Coming down with a cold is one of the worst feelings in the world. While it’s considered a minor illness, it does all it can to drain you of your energy and vitality. If the life has gone out of you, owing to the simple common cold, read on to find out how to get rid of a cold super fast.

The common cold is a viral infection of the upper respiratory tract, including the nose, throat, sinuses and upper airways. While it doesn’t feel like it, medically it’s harmless.

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The symptoms may include a runny nose, congestion, sneezing, coughing, and body aches. Symptoms vary from person to person, and the intensity of any symptom can vary as well.

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Popping pills for a common cold may not be considered wise. Cold medications usually provide little relief but come with a number of side effects.

Natural Treatment for Common Cold

Thankfully, there are a lot of effective solutions for the common cold in the arsenal of home remedies. These home remedies are easy on the pocketbook as well as your body. All you need to do is find the one that suits you and combine it with a lot of rest.

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Here are five home remedies to get rid of a common cold.

Method 1: Use Garlic and Cayenne Pepper

When it comes to effective home remedies, garlic is one of the trusted remedies. Its antiviral and antibacterial properties give your immune system a boost to fight off the infection, and the oils present in garlic help with congestion. However, more research is still required on its effectiveness to treat a common cold. (2)

Cayenne pepper can also help with sinus congestion. If your cold has left you feeling numb with congestion, cayenne pepper will surely benefit you. Cayenne pepper proves especially beneficial if you have sore throat along with the cold.

Things you’ll need:

garlic, honey and cayenne peppper for cold things need

  • Garlic, minced (strengthens the immune system) – 1 teaspoon
  • Cayenne pepper powder (helps treat sinus infection) – 1 teaspoon
  • Honey (soothes the throat) – 1 teaspoon

Mix garlic, cayenne pepper, and honey

mix ginger, cayenne pepper and honey

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  • Put 1 teaspoon of fresh minced garlic in a small bowl.
  • Add 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper powder to it.
  • Finally, add in 1 teaspoon of honey.
  • Mix the ingredients thoroughly.

Consume the garlic and cayenne pepper concoction twice a day to get rid of cold.

Repeat daily until it treats your cold.

Make a fresh preparation for each dose. You can also halve the quantity of each dose and consume the smaller portions 3 or 4 times a day.

Adding honey to the mix not only improves the taste but also increases the benefits of the concoction. Honey soothes the throat as well as fights the cold symptoms.

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Make sure that you only use freshly minced garlic. The active compound allicin, which is responsible for garlic’s medicinal properties, is only present in freshly crushed garlic.

cayenne pepper, garlic for cold

Method 2: Use Chicken Soup

Chicken soup seems to be the go-to remedy for those down with the flu or the common cold. While making the broth from scratch is found to be more beneficial for health, warming up a canned chicken soup can also provide great results with minimum effort.

The latter seems to be especially convenient when you don’t have the strength to do much in the way of cooking.

chicken soup

Chicken soup has long been lauded for its cold-banishing properties. When under the weather, you may not feel like eating meals, but a bowl of steaming chicken soup often sounds palatable.

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Hot chicken soup has two main properties that effectively deal with a cold – heat and fluids. Several servings of chicken soup a day can provide your body with the fluids it needs. The hot liquid also helps with the congestion.

The various vegetables in chicken soup not only improve the flavor but also contain phytonutrients, which boost the immune system and provide the extra energy your body needs to fight off the cold.

The slow-cooked bone broth also provides minerals – calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, and sulfur – in a form that can be easily absorbed in a weak body.

So the next time you have a cold or the flu, listen to your grandmother and have a bowl of hot chicken soup.

Method 3: Use Ginger, Lemon, and Honey Tea

Ginger, lemon, and honey can be your personal musketeers when it comes to fighting a cold. Their properties make them an effective curative as well as a preventive measure when treating a cold.

The gingerols present in ginger are responsible for its anti-inflammatory and antiviral properties, the latter of which fights the infection that causes the cold. (1) Ginger also keeps your digestion in good shape, which further helps to keep the body energetic.

Lemon contains vitamin C that’s beneficial against a cold and improves immunity. It also helps regulate excess mucous formation. Finally, honey soothes the throat and also boasts mild antibacterial properties.

If your winter cold comes coupled with a sore throat, this ginger tea will prove to be especially soothing. It will also provide you with fluids needed to knock out the cold.

Things you’ll need:

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  • Water – 1 cup
  • Ginger, sliced (fights infection) – 1 to 2 inches
  • Honey (soothes the throat) – 1 teaspoon
  • Lemon, medium-sized (regulates the excess mucous formation) – half

Step 1. Bring water to a boil in a pan

bring water in a pan

  • Pour 1 cup of water into a pan.
  • Turn on the heat and bring the water to a boil.

