20.9.17

What are some home remedies for the flu?



*It is important to sleep eight hours every night to make the immune system stronger, notes WebMD. Plenty of rest is necessary because it is a way for the body to suppress infection. Other home remedies include using lozenges, cough drops and hard candy to ease sore throat and cough symptoms. Gargling with salt water and using nasal rinses also help fight symptoms of the flu.
Here are10 natural remedies for the flu:
*Cinnamon can help with congestion by stirring 1/2 tsp of cinnamon powder into hot herbal tea. Drink up. The flu can leave you dehydrated, especially if have vomiting or diarrhea. So be sure to get enough fluids. Water is fine. So are fruit juices and electrolyte beverages. You may want to stay away from caffeinated drinks, because caffeine is a diuretic. Herbal tea with honey can soothe a sore throat. If you feel nauseated, try taking small sips of liquids -- gulps might cause you to throw up. How can you be sure you’re getting enough fluid? Your urine should be pale yellow, almost colorless.
*How about drinking alcohol? No way. “When you have the flu, the last thing you want to do is drink alcohol,” says William Schaffner, MD, chairman of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tenn. “It makes you sleepy, and flu does that already.”
Sip some soup. For generations, caring parents have been serving chicken soup to kids with colds and flu. But was mom right? Possibly. A study published in the journal Chest showed that chicken soup may help with symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections like the flu.
*Try thyme! 
Thyme is great when the mucous membranes are stuffed, the head aches, and the body is hot with fever. Cup your hands around a mug of thyme tea and breath in the steam. Make thyme tea by adding 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves to 1 cup boiling water. Let steep for five minutes while inhaling the steam. Strain the tea, sweeten with honey and slowly sip. Please note: honey is not intended for use by children under 12 months of age.“I believe that chicken soup does help with symptoms,” says Reid B. Blackwelder, MD, professor of family medicine at East Tennessee State University in Kingsport. But not all doctors agree that chemistry alone explains the soup’s apparent benefits. “When you lean over a bowl of hot chicken soup and the vapor gets up your nose, you feel better,” Schaffner says. “But some [of the benefit] is clearly emotional. It just makes you feel better having someone make soup for you.”
*Be a couch 
potato. Listen to your body. If it’s telling you not to exercise, don’t. If it’s urging you to spend all day in bed, do. Don't press on with daily chores even in the face of severe cold or flu symptoms. Rest is “another way of supporting the body’s ability to fight infection,” Blackwelder say
And don’t skimp on nighttime sleep. “Good sleep cycles help the immune system work well, so it’s important to get your full eight hours of sleepeach night,” Schaffner says
Peppermint tea is laced with nutrients that help the body fight off illness. It also can act as an expectorant, helping the body to cough up mucous.
*Be a sucker. 
Cough drops, throat lozenges, and hard candy can be surprisingly effective at easing a cough or sore throat. Some doctors, including Kiefer, swear by lozenges containing slippery elm. Others recommend zinc lozenges to help shorten cold symptoms, though Schaffner is not convinced of their effectiveness. “If there is an effect [against coldsand flu], it’s a small one,” he says. “I wish their effect were as good as their taste is bad.”
*Humidify.
Breathing moist air helps ease nasal congestion and sore throat pain. One good strategy is to indulge in a steamy shower several times a day -- or just turn on the shower and sit in the bathroom for a few minutes, inhaling the steam. Another is to use a steam vaporizer or a humidifier. Clean it often to make sure it’s free of mold and mildew.
Try a warm compress. On the forehead and nose, a warm cloth is a great way to relieve headache or sinus pain
*Swish and spit. 
Gargling with salt water helps get rid of the thick mucus that can collect at the back of the throat, especially after you've been lying down. It can also help ease stuffy ears, Kiefer says.
*Make a tent. Need a quick way to open clogged airways? Bring a pot of water to a boil and remove it from the heat. Drape a towel over your head, close your eyes, and lean over the water under the “tent,” breathing deeply through your nose for 30 seconds. David Kiefer, MD, clinical instructor of family medicine at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle, recommends adding a drop or two of peppermint or eucalyptus oil to the water for extra phlegm-busting power. Repeat this as often as necessary to ease congestion.
*Line up a caregiver. 
A caregiver can’t lower your temperature or cure a sore throat, but “having someone to tuck you into bed and bring you fluids is very comforting,” says Blackwelder. If a friend or family member offers to help, even if it’s only to stop by and check in on you, count your blessings -- and take them up on it.
*Try nasal irrigation. 
To ease stuffiness and post-nasal drip -- and perhaps cut the risk of getting a sinus infection -- some doctors recommend nasal irrigation. You can buy a neti pot in health food stores and drugstores, or opt for a saline squeeze bottle. You pour salt water into one nostril and let it run out the other, clearing out your nasal passages. You can buy pre-made saline solution or make it by mixing salt and lukewarm sterile or distilled water.
*Take lots of Vitamin C to boost immune system and increase the number of white blood cells.

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