Surviving Cold & Flu Season: Wrap Up

This is the final post in a 4-part series.
If you missed the first post click here: Lifestyle
If you missed the second post click here: Food
If you missed the third post click here: Herbs & more!

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." 
~ Benjamin Franklin

Cold & Flu season is here. Below you will find some of my favorite tips and tricks that I use to keep my family healthy. So far, we have discussed lifestyle habits, using food as "medicine," as well as herbs, supplements, homeopathy and essential oils! Today, I just want to recap the steps I take to prevent and treat should illness occur. 

Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor. These are simply home remedies that I have researched on my own and applied to my family for health and wellness. 

My Preventative Measures: These are a part of my regular daily & weekly routine. I follow this protocol year round. If you have a weakened immune system, you might want to add in some additional preventative measures to give your body a boost.

• Drink lots of water and get plenty of rest.
• Follow an exercise routine and get regular chiropractic care.
• Eat a healthy diet that utilizes coconut oil, onions and garlic.
• Take a daily probiotic and supplement with vitamin D.
• Sprinkle a few drops of lavender essential oil on my pillow.

When Someone Around Me Becomes Ill: These are immune boosters that I introduce in addition to the above if someone that I am in close contact with becomes sick. 

• Take a dose of Elderberry, Raw Honey, Astragalus & Echinacea once per day.

When I Notice the First Signs of a Cold: I am pretty in tune with my body. At the first sign that I'm not feeling well, I start the following regimen. Many times, I can ward off whatever is coming on and avoid a full-blown cold. 

• Up my doses of Elderberry, Honey, Astragalus & Echinacea to twice per day. 
• Take up to 8000 mg of Vitamin C, 5000 IU of vitamin D, and 250 mg of Zinc within 24 hours of symptoms broken up into equal doses, usually four or five.
• Do a couple rounds of salt water gargle.

When Cold/Flu Symptoms Persist: At this point, I'm probably not a happy camper but I will do what I can to get the symptoms under control and decrease the duration. 

• Up my doses of Elderberry, Honey, Astragalus & Echinacea to three times per day. 
• Continue daily doses of Vitamin C (1500 mg), Vitamin D (2400 IU), and Zinc (150 mg). I break this up in to 3 doses. 
• Do a salt water gargle 3 times a day. 
• Use OTC homeopathic combinations. 
• Cut all sugar from my diet (aside from the honey). 
• Drink lemon water or ginger tea. 
• Call in my order for donor breast milk and use it in a Netti Pot.
• Let a fever run it's course only using Tylenol or ibuprofen if extremely uncomfortable. 
• Run a hot bath with Epsom salt & grated ginger. It's also best to do this again at the conclusion of any sickness to be sure your body has detoxed from the illness.

I hope you have found this series helpful. I absolutely believe it is possible to both protect yourself against sickness and treat yourself naturally should illness arise.  Let's face it, we come into contact with germs on a daily basis but a healthy immune system will fight them off, many times without us even being aware.  Antibiotics certainly have their place but with antibiotic resistance on the rise, I beg you, please use them sparingly. Again, please refer back to the previous posts for details on each item listed above. 

Surviving Cold & Flu Season: Lifestyle,  Food,  Herbs & more!

As always, please research these remedies on your own or contact your doctor before proceeding should you have questions. 

Be well!