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How to Fight a Cold Naturally

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From Quick Guide: Travel Healthy

Summary: The common cold is caused by a virus rather than bacteria, so antibiotics won't help. But you can always work on building up your immune system and relieving your symptoms. Here are some natural ways to fend off that cold.

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Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Instructions
  1. Step 1

    Take time off. Getting adequate rest will help you get over your cold quickly.

  2. Step 2

    Drink more water than you usually do. Eight glasses a day is standard when you're healthy, so try to drink more than that.

  3. Step 3

    Substitute herbal tea or juice for water to make your liquid intake goals.

  4. Step 4

    Let your appetite dictate how much you eat. If you're not hungry at all, try eating something that's easy to digest, like a banana. Sugar may have a negative impact on your immune system, so limit sweets.

  5. Step 5

    Eat chicken soup if it makes you feel better. It can't rid your body of the virus, but it's easy to digest and may soothe your throat.

  6. Step 6

    Drink an immune-boosting tea of echinacea or goldenseal. You can also take capsules or a tincture.

  7. Step 7

    Load up on vitamin C every few hours, and take zinc according to bottle directions.

Comments  

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kohuether said

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on 8/5/2009 Great tips! I love the advice to get rest - so many people forget to do this. I also like lemon balm tea in addition to the ones you mentioned and peppermint if my sinuses are unhappy.

menuaddict said

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on 1/26/2009 I take 1,000mg of vitamin C everyday. I don't catch a cold often. When I do it seems to be short in duration.

-Larry
http://www.menuaddict.com

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on 1/9/2009 I just recently discovered the method listed by anonymous, using just the hand or a bowl. Really easy, feels great (a bit weird at first, yes) and best of all, it's free!

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on 5/2/2008 Be VERY careful when using products containing zinc. Don't use more than one and be sure that you don't exceed the maximum dosage. Zinc can become toxic quite easily. Zinc-containing cold remedies are becomming increasingly common and zinc toxicity is along with it. I bought some throat drops last winter and I didnt even realize they had zinc in them until about june.

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on 5/2/2008 Be VERY Careful when taking products containing zinc. Don't take more than one and make sure you don't take more than the maximum dosage. Zinc can become toxic very quickly. I have some throat drops that I didnt even realize had zinc in them when I bought them. They say very specifically not to use more than one every few hours.

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eHow Article: How to Fight a Cold Naturally

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