Jim Duke (a botanist; medicinal plant expert for the US Department of Agriculture or the USDA) says that Garlic contains about a dozen immune-boosting substances (Jaret, 2005). He also suggests honeysuckle and forsythia bushes. These are sometimes used in Chinese Medicine to fight respiratory infection. Duke will boil it and make a tea. He warns against the taste; I would try some honey and lemon. Lemon has vitamin C which is known to shorten the duration of a cold.
Dr. Jon Dunn of Naturopathic Health Care in California gave me a recipe to gargle with (NOT swallow):
* Juice from ½ lemon
* ½ tsp. salt
* ½ tsp. honey
* 1 oz. water
* Cayenne (red pepper) to tolerance
I had an ear infection that caused my throat to swell up to the point where I couldn’t swallow. After an incident where I choked on some water I decided to go to the ER. Before I left, I decided to call Dr. Dunn on his emergency line (it was a Saturday and he wasn’t in the office). He gave me the recipe above. I gargled several times that day per his instructions and within hours the swelling went way down. I don’t know if I ever told him this, but he saved my life that day.
Dr. Dunn said this recipe is good to gargle with when you feel a sore throat coming on. This is another method I try when Wellness Fizz doesn’t work.
Reference:
Jaret (2005) Boost Your Immunity Health (Time Inc. Health) November 2005 Bol. 19 Issue 9, p118-190
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