Natural home remedies: Colds and flu

It may be “just a cold,” but it’s nothing to sneeze at. And the flu can make you feel downright drained. Fortunately, fast action on your part—including these simple home remedies for colds and flu—can mitigate the misery

Natural home remedies: colds and flu

Is it a common cold or the flu? If your symptoms are above the neck—congestion, sore throat, sneezing, coughing—you probably have a cold. If you have all those symptoms plus a fever of 38.8˚C (102˚F) or more, headache, muscle aches, extreme fatigue, diarrhea, nausea or vomiting, you’re more likely to have the flu.

What you can do for colds and flu

• For a sore throat remedy  fill a 250 mL glass with warm water, mix in one teaspoon of salt and gargle away. The salt really does soothe the pain.

• Add a squeeze of lemon juice to a glass of warm water for the more traditional sore throat gargle. This creates an acidic environment that’s hostile to bacteria and viruses.

• Chicken soup is a time-honoured remedy that is tried, tested and true.Chicken soup stops certain white blood cells (neutrophils) from congregating and causing inflammation, preventing large amounts of mucus from being produced. The hot soup also thins the mucus. Adding freshly chopped garlic to your soup gives the system a powerful boost. While garlic kills germs outright, it also appears to stimulate the release of natural killer cells, which are part of the immune system’s arsenal of germ-fighters. Spike your soup with red (chili) pepper flakes to increase the broth’s decongestant power.

• Drink as much water as you can—eight or more 250 mL glasses—to keep mucous membranes moist and to help relieve dry eyes and other common flu symptoms. Fluids also help thin mucus so that it’s easier to expel.

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• To help keep mucus loose, stay in a moist, warm, well-ventilated room. To keep the air in your bedroom moist, place bowls of water near the air ducts or run a humidifier.

• Cut short your cold with a blow-dryer. As outlandish as it sounds, inhaling heated air may help kill a virus working its way up your nose. Set your hair dryer on warm (not hot), hold it at least 45 cm (18 in) from your face, and breathe in the air through your nose for as long as you can—at least two or three minutes—preferably 20 minutes.

• Wear wet socks to bed. Believe it or not, this soggy strategy can help ease a fever and clear congestion by drawing blood to the feet, which dramatically increases blood circulation. (Blood stagnates in areas of greatest congestion.) Best method: Warm your feet in hot water. Then soak a thin pair of cotton socks in cold water, wring them out and slip them on just before going to bed. Put a pair of dry wool socks over the wet ones. The wet socks should be warm and dry in the morning, and you should feel markedly better.

• Try soaking your feet in a mustard footbath. In a basin, mix 1 tablespoon of mustard powder in 1 L of hot water. The mustard draws blood to your feet, which helps to relieve congestion.

• Another oldie: try a mustard plaster for chest congestion. Grind up three tablespoons of mustard seeds, add water to make a paste, and then slather it on your chest. The pungent aroma helps to unclog stuffy sinuses, while the heat improves blood circulation and eases congestion. Don’t leave the plaster on for more than 15 minutes, however, or your skin may burn. You may want to smear on a bit of petroleum jelly before you apply the plaster to protect the skin.

• Breathe easy with steam. Pour just-boiled water into a large bowl. Drape a towel over the top of your head to trap the steam, and breathe in through your nose for five to 10 minutes. Don’t lower your face too close to the water or you risk scalding your skin or inhaling vapours that are too hot. To make steam inhalations more effective, add five to 10 drops thyme oil or eucalyptus oil to the water. Keep your eyes closed as you breathe in the steam, since both essential oils and steam may irritate your eyes. On the go? Dab a few tissues with eucalyptus oil and hold them under your nose whenever you feel congested.

A natural boost for colds and flu

• At the first hint of a cold, suck on a zinc gluconate lozenge every few hours. Don’t take zinc gluconate longer than a week, though, because excessive zinc can actually weaken immunity. Avoid zinc lozenges that contain citric acid or are sweetened with sorbitol or mannitol; these ingredients seem to weaken the mineral’s effectiveness.

• As soon as you notice cold or flu symptoms, start taking 500 mg of vitamin C four to six times a day. If you develop diarrhea, cut down on the dose.

• Take one 250 mg astragalus capsule, twice daily, until you’re better. This ancient Chinese herb stimulates the immune system and seems to be highly effective at fighting colds and flu. To prevent a relapse, take one capsule twice a day for an additional week after your symptoms are gone.

