Ayurvedic tips to prevent and cure the common cold

Common cold may be harmless, but it is an irritating feeling when one feels weak and fatigue. A viral infection of your nose and throat, it can occur at any time throughout the year but the most common are in winter and during season change. It is also quite common in children but healthy adults can also expect to get twice or thrice a year.

Symptoms of common cold

Symptoms of a common cold usually surface at least one to three days after exposure to a cold-causing virus. Some of the common symptoms are:

• Running or blocked nose
• Sore/Scratchy throat
• Congestion
• Sneezing
• Fatigue
• Muscle aches
• Loss of appetite
• Cough
• Headache
• Mild fever

Ayurvedic remedies for preventing common cold

Besides eating a balanced seasonal diet, Ayurveda suggests certain remedies that can help you stay healthy, particularly throughout the winter season, when common cold is prevalent.

Turmeric: Turmeric is an immune-boosting spice. Make a paste of organic turmeric powder and pure honey. At the first hint of a cold, start taking 1 teaspoon of the paste every two hours until you feel better. To make it even more powerful, to this paste add black pepper and ghee.

Amla, tulsi and ashwagandha: Strengthen your immune system by having amla and tulsi. Also take ashwagandha, which is an adaptogenic herb that has immune-boosting properties. Ashwagandha powder or in other forms are available over the counter. You can have it thrice a day after meals.

Put oil in your ear: If you put a few drops of warm oil—sesame oil, mustard seed oil, or any ear oil—in each ear at night, it will lubricate the upper Eustachian tube and the cervical lymph nodes in the neck. Our lymphatic system carries our immune system, and when the cervical lymph nodes get dry, they get swollen glands. This happens when the immune system is down. When the nodes are lubricated, the glands can effectively get rid of any bad bacteria that might have accumulated.

Neti and nasya: Do Neti and nasya every day. Take saltwater in a neti pot. Stand in front of your sink and place the tip of the pot’s spout in one nostril. Tilt your head and pour the saltwater into one nostril. Keep your head tilted till the solution enter the nasal passage and flow out from the other nostril. This cleans out the sinuses. But the saltwater may make the skin dry, which reacts by producing mucus. Mucus is a breeding ground for bad bacteria. So you have to do nasya, which is a nasal-lubricating technique. You have to sniff herbalized oils in the nose to moisturize the sinuses and prevent dryness.

Oil pulling: Start oil pulling every day. It is an ancient practice that involves swishing oil in your mouth. Oil pulling with herbalized oils removes bad bacteria from the mouth and boosts good immune-boosting bacteria in your mouth.

Ayurvedic remedies to cure common cold

Inhale steam: Add a few drops of eucalyptus oil in hot water and inhale the steam. While inhaling, cover your head and the bowl with a towel. This will relieve a stuffed nose.

Sip tea made with tulsi leaves with an equal quantity of dried ginger powder. It is an excellent drink for common cold. You can also add milk and sugar to it.

Mix the juice of ginger and tulsi one teaspoon each to one teaspoon honey and take two-three times a day. You can also take a small piece of ginger fried in ghee, two times a day.

Mix half teaspoon of black pepper powder to jaggery and have it twice a day.

Add one teaspoon of powder or paste of turmeric to a cup of warm milk and take it thrice a day. This gives immediate relief in cold.