Step 2. Add ginger and let it simmer

add ginger and let it simmer

  • Add the slices of 1 to 2 inches of raw gingerroot to the boiling water.
  • Turn the heat to low and cover the pan.
  • Let the gingerroot simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on how strong you want your tea.

Step 3. Strain the ginger tea

strain the ginger tea

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Pour the ginger tea into a cup through a strainer.

Step 4. Add lemon and honey

add lemon and honey

  • Squeeze the juice of half of a medium-sized lemon into the tea. You can adjust the quantity of the lemon juice according to your taste.
  • Add 1 teaspoon of honey, which will also improve the taste of your tea. Stir the tea to dissolve the honey.

Drink this soothing tea while it’s still hot to get fast relief from cold symptoms. Repeat 2 to 3 times a day until you get complete relief from cold.

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Method 4: Use Honey and Lemon

Honey and lemon, when taken with warm water, can help ease a cold on their own. This drink will speed up your recovery and also act as a preventive measure.

Lemon is a good source of vitamin C that boosts the immune system, allowing your body to defend itself against the infection. Lemon also balances the body’s pH level, which makes the environment less friendly for bacteria and viruses. It also regulates the mucous and speeds up recovery. Plus, lemon helps keep the body hydrated.

Honey has mild antibacterial properties and has been used to provide relief from common colds and sooth sore throats for ages. (3) Using organic, unprocessed and raw honey is most beneficial.

Things you’ll need:

thingsneed

  • Hot water – 1 cup
  • Lemon, sliced (boosts immune system) – half
  • Honey (provides relief from common cold) – 1 teaspoon

Add honey and lemon to hot water

add honey and lemon to water

  • Add 1 teaspoon of raw, unprocessed honey to 1 cup of hot water.
  • Put in the slices from half a lemon as well. The bulk of the vitamin C is present in the rind of the lemon, which makes using lemon slices more beneficial than lemon juice.
  • Let the mixture sit for 3 to 5 minutes, allowing the honey to dissolve and the lemon to be steeped into the hot water.

Consume the honey and lemon drink 2 or 3 times a day until it cures your cold.

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Method 5: Use Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)

One of the simplest remedies for the common cold is apple cider vinegar (ACV). This one-ingredient remedy, when followed through with consistency, is a sure shot cure for the most stubborn colds.

Apple cider vinegar contains a lot of beneficial microorganisms that can help you battle the common cold. The acetic acid, amino acids, and potassium present in the apple cider vinegar make it effective against colds. It relieves congestion and thins out the mucus, which makes breathing easier. It also relieves cold-induced headaches and soothes a sore throat.

Things you’ll need:

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  • Warm water – 1 cup
  • Apple cider vinegar (relieves congestion) – 1 to 2 tablespoons

Add apple cider vinegar to warm water

add ACV to water

  • Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar to 1 cup of warm water and mix well.

Sip on this drink while it’s warm. Consuming this apple cider vinegar drink 2 or 3 times a day can provide instant relief from common colds.

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Tips for common cold relief

  • If you’ve got the guts, go ahead and chew a couple of raw garlic cloves twice a day until your cold subsides. You can also mix a few drops of garlic oil into warm water and consume the drink.
  • If you’re unwilling to deal with garlic, you can get garlic pills in a drugstore and use them as a garlic substitute until your cold subsides.
  • If you have a sensitive stomach, you should not take garlic on an empty stomach.
  • Add turmeric, garlic, and ginger to your chicken soup to make it more effective against colds.
  • You can also add honey to your apple cider vinegar drink to make it more palatable and add more health benefits.
  • Getting sufficient rest is very important when battling the common cold. Your body works overtime dealing with the cold infection, which means you need more rest than usual to recuperate. Take a day off and spend the day in bed, going through your choice of remedies for a speedy recovery.
  • Another tenet of dealing with a cold is to consume large amounts of fluids and keep your body well-hydrated.

Resources:

  1. Hai-long Z, Shimin C, Yalan L. Some Chinese folk prescriptions for wind-cold type common cold. Journal of Traditional and Complementary Medicine. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2225411014000492. Published February 10, 2015.
  2. Lissiman E, Bhasale AL, Cohen M. Garlic for the common cold. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25386977. Published November 11, 2014.
  3. Malesker MA, Callahan-Lyon P, Ireland B, Irwin RS, CHEST Pa. Pharmacologic and Nonpharmacologic Treatment for Acute Cough Associated With the Common Cold: CHEST Expert Panel Report. Chest. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28837801. Published November 2017.

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get rid of cold fast

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