• Goldenseal stimulates the immune system and has germ-fighting compounds thatcan kill viruses. As soon as you begin to feel sick, take 125 mg five times a day for five days.

• At the first sign of the flu, take 20 to 30 drops of elderberry tincture three or four times daily for three days. Elderberry has been used in Europe for centuries to fight viruses.

• Oscillococcinum, commonly called Oscillo, is widely recommended by naturopaths and herbalists to reduce the severity of flu symptoms. Be sure to use it within 12 to 48 hours of the first appearance of your symptoms. It comes in packages of three to six vials. Buy the three-vial pack and take one vial every six hours.

• A dose of garlic—a natural antiseptic—will do a job on those viruses. If you’re feeling very brave, hold a small clove or a half-clove of garlic in your mouth and breathe the fumes into your throat and lungs. If it gets too strong as the clove softens, just chew if up quickly into smaller pieces and swallow with water.

• For a serious congestion-busting blast, buy fresh horseradish or gingerroot, grate it and eat a small amount. To guard against upset stomach, wait until after a meal to try this.

• Drink a cup of ginger tea. Ginger helps block the production of substances that cause bronchial congestion and stuffiness, and it contains compounds call gingerols, which are natural cough suppressants.

• During cold and flu season, take 20 to 30 drops of Echinacea tincture in half-cup of water three times daily.

Adapted from 1,801 Home Remedies, Reader's Digest

http://www.besthealthmag.ca/best-you/home-remedies/natural-home-remedies-colds-and-flu

The flu may hit one gender harder than the other

NEW YORK -- The next time a guy you know gets the flu, you may want to show him a little more sympathy.

A new study shows that men may be more likely to catch the flu than women and suffer more from the symptoms, CBS New York reports.

That's unfortunate news for many men, since experts say a flu-filled winter could be on the way.

"This year they are predicting that it's going to be a particularly bad year," said Dr. Jake Deutsch, clinical director at CURE Urgent Care, told CBS2's Maurice Dubois. Health officials say this year's flu vaccine is leseffective than usual against certain strains of the virus, leaving many people vulnerable even if they got a flu shot.

Play VIDEO

Why you should still get a flu shot

The study from Stanford University School of Medicine found that the flu vaccine may be more effective in women than in men, and for women who do get the flu, the study found they are better at fighting the virus off.

"Are men less equipped to deal with infection? Technically, yes," Deutsch said.

The reason, according to the study that was conducted on mice, is the female sex hormone estrogen.

"The female mice that produced estrogen produced an enzyme and that enzyme was able to help them fight infection," Deutsch explained.

It may be a simple result of evolution. "There's an idea there that estrogen, which is native to women's endocrine system, is there because part of their role is to be nurturers. They have to take care of not only themselves, but their families," he said.

Some women, however, interpreted the findings a bit differently: as scientific evidence backing up what they already believed, that men are bigger babies when it comes to getting sick.

"They seem to whine more and they seem to want to ride it out longer," one woman told CBS New York.

"They think they don't need help and they don't accept help, and they don't take medicine," another woman said.

Of course, some men disagreed, but Deutsch had to admit he's seen signs of it himself. "Anecdotally, I can say that a lot of times guys are wimpier when it comes to being sick," he said.

The study could eventually help pave the way for new immune-boosting drugs.

"I think there is the possibility of somehow delivering the key elements of estrogen to men in a safe way in order to activate that enzyme," Deutsch said.

Doctors do not recommend that men take estrogen supplements, but they do suggest other ways of boosting immunity, including getting plenty of sleep and vitamin C.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/flu-hits-men-women-one-gender-harder-than-the-other/

Five shocking food facts...

If you ever needed inspiration to grow your own, here it is...

Picture credit: © zaschnaus - Fotolia.com

1.         Pesticide levels in our food have been steadily increasing, and according to a report by the Pesticide Action Network, as much as 40% of the food we eat contains them.

            *To campaign, join the Pesticide Action Network at www.pan-uk.org 

2.         Food corporations spend millions lobbying governments every year to get what they want.  For more information on just how much these corporate heavyweights spend on cajoling governments, check out The Center for Responsive Politics at www.opensecrets.org
3.         Vitamin levels in our food have dropped dramatically in 50 years.  Canadian researchers discovered that today’s consumers need to eat eight supermarket oranges to get anywhere the same amount of Vitamin A our grandparents got from just one fruit.

            *For more information on why, check out Scientific American at www.scientificamerican.com

4.         Many in the world starving, while others are obese.  In figures, it’s said there’s a total of 800 million people on the planet going hungry, while one billion are overweight.  Both problems are symptomatic of a food system that is grossly out of control.

