Natural Cold Remedies: Anti-Viral & Immune Boosting Herbs
Easy, at-home herbal practices for cold & flu season
It’s easy to feel powerless during cold season. After several rounds of getting sick and passing it on to those in your immediate circle, the options grow pretty limited: Stay home, pound the NyQuil and Vitamin C, and attempt to get some rest.
And don’t me wrong— those things work. But they don’t necessarily give your body the support it needs to fully recover and come back stronger for the next round (because there’s always a next round, amirite?).
The beauty of herbal medicine is that it’s been around a really long time. As in, people have been using natural remedies to treat coughs and colds for thousands of years. I’d venture to say your sad sniffly self would have been NBD for our ancestors back in the day. They’d run out, collect herbs, whip something up, and you’d be feeling better in no time.
Unfortunately, we’ve lost a lot of that knowledge over the years. And while modern cold medicines like DayQuil (which is just Tylenol + antihistamine for those wondering) might help you get through the workday, they certainly aren’t providing much support for your body in the long term.
Enter the herbs.
Herbal remedies are different. Rather than just masking symptoms, herbs actually work dynamically within your body to improve the set of conditions that’s causing your runny nose/sore throat/foggy-head feeling.
Over the past few months, I’ve had ample opportunity to try these ancient remedies on myself and with friends (yay cold season)! These are some of the easiest, gentlest, yet most effective practices I’ve found for alleviating cold symptoms and cutting short the numbers of days spent feeling (in a word)— like shit.
Purify the air with pine smoke
If you live in region where pine grows abundantly, you can harvest a few stems and burn them to cleanse the air inside your home. The pine may also help clear your congestion, due to its natural aromatic qualities that work as a soothing expectorant and antispasmodic— which basically means it works to clear your airways while also keeping that nasty cough at bay.
While dried pine stems will definitely burn easier than fresh ones, you might be able to burn fresh stems if you live in a dry enough climate. Otherwise, pick a few stems and allow them to dry naturally (hanging in a dark corner is best) for a few days or weeks before burning them.
Keep in mind there’s a whole slew of aromatic evergreens that will work just as well as pine. I suggest finding out which trees grow most abundantly near you, then follow these tips for best-practices when wildcrafting.
Create an herbal steam tent
A steam tent is pretty much what it sounds like, but you can skip the trip to REI for this kind of cold-killing campsite. A steam tent (which consists of inhaling steam from a boiled pot of herbs) is a great way to clear up your congestion while also killing some of the germs festering in your nose and throat.
The best part? You probably have everything you need already:
Clean pot
Hand towel
A handful of kitchen herbs
The kitchen herbs I like to use are very common, and they’re also all part of the Mint (Lamiaceae) family. Like most members of this incredible plant family, these herbs are highly aromatic and guaranteed to smell amazing while working wonders on your struggling respiratory system.
Here are my three top choices for an herbal steam tent:
Thyme- A powerful expectorant- which helps the mucosa in your respiratory tract to eliminate any extra build up (ie. it expectorates the nasties). It’s also antibacterial, and a great lung-opener.
Oregano- The essential oils of this plant exert an anti-septic effect on the lungs, bronchi, and nasal passages1. In other words, these essential oils can fight infection and prevent it from spreading any further.
“They [Oregano and Thyme] aid respiratory issues, including non-acute asthma and chest congestion; open the lungs; and ease coughs and sneezes”
- Maria Noel Graves, Body Into Balance: An Herbal Guide to Holistic Self-Care
Rosemary- Besides being anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal (say that three times), Rosemary also helps boost circulation, and mental clarity. This one is my personal favorite for those colds that leave you feeling “foggy.”
Once you’ve decided which herb(s) to work with, place a medium-sized pinch-ful (exact measurement) in a pot of cold water. Let the water reach a boil then turn it off and cover it, allowing the herbs to infuse for a few minutes. Remove the pot from the stove and stand over the steam (with the towel over your head) and deeply inhale for 3-5 minutes. Whenever your water cools, feel free to reheat it & repeat the process.
Make an immune-boosting soup
You’ve undoubtedly heard of bone broth, but have you ever considered making an herbal broth? Much like the slow-cooked soups lovingly made by our grandmothers, herbal broth is a powerful and delicious way to boost your immunity, while also embracing the idea of “food as medicine.”
Get your hands on the following dried roots and mushrooms, then simmer them in water (or vegetable stock) for an immune-boosting base that can be used in your favorite soup or hot cocoa recipe (seriously).
Reishi mushroom (1/2 of one large dried mushroom— a little goes a long way)
Eleuthero root (small handful)
Astralagus root (small handful)
Burdock root (small handful)
Directions: Add any combination of these herbs to a large pot and simmer (covered) on low heat for 1-2 hours, checking intermittently to make sure you haven’t lost too much water to evaporation. Strain your herbs and use the broth as a base for your favorite soup or hot drink.
Tip: Always buy your herbs from a reputable, organic farm. You can use this resource maintained by Mountain Rose Herbs to find a local farm near you.
Ready for even more natural remedies to boost your immunity this season? Check out Natural Cold Remedies: Part Two.
(Photos by Gaelle Marcel, Content Pixie, Dana DeVolk )
Cech, Richo. Making Plant Medicine. Herbal Reads, 2016.