7 Natural Home Remedies That Will Help You Deal With Common Cold At Home

Being sick, even when you’re home in bed, isn’t fun. The combination of body aches, fever, chills, and nasal congestion can be enough to make anyone miserable.

There are plenty of home remedies that can alleviate your symptoms and get you back to normal. If you still feel sick after a few weeks, make an appointment with your doctor. If you have trouble breathing, have a rapid heartbeat, feel faint, or experience other severe symptoms, get medical help sooner.

Keep reading to see what cold and flu remedies you can conjure up at home.

1. Saltwater gargle

Saltwater gargle is great to ease your sore throat. According to WebMD, gargling saltwater provides symptomatic relief and the saltwater also has preventive benefits. “You’re creating a high-salt barrier and you’re pulling out a lot of fluids from the tissues in the throat area, so you’re washing the virus out. The salt functions as a magnet for water….,” said Dr. Segal-Maurer. Dissolve 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of salt in 8 ounces of warm water and gargle. This will ease the irritation on your scratchy throat.

2. Drink hot liquids

Hot liquids relieve nasal congestion, prevent dehydration, and soothe the uncomfortably inflamed membranes that line your nose and throat. If you’re so congested that you can’t sleep at night, try a hot toddy, an age-old remedy. Make a cup of hot herbal tea. Add one teaspoon of honey and one small shot (about 1 ounce) of whiskey or bourbon. Limit yourself to one. Too much alcohol will inflame the membranes and make you feel worse.

3. Apply hot or cold packs

Both hot or cold temperature can work for your congested sinuses. You can either make a pack on your own or buy a reusable hot or cold pack from the drugstore. Take a damp cloth and heat it in the microwave for 55 seconds. Make sure that the temperature is tolerable before using it. For cold pack, a frozen peas packet would do the trick.

4. Steam

Nasal congestion is one of the common symptoms observed among people suffering from a common cold. You can breathe steam during a hot shower to relieve nasal congestion and sinus pressure.

Steamy showers moisturize your nasal passages and may help you relax. If you’re dizzy from the flu, run a steamy shower while you sit on a chair nearby and take a sponge bath.

5. Eat infection-fighting foods

Some foods can help the body fight the illness better. Here are some good foods to eat when you’re battling a cold or flu:

Bananas and rice to soothe an upset stomach and curb diarrhea
Vitamin C-containing foods like bell peppers
Blueberries curb diarrhea and are high in natural aspirin, which may lower fevers and help with aches and pains
Carrots, which contain beta-carotene
Chili peppers may open sinuses, and help break up mucus in the lungs
Cranberries may help prevent bacteria from sticking to cells lining the bladder and urinary tract
Mustard or horseradish may helps break up mucus in air passages
Onions contain phytochemicals purported to help the body clear bronchitis and other infections
Black and green tea contain catechin, a phytochemical purported to have natural antibiotic and anti-diarrhea effects
Remember, serious conditions, such as sinus infections, bronchitis, meningitis, strep throat, and asthma, can look like the common cold. If you have severe symptoms, or don’t seem to be getting better, call your doctor.

6. Blowing the nose well

Blowing the nose in the right way can clear the nasal passage as much as possible. Taking the mucus back into the nose can force it to the ears causing an earache. Though blowing nose may sound like it requires no barrier, it is not right. Block one nostril and gently blow into a tissue. Then switch to the other nostril, block it and repeat the same.

7. Sleep with an extra pillow

A congested nasal passage can give you sleepless nights. Elevating your head using a pillow can help you deal with this problem. If you feel that the angle is way too awkward for your head, try placing the pillows between the mattress and the box springs to create a gradual slope.

Source:healthline.com, daily.lessonslearnedinlife.com