            *Read Raj Patel’s ‘Stuffed & Starved’ for insight into the failures of the global food chain.

5.         Today’s chickens have as much of weight problem as we do.  Cramped conditions where many birds don’t see the light of day, let alone move, and eating unnatural diets, means they contain 33 percent less protein and twice as much fat as in he past, according to a study from the London Met University.

    *Worried about battery farming?  See Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall’s Chicken Out! Campaign     www.chikenout.tv

By Susan Tomlinson

http://www.familiesonline.co.uk/LOCATIONS/National/Family-Life/Food-nutrition-and-eating-out/Five-shocking-food-facts

What are the eight most popular diets today?

There are literally hundreds of thousands of diets. Some are for losing weight, others for gaining weight, lowering cholesterol, living a long and healthy life, etc. The Mediterranean Diet, for example, reflects the culinary habits of southern European people.

The word diet comes from Old French diete and Medieval Latindieta meaning "a daily food allowance". The Latin word diaetaand Greek word diaita mean "a way of life, a regimen".

A diet can be described as a set course of eating and drinking in which the kind and amount of food one should eat is been planned out in order to achieve weight loss or follow a certain lifestyle.

This Medical News Today information article provides details on the most popular diets according to three criteria: how many articles there are around about these diets/lifestyles, how popular they seem to be generally, and how often we receive feedback on them.

Contents of this article:

2. Atkins Diet
3. The Zone Diet
4. Vegetarian Diet
5. Vegan Diet
6. Weight Watchers Diet
7. South Beach Diet
8. Raw Food Diet
9. Mediterranean Diet

Below you can see a list of the eight diets, a summary on each one, and links to specific articles about those diets:

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Atkins Diet

The Atkins Diet, or Atkins Nutritional Approach, focuses on controlling the levels of insulin in our bodies through diet.¹

If we consume large amounts of refined carbohydrates our insulin levels will rise rapidly, and then fall rapidly. Rising insulin levels will trigger our bodies to store as much of the energy we eat as possible - it will also make it less likely that our bodies use stored fat as a source of energy.

Most people on the Atkins Diet will consume a higher proportion of proteins than they normally do.

The Zone Diet

The Zone Diet aims for a nutritional balance of 40% carbohydrates, 30% fats, and 30% protein each time we eat. The focus is also on controlling insulin levels, which result in more successful weight loss and body weight control.²  The Zone Diet encourages the consumption of good quality carbohydrates - unrefined carbohydrates, and fats, such as olive oil, avocado, and nuts.

Vegetarian Diet

There are various types of vegetarian: Lacto vegetarian, Fruitarian vegetarian, Lacto-ovo-vegetarian, Living food diet vegetarian, Ovo-vegetarian, Pescovegetarian, and Semi-vegetarian.³

The majority of vegetarians are lacto-ovovegetarians, in other words, they do not eat animal-based foods, except for eggs, dairy, and honey.

Studies over the last few years have shown that vegetarians have a lower body weight, suffer less from diseases, and generally have a longer life expectancy than people who eat meat.

Vegan Diet

Veganism is more of a way of life and a philosophy than a diet. A vegan does not eat anything that is animal based, including eggs, dairy, and honey.⁴

Vegans do not generally adopt veganism just for health reasons, but also for environmental and ethical/compassionate reasons.

Vegans believe that modern intensive farming methods are bad for our environment and unsustainable in the long term. If all our food were plant based our environment would benefit, animals would suffer less, more food would be produced, and people would generally enjoy better physical and mental health, vegans say.

Weight Watchers Diet

Weight Watchers focuses on losing weight through diet, exercise, and a support network.⁵

Weight Watchers Inc. was born in the 1960s when a homemaker (housewife) who had lost some weight and was concerned she might put it back on. So, she created a network of friends. Weight Watchers is a huge company, with branches all over the world.

Dieters can join either physically, and attend regular meetings, or online. In both cases there is a great deal of support and education available for the dieter.

South Beach Diet

The South Beach Diet was started by a cardiologist, Dr. Agatston, and a nutritionist, Marie Almon.⁶

It focuses on the control of insulin levels, and the benefits of unrefined slow carbohydrates versus fast carbs. Dr. Agatston devised the South Beach Diet during the 1990s because he was disappointed with the low-fat, high-carb diet backed by the American Heart Association. He believed and found that low-fat regimes were not effective over the long term.

