Tips for cold and flu prevention

We are in the middle of cold and flu season so here are a few tips that can help you avoid catching any unfriendly germs. These tips are for the early onset stage and if utilized can stop a cold/flu in its tracks.

1. Drink 4 cups fresh ginger root tea (recipe as follows).
2. Avoid sugar (lowers immune system within 30 minutes of consumption).
3. Get enough rest.
4. Receive acupuncture to boost immune system.

Fresh ginger is classified in the release the exterior category of Traditional Chinese Medicine. What this means is that herbs in this category help assist the body in flushing out pathogens that have entered the body from an external source. Dried ginger has a different property than fresh and is more useful in aiding weak digestion. Hence, using ginger tea bags in the following recipe will be ineffective in the releasing of cold or flu.

Ginger Tea recipe:

1. Slice approximately 2 inches of ginger root into thin slices (skin left on is fine).
2. Place ginger into 4 cups boiling water.
3. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 20 minutes.
4. Strain into cup and add honey or sucanat, if desired, to mitigate spiciness.
5. Drink all of the tea in one sitting, one cup after the other until all gone. The effectiveness of the tea requires drinking it in one sitting so as to raise the body temperature.

It should be noted that the above recipe is only applicable at the first signs of a cold or flu; usually the first day only. Once the disease has gotten a good foothold ginger tea will no longer be effective. More than likely ginger tea will actually cause the cold to go deeper if used past the first signs.

If you are feeling “off” or know you’re about to catch cold, come in right away for acupuncture. Do not worry about exposing the germs to us, the practitioners. Acupuncture stimulates and strengthens the immune system & I have found that I rarely, if ever, get sick from treating a patient when they are sick, due to running lots of energy myself.

Yours in Health & Vitality,

Leslie Shanai

first published: Wednesday, January 25th, 2012