Natural Ingredients for Recovering from a Cold

As each season changes, the colds we catch seem fiercer than ever. It could be a result of our increasingly frenetic lifestyle. For me, the lingering cough wears me down more than any of the other symptoms. When I am hit with that virus and I lose my voice, I usually stop eating or drinking dairy and mix together the most soothing ingredients I can think of: lemon~ginger tea, bits of ginger root, and raw honey. I also make sure I give myself enough rest to help the healing process. That usually means curling up on our couch with my mug of tea in my hands, serenaded by my favorite music while I listen to my daughter read to me.

Each morning and evening when I am hit with a cold, I grab my favorite tea mug and drop in a tea bag. My choice of mug is important because it adds to the comfort I feel when I hold it. My starry night mug is the last of the art mugs I have owned, so I take great care to make sure it is placed in safe spots, such as coasters.

The tea that I use is the one pictured above, Bigelow's lemon ginger herbal tea. The flavor is soothing and comforting because the lemon and ginger together feel like a liquid hug surrounding me. My 10-year-old daughter also finds it soothing, and drinks it whether or not she has a cold.

In addition to the ginger mixed in with the tea, I peel and chop up small cubes of ginger root. This exotic root has properties that reduce the inflammation that comes with a cold, especially the sinuses. Because I sip its juice with my tea, I can sing despite having the sniffles.

Ginger root protects against certain types of cancer, such as Ovarian and Colon cancer. It also relieves nausea and symptoms of arthritis, supports the thyroid gland, and boosts your immune system so that you can fight off the next germs that come along more effectively. Because of this, When I am done sipping my tea I usually eat the ginger at the bottom of my mug, then chop up more for my next round of tea.

The final ingredient that I add to my tea is a big squirt of raw honey. Raw honey has many healing properties because it is purer than the honey on the shelves of grocery stores. It soothes allergies and boosts the immune system. Raw honey taken from bees that have sipped the nectar of organically and sustainably cultivated wildflowers will improve overall health with its antioxidants.

Raw honey was considered sacred in ancient times because of its medicinal value. It relieves allergies and heals burns, as well as maintains overall health. Raw honey also keeps the skin smooth. Jars of raw honey have been found in Egyptian tombs with the flavor and benefits preserved for thousands of years.

Please know that honey should not be fed to any child under the age of 1 because of the risk of botulism.