Raw Food Diet

The Raw Food Diet, or Raw Foodism, involves consuming foods and drinks which are not processed, are completely plant-based, and ideally organic.⁷

Raw foodists generally say that at least three-quarters of your food intake should consist of uncooked food. A significant number of raw foodists are also vegans - they do not eat or drink anything which is animal based.

There are four main types of raw foodists: raw vegetarians, raw vegans, raw omnivores, and raw carnivores.

Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean Diet is Southern European, and more specifically focuses on the nutritional habits of the people of Crete, Greece, and southern Italy. Nowadays, Spain, southern France, and Portugal are also included; even though Portugal does not touch the Mediterranean Sea.

The emphasis is on lots of plant foods, fresh fruits as dessert, beans, nuts, cereals, seeds, olive oil as the main source of dietary fats, cheese and yogurts are the main dairy foods, moderate amounts of fish and poultry, up to about four eggs per week, small amounts of red meat, and low/moderate amounts of wine.⁸

Up to one third of the Mediterranean diet consists of fat, with saturated fats not exceeding 8% of calorie intake.

Western diet can shorten your life

Tasnime Akbaraly, PhD, Inserm, Montpellier, France, and team carried out a study that found that the "Western Diet", which is high in sweet and fried foods, raises a person's risk of dying early. They published their findings in the American Journal of Medicine.⁹

Dr. Akbaraly said "The impact of diet on specific age-related diseases has been studied extensively, but few investigations have adopted a more holistic approach to determine the association of diet with overall health at older ages. We examined whether diet, assessed in midlife, using dietary patterns and adherence to the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI), is associated with aging phenotypes, identified after a mean 16-year follow-up."

The team found that study participants who strayed from the "Alternative Healthy Eating Index" had a considerably higher risk of cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular death.

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The advantages of plant-based diets

The well known journal, Food Technology in October 2012 published a report explaining that plant-based diets either minimize or completely eliminate people's genetic propensity to developing chronic diseases, such as diabetes type 2, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.

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Written by Christian Nordqvist

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/5847.php

Improve Your Memory in 2 Minutes!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic4HxQ0UZK4

Forgetfulness could be a 12-year advance warning of dementia

REALISING you are becoming forgetful could be a 12-year advance warning of potential dementia.

Researchers have found that when people begin suffering memory problems they are three times more likely to develop dementia later in life, even if they have no clinical signs of diseases like Alzheimer’s.

The experts studied 531 people with an average age of 73 who were free of dementia.

They were asked yearly if they noticed any changes in their memory.

Of the one in six people investigated who developed dementia during the study, 80 per cent had first reported memory changes much earlier.

What’s notable about our study is the time it took for this transition to dementia or clinical impairment to occur – about 12 years

Dr Richard Kryscio, study author from Kentucky University

Study author Dr Richard Kryscio, of Kentucky University, said: “Our findings add strong evidence to the idea that memory complaints are sometimes indicators of future memory and thinking problems. Unfortunately, we do not yet have preventive therapies for Alzheimer’s.

“What’s notable about our study is the time it took for this transition to dementia or clinical impairment to occur – about 12 years.”

“There may be a window for intervention.”

The researchers, whose results are published online in the journal Neurology, found that 56 per cent of participants went on to report changes in their memory at an average age of 82.

Dr Simon Ridley, head of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “It is important to note that many people who report mild memory problems do not develop the condition. Anyone with concerns about their memory should speak to their doctor.”

By: Jo Willey, Published: Thu, September 25, 2014

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/515037/Forgetfulness-12-year-warning-dementia-health

Diet and cancer - acrylamide, artificial sweeteners, green tea, soy, tomatoes and vitamin supplements

There are often stories in the media about certain foods or nutrients that are supposed to increase or decrease the risk of cancer. On the balance of evidence, it's unlikely that specific 'superfoods', on their own, could directly affect the risk of cancer, but some of the stories are still controversial.

Here, you can read about some of the stories you may have read or heard about, and find out our take on the evidence.

For information about other controversial topics, like mobile phones, power lines, stress and much more, go to our Cancer Controversies section.

Acrylamide

In 2002, Sweden’s National Food Agency reported that many foods contain high levels of a chemical called acrylamide. International public concern followed since acrylamide is known to cause cancer by damaging DNA. This substance is produced when starchy foods are heated to high temperatures, and is found in foods such as chips, crisps and some bread.

