ingredients for keeping common cold and cough at bay. Flaxseeds, when added to warm water, forms a viscous fluid which soothes an irritated throat. Honey, on the other hand, is also an amazing remedy for cough and keeps the respiratory tract healthy, thus making both of them an amazing combination for best home remedies for common cold.
Grandma’s Note: Add 2-3 Tablespoons of Flaxseeds to a Cup of Warm water and stir this gently. Now add 2 Tablespoons of Honey and consume when warm. This helps with congestion along with throat irritation.
Also Read: 10 Healthy and Easy Snacks for Kids
- Turmeric Milk with Pepper
Turmeric (Hindi: Haldi) is another ayurvedic medicine known since the inception of Indus Valley Civilization. It has essential antioxidants that help in weakening the rhinovirus. Consuming it along with warm milk helps in sore throat and relieves congestion. The warm milk loosens the mucus in the sinus region and helps better breathing. Pepper, on the other hand, relieves sore throat as well and suppresses cough, making this combo one of the best home remedies for common cold.
Grandma’s Note: Add 1 Tablespoon of Turmeric to a glass of warm milk and stir it. To this add 2 pinches of Black pepper and mix properly and stir it again. Drink this before sleeping for best results
- Saltwater Gargling
Saltwater gargling is one of the age an old remedy is known for sore throat and cough. During cold, the throat lozenges are inflamed and cause issues in your speech. Gargling with salt water helps with soothing the throat and bringing out the mucus that made it to the throat/respiratory tract.
Grandma’s Note: Gargling makes it to the best home remedies for common cold due to the relief it provides. Doing it twice a day is recommended. Please note that you may find relief with this remedy but may not affect the duration of the common cold.
- Spicy Chicken Soup
Chicken soup has been known to fight the common cold and flu-like symptoms as per many studies including one from The New York Times. It also helps in clearing the congestion in the nasal regions and reduces the viscosity of the mucus making it one of the best home remedies for cold. Making it spicier helps to loosen the mucus and phlegm up as well. This soothes the throat and the irritation thus bringing down the cough symptoms.
Grandma’s Note: Adding cayenne pepper or black pepper to your regular soup will do the job. The antioxidants help in fighting the rhinovirus. Have this once a day for the best results.
- Apple Cider Vinegar with Cardamom and warm water
Apple cider vinegar is another great ingredient with medicinal properties. It usually helps in weight loss, but it’s a very lesser known fact that it’s an alkali. Apple cider Vinegar makes it unsuitable for the viral and bacterial infections to live in your body thus killing the common cold virus. This makes it one of the best home remedies for common cold.
Grandma’s Note: Add 2 tablespoons of ACV to a glass of lukewarm water and drink it twice a day until the flu symptoms have subsided.
Also Read: The Health Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar: Pros and Cons
- Drink a lot of water
It is important to keep yourself hydrated especially when you have a common cold. Drinking warm water from time to time relieves congestion and soothes the throat from soreness. It also cleanses the virus out of the system in the form of urine or sweat, making this simple yet effective home remedies for common cold.
- Ample amount of Rest
In the end, it all comes down to rest! All these remedies work best if you can take rest from time to time and avoid exhausting yourself. Try to remain indoors to avoid any further infections.
Grandma’s Note: While sleeping tries to rub some eucalyptus oil on your chest. This helps in avoiding congestion. If you are out of eucalyptus oil, try Vicks Vaporub or Amrutanjan
