Drink This, You’ll Feel Better: Natural Remedies for Cold/Flu

I personally hate taking medicine and will avoid taking it unless I am in major pain. It’s probably because I suffered from bad allergies as a child, growing up on the allergen-loving East Coast, and seemed to be constantly taking medication. To this day I hate anything that’s artificial cherry flavor (aside from the occasional Cherry Coke) or artificial fruit flavor. I see a bottle of Robitussin and I shudder with the memory.

Since I’ve been in California, I’ve looked for natural cures and home remedies for all sorts of ailments. For the most part they work very well for me. My two personal favorites are hot drinks I have concocted when I have a bad cold or the flu. These mixes do a great job of soothing what ails me and there’s no side effects.

Lemonade Remedy
1/2 – 3/4 cup lemonade
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce (Tapatio is my preference; tabasco or Cholula also work)
1/2 teaspoon or more apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon or more honey

Put all of the ingredients into a mug. Heat in the microwave for 2 minutes and drink while hot. Yes, it sounds gross, but you mostly taste the sweetness of the lemonade and the honey – the hot stuff just helps clear the sinuses.

Tomato “Tea”
1/2 – 3/4 cup tomato juice (mixed vegetable juice also works)
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce (see a trend here?)
2 minced garlic cloves (about 1/2 teaspoon if you get the stuff in the jar)
fresh lemon juice
Dash celery salt or Mrs. Dash (optional)

Put all of the ingredients into a mug. Heat in the microwave for 2 minutes and drink/sip while hot. It’s like a Virgin Bloody Mary with the heat turned on. I sometimes will eat this “tea” like soup, getting some good pita chips or tortilla chips to dip in my mug.

Got a home remedy that works wonders?
Please share it in the comments.

One Reply to “Drink This, You’ll Feel Better: Natural Remedies for Cold/Flu”

  1. The lemonadey one sounds rather good, even without needing your sinuses cleared.

    I usually just drink more water when I am sick.

Comments are closed.