Natural remedies for cold and flu symptoms
I’ve come down with a cold and I’m thrilled.
My belief system aligns with the understanding that the body has an innate intelligence system that works in conjunction with nature, and that colds and flus are the body’s way to naturally detox from a toxic overload. Essentially, it’s the body’s version of a spring clean and I couldn’t be happier.
Below I discuss this detoxification process and list the natural tools and protocols that I use when I’m experiencing symptoms. As a reminder, I’m not a medical professional so this advice is based solely on my own research, learning and experience.
A cold or flu is part of the body’s detox process
There exists a universal intelligence that flows through all life, governing processes and functions in the natural world. It’s how animals know when to hibernate, mate, shed fur and fly south. It’s how nature knows when to lose leaves, germinate and flower.
We are part of this universal consciousness that is the essence of life, and our bodies are totally in tune with it, like all of creation. When the time is right certain tissues will cleanse, in whichever cycle the body determines. Usually this happens moving from winter to spring, shaking off the stagnant energy of winter, and from summer to autumn, preparing for the colder months ahead.
Dr. Ben Kim writes that ‘in the big scheme of things, a cold or flu is a natural event that can allow your body to purge itself of old and damaged cells that, in the absence of viral infection, would normally take much longer to identify, destroy, and eliminate.
By and large, the viruses that cause the common cold and the flu infect mainly your weakest cells; cells that are already burdened with excessive waste products and toxins are most likely to allow viruses to infect them. These are cells that you want to get rid of anyway, to be replaced by new, healthy cells.’
The cells, which are burdened with toxic waste, are the ones the body wants to rid itself of. At this moment in time, we are bombarded by toxins on an unprecedented level, and our bodies can no longer handle them. I’m talking about ‘toxins’ on a chemical, emotional and energetic level.
How does the body become overburdened with toxins?
Chemical toxins from pesticides, our water supply, heavy metals, drugs and alcohol, processed food, factory farming and antibiotics, pharmaceuticals, medication and vaccines, personal care products, cleaning sprays and chemtrails.
Emotional toxins from the stressful lives we live in where we are constantly living in our sympathetic nervous systems, overloaded with stress, fear, grief and anger. Never more so than now. Emotions change our energy on such a dramatic level that we can become overburden with them.
Energetic toxins from electromagnetic stress, smart phones, wi-fi and 5G. We are electrical beings and it’s too much; our bodies are saturated on a cellular level and as a result our detoxification channels are blocked as the body struggles to assimilate this bombardment.
Why we need to rest and listen to our bodies
When we lead busy lives, the last thing we ever want to do is slow down and take the time to rest and recover.
Have you ever gone on holiday or for a weekend away and suddenly felt exhausted, become ill or just lost all your energy? This is the adrenals coming out of their stress state and your body just collapsing in relief, no longer high on this unnatural energy and adrenaline.
Our society celebrates and rewards those who push and strive. Yet I challenge this approach. I believe it’s powerful to stop and rest. It requires the same self-control and discipline as meditation.
Our higher self recognises the importance of resting yet our smaller self panics at the thought of stopping and being still. It fears losing time and opportunities, swamped with the guilt we associate with taking time out for ourselves.
Why is it that rest is seen as self-indulgent and lazy, yet it is the exact opposite? Requiring discipline, patience and an intelligent knowing.
The role of symptoms
I know it’s tempting to reach for the nearest packed of Sudafed, Ibuprofen or Lemsip when feeling run down with flu-like symptoms.
The problem of reaching for medication when we’re ill is that we disrupt this natural detoxification process. A temperature is beneficial, it’s the body’s way of heating itself up to activate the immune response in the body.
By suppressing symptoms with medication, we are adding yet another burden for the body to deal with. Pharmaceuticals are poisons that require key systems in the body, in particular the liver, to expend energy processing.
