Caraway

• Here is a tee made from caraway seeds that will not only prevent heartburn and acid indigestion, but also, if taken warm, will help relieve uterine cramps, promote breast milk secretion in nursing mothers and help clear away mucus from the back of the throat.  You may even give small amounts of this tea to infants with intestinal gas problems.  Here is the recipe:
  Bring 2 cups of water to a boil.  Add 4 tsp of slightly pounded caraway seeds.  Let simmer for 5  minutes on the stove, then take off the stove and let sit for another 15 minutes.  A little honey may be added to sweeten the taste.  Drink a cup with every meal to improve the digestion of food.

carrot, pineapple

• Drinking carrot juice usually give you a boost of energy right away, probably due to the high sugar content in carrots. But equal parts of carrot and pineapple juice even make a good energy drink for those with hypoglycemia.

honey, green beans, peppermint

• Yet another great use for honey:  Directly applied to herpes lesions, bedsores or shingles, honey heals these within a very short time.
• A pod tea of green beans works well as a remedy for herpes, cold sores, blackheads, acne and skin afflictions of a similar nature.  Wash the face or afflicted parts morning, noon and night with the tea.
• Peppermint is antiviral, strongly so.  Therefore it can be used to inhibit the further progress of herpes virus.  Drink two cups of warm peppermint tea during the periods when the virus is most active.

Yes, everybody is talking about it, and yes, there are indeed herbal remedies that will help you preventing being infected by any flu virus.

1. Vitamin D:  It seems as though an insufficient level of vitamin D make you very vulnerable to flu viruses, be they ordinary flu or swine flu.  Stock up on vitamin D quickly, therefore.
2. Sambucol, a syrup made mainly from black elderberries and echinacea, is a good way to treat flu, or boost your immune system when you feel the very first symptoms of flu.  This, too, it an item you might wish to stock up on.  Black elderberries are very good antioxidants.
3. Omega-3 oils helps the body to remain healthy, and to improve your vitamin D levels.  Animal-based omega-3 oil is preferable.
4. Stock up on items such as face masks, a steam inhaler, latex gloves, hand sanitizer, and other such items that help preventing infections.

Here is a rather longish article that basically warns again a swine flu panic, and gives you good advice on what to do at the very end, which is what I will paste here.  While I agree with the authors that it is not a good idea to get vaccinated, I hope that their call to calmness will not lull you into safety and make you postpone taking still necessary precautions.  If you do not stock up on supplies now, you might not be able to anymore in a few months, either because they are out of stock, or they have gotten too expensive for you to afford them anymore.

Anyway, here is the end of the article:

Via: agoracosmopolitan.com

For now, my point is that there are always going to be threats of flu pandemics, real or created, and there will always be potentially toxic vaccines that are peddled as the solution. But you can break free of that whole drug-solution trap by following some natural health principles.

I have not caught a flu in over two decades, and you can avoid it too, without getting vaccinated, by following these simple guidelines, which will keep your immune system in optimal working order so that you’re far less likely to acquire the infection to begin with.

Optimize your vitamin D levels. As I’ve previously reported, optimizing your vitamin D levels is one of the absolute best strategies for avoiding infections of ALL kinds, and vitamin D deficiency is likely the TRUE culprit behind the seasonality of the flu — not the flu virus itself.

This is probably the single most important and least expensive action you can take. I would STRONGLY urge you to have your vitamin D level monitored to confirm your levels are therapeutic at 50-70 ng. ml and done by a reliable vitamin D lab like Lab Corp.

For readers who are in the U.S., we [original writers of the article] hope to launch a vitamin D testing service through Lab Corp that allows you to have your vitamin D levels checked at your local blood drawing facility, and relatively inexpensively. We hope to offer this service by June 2009.

If you are coming down with flu like symptoms and have not been on vitamin D you can take doses of 50,000 units a day for three days to treat the acute infection. Some researchers like Dr. Cannell, believe the dose could even be as high as 1000 units per pound of body weight for three days.

However, most of Dr. Cannell’s work was with seasonal and not pandemic flu. If your body has never been exposed to the antigens there is chance that the vitamin D might not work. However the best bet is to maintain healthy levels of vitamin D around 60 ng/ml.

BUT to keep this in perspective the regular flu, not the swine flu, has killed 13,000 in the US since January. But there is strong support that these types of figures are grossly exaggerated to increase vaccine sales. However, the fact remains that the regular flu at this point in time is FAR more dangerous than the swine flu and were you worried about the regular flu before the media started talking this up?