Every time we interfere with the body’s natural immune response, we are severing an important connection between ourselves and our bodies. What are our symptoms indicating and what are they trying to tell us? Opening up these communication channels is a vital process to understanding ourselves and the status of our physical health.
Natural first aid supplements
Nutritional supplements can be used in several ways.
In Kinesiology, the body shows me what it needs to correct an imbalance in an organ or system in the body, and taking a therapeutic dose of a particular vitamin, mineral or herb is part of the treatment process. Lots of us also take them to supplement our diets, and with good reason.
In the last few decades soil quality has diminished, leaving us with produce that lacks the mineral and vitamin quality we require for optimum wellbeing. Added to which, many of us have impaired digestive function due to stress, toxins, and a diet lacking in variation and overburdened with processed food.
Supplements, in particular herbals ones, can also be incredibly beneficial when we’re experiencing cold and flu symptoms, gently supporting our bodies as they detoxify. The supplements below are all proven to enhance immune function and naturally support the body.
Natural supplements to aid cold and flu symptoms
Vitamin C therapy was first promoted by two-time Nobel prize winner Linus Pauling. He made a compelling and well-researched argument that it wasn't really a vitamin at all, but an essential substance we could no longer manufacture in our bodies. Linus advocated high doses of Vitamin C (1 gram every hour) in the treatment of a range of illnesses from heart disease and cancer to the common cold. When I feel a cold coming on, I immediately start this protocol.
Vitamin A preserves the integrity of the mucous membranes of the lungs and digestive tract, the spleen and liver, which is largely responsible for detoxification. It also supports all the wet tissue in the body such as nasal passages, throats and lungs, helping to trap bacteria and other infectious agents.
Zinc is a well-known supplement when it comes to immune health. It has been proven in many studies to be crucial for the maintenance of immune function, especially for the common cold.
Colloidal Silver is a liquid made of micro silver particles, known to be effective against 650 strains of bacteria, viruses and fungi. Safe to drink, gargle or dab onto open wounds, silver was commonly used until the introduction of antibiotics c.1938, and is used by many people today to help heal damaged skin and to fight infection.
Echinacea is a wonder herb that has shown powerful cold prevention and cold treatment benefits. It is often used in many natural cold and flu remedies due to its diverse nutrient range including zinc, selenium and vitamin C.
Nature’s helpers in the kitchen
Nature has provided us with an army of fighters in the food we eat, in particular herbs, vegetables and fruit. A quick google can show the incredible properties of the most well-known immune defenders such as garlic, ginger and turmeric. Nature’s larder is our medicine cabinet.
If you have a juicer you can create a powerhouse tonic that will give your body everything it needs to aid it in the detoxification process and to ease uncomfortable symptoms such as a sore throat, chesty cough and blocked nose.
This tried and tested recipe involves juicing two cloves of garlic, two thumbs of ginger, a thumb nail size of turmeric root and a whole lemon. Add in honey and hot water and drink three times a day, alongside lots of filtered water, warming herbal teas and a vegetable and fruit-based diet for maximum hydration.
Natural healthcare when you feel a cold or flu coming on
When you start to feel that scratch at the back of your throat or a sudden lethargy, I suggest getting everything you might need stocked up in the fridge so you can just take it easy for a few days.
Cancel everything, your health is your priority. Give yourself permission to rest. It’s ok to be ill, it’s a natural part of life, don’t beat yourself up, needing to rest is not a weakness. I suggest looking after yourself in the following ways:
Get to bed by 10pm to maximise sleeping time for rest and repair.
Drink warm drinks and easy-to-digest soups, stews and broths which are nourishing and nurturing for the digestive system.
Avoid sugar, it’s an inflammatory that wreaks havoc the immune system. Pack as many vegetables and fruits into meals instead.
Drink plenty of water, juice and herbal teas to get lots of liquid in, all of which aid the body in flushing out toxic cellular debris.
Move gently to help the lymph to flow and do its job. If it’s stagnant it can’t feed and clean the cells, which is a vital part of immune function.
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