Avoid Sugar and Processed Foods. Sugar decreases the function of your immune system almost immediately, and as you likely know, a strong immune system is key to fighting off viruses and other illness. Be aware that sugar is present in foods you may not suspect, like ketchup and fruit juice.

Get Enough Rest. Just like it becomes harder for you to get your daily tasks done if you’re tired, if your body is overly fatigued it will be harder for it to fight the flu. Be sure to check out my article Guide to a Good Night’s Sleep for some great tips to help you get quality rest.

Have Effective Tools to Address Stress . We all face some stress every day, but if stress becomes overwhelming then your body will be less able to fight off the flu and other illness.

(…)

Exercise. When you exercise, you increase your circulation and your blood flow throughout your body. The components of your immune system are also better circulated, which means your immune system has a better chance of finding an illness before it spreads. You can review my exercise guidelines for some great tips on how to get started.

Take a good source of animal based omega-3 fats like Krill Oil. Increase your intake of healthy and essential fats like the omega-3 found in krill oil, which is crucial for maintaining health. It is also vitally important to avoid damaged omega-6 oils that are trans fats and in processed foods as it will seriously damage your immune response.

– Wash Your Hands. Washing your hands will decrease your likelihood of spreading a virus to your nose, mouth or other people. Be sure you don’t use antibacterial soap for this — antibacterial soaps are completely unnecessary, and they cause far more harm than good. Instead, identify a simple chemical-free soap that you can switch your family to.

– Eat Garlic Regularly. Garlic works like a broad-spectrum antibiotic against bacteria, virus, and protozoa in the body. And unlike with antibiotics, no resistance can be built up so it is an absolutely safe product to use. However, if you are allergic or don’t enjoy garlic it would be best to avoid as it will likely cause more harm than good.

– Avoid Hospitals and Vaccines. In this particular case, I’d also recommend you stay away from hospitals unless you’re having an emergency, as hospitals are prime breeding grounds for infections of all kinds, and could be one of the likeliest places you could be exposed to this new bug. Vaccines will not be available for six months at the minimum but when available they will be ineffective and can lead to crippling paralysis like Guillain-Barré Syndrome just as it did in the 70s.

Via: Detroit Holistic Health Examiner

Try some preventative and natural remedies to cure spring allergies this year. Spring is often the kick off to beginning allergy season for many people. While there are many over the counter and prescription medications to control allergy symptoms, there are many natural cures that can effectively and safely cure spring allergies.

* It’s important to check the pollen count every day so you can take preventative action. If the pollen count is high, it’s probably not the best day to do yard work. Plan your activities around the pollen count whenever possible.
* Pollen counts are highest between 5 a.m. and 10 a.m., so try to remain indoors as much as possible during that time of morning.
* Keep windows closed during spring allergy season to keep pollen from blowing into your house. Don’t hang dry your clothing outside, and change your sheets as often as possible.
* Shower and change your clothes when you return home after being outside. Pollen can rub off your clothing and cling to furniture and carpeting, so throw your clothing into the washing machine as soon as possible.
* Run your air conditioner and air filters to absorb the pollen from the air in your home. Don’t use window or attic fans, which can bring more pollen into the home.
* Take natural supplements to strengthen your immunity. MSM has antiallergic properties which can be more effective than antihistamines. Look for natural anti-allergy supplements which are a combination of herbs, enzymes, and nutrients which are designed to fight acute allergy attacks.
* Avoid mucus producing foods such as dairy products. Also avoid sugar, wheat and white rice.

If you are an allergy sufferer, consider trying a few preventative measures and natural remedies to control, or possibly cure, your spring allergies. Besides feeling better, you can also avoid the worries of taking over the counter or prescription medications and the side effects those medications can bring.

barley, fennel, peppermint

A tea brewed from these ingredients will calm hyperactive children if given in 1-cup amounts, when cool:

Cook some barley in plenty of water.  Strain and save the water.  Bring 1 pint of the barley water to a boil and add fennel seed and parsley, 1.5 tsp each, then let simmer for 5 minutes on reduced heat. Then steep for exactly 20 minutes.  Let cool and keep refridgerated.

catnip, chamomile

• A cup of hot tea brewed from catnip willensure a good night’s sleep for everyone who suffers from nervousness or hyperactivity, although I would not give it to children. To brew catnip tea, at a teaspoon of fresh or dried catnip to 1.5 cups of water that boiled and was taken from the stove.  Let steep for about 20 minutes.  You can add honey if you wish.
• You can also brew a nice chamomile tea to help yourself calm down.  Add 2 tsp of fresh or dried flower in 1 pint of water for about 40 minutes and drink 1-2 cups per day.  For a lasting effect, do this for 2 weeks.