Later studies in people found that the levels of acrylamide in most food are far too low to cause cancer. Many studies found that acrylamide has no impact on the risk of several different cancers, including breast, bowel, lung, brain and testicular cancers. Even food industry workers, who are exposed to twice as much acrylamide as other people, do not have higher rates of cancer. There have been some indications that acrylamide could be linked to higher risks of ovarian and womb cancers, but the evidence for this is limited and inconsistent, so we can’t be sure if this link is real.

In 2014, a draft report was released by the European Food Safety Authority, which said that although there is not enough evidence to show acrylamide could cause cancer in people, the levels of acrylamide people may get from food could still be a cause for concern. They called for more research to better understand the levels of acrylamide in people’s foods and how this might affect health, and they will be finalising their recommendations in 2015. But at the moment, there is still little concrete evidence linking acrylamide and cancer in people.

Artificial sweeteners

Artificial sweeteners are used in a wide variety of foods and drinks. Almost everyone in developed countries consumes them, whether they know it or not. Because of this, any potential cancer risks would be very far-reaching. But overall, studies on artificial sweeteners have found that they do not increase the risk of cancer.

Saccharin is one of the best studied of the artificial sweeteners. Some studies in the 80s found that it could cause bladder cancer in rats. Because of this, the Canadian government banned saccharin, and the American government warned that it could cause cancer. We now know that these effects were specific to rats and not relevant to humans. Bladder cancer risks are the same even in diabetics, who use sweeteners more frequently, and in people who lived through WWII, when saccharin use was high.

Aspartame, another type of sweetener, was also the subject of a cancer scare. This was because of an article linking it to rising brain tumour rates. This article had very little scientific basis and many later studies showed that aspartame, like saccharin, was safe for humans.

Another study in rats raised the alarm again but the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) found that the study had some major flaws. The EFSA’s report concluded that aspartame does not increase the risk of cancer below the daily recommended level. Even people who consume a lot of sweetened foods take in well below this amount.

Large studies looking at actual people have now provided strong evidence that artificial sweeteners are safe for humans. For example, one study looked at almost half a million people and found that aspartame does not increase the risk of leukaemia, lymphoma or brain tumours. New generation sweeteners seem t be safe, however we will continue to monitor studies.

Green tea

Some studies have found that green tea could reduce the risk of many cancers including cancers of the breast, prostate, mouth, foodpipe, stomach and bowel. The most promising studies were done in Asian countries. Studies in Western countries have mostly found no effect on cancer risk. These differences may be because Asians drink large amounts of green tea while people in Western countries drink mainly black tea.

Green tea contains high levels of a group of chemicals called catechins. Because of the way it is prepared, green tea contains 3-10 times more catechins than black tea. Laboratory studies on cells have shown that catechins could block the growth of cancers. They prevent DNA damage by mopping up free radicals, blocking the growth of tumour cells and stopping the activation of cancer-causing chemicals.

We still need more evidence from large-scale studies and clinical trials to prove that green tea could help to prevent some cancers.

Soy

The soybean is a staple part of East Asian diets and the evidence around the benefits or harms of soy is mixed. Some studies have linked eating soy products, such as tofu, soymilk or miso, to reduced risks of breast, prostate and bowel cancer, while others show no reduction in risk. 

The studies that have shown a significant reduction in risk of cancer have looked at Asian populations, where the diet is high in soy. In 2014 a large study across Japan showed that soy didn't affect the risk of womb (endometrial) cancer. The much smaller amounts eaten by Western populations are unlikely to have any benefits.

Soy contains a group of chemicals called isoflavones. In our bodies, these act like mild versions of the hormone oestrogen. Many human cancers, such as breast cancer, are linked to high levels of this hormone. So some scientists believe that by taking the place of our own oestrogen, soy isoflavones can reduce the risk of hormonal cancers. Others are concerned that for the same reasons, isoflavones could actually increase the risk of some cancers.

Clinical trials are needed to say for sure if soy reduces or increases the risk of cancer.

Tomatoes

Tomatoes contain a chemical called lycopene. This is found in all forms of tomatoes and tomato products including fresh, tinned, paste, juice and ketchup. Lycopene is a powerful antioxidant and mops up free radicals that could damage DNA.

It is unclear if lycopene could actually reduce the risk of prostate cancer. A large study of 47,000 men found that eating 2-4 weekly servings of tomatoes reduced prostate cancer risk by a quarter. And the EPIC study found that people who have the highest levels of lycopene in their blood have lower risk of advanced types of prostate cancer, but no decreased risk of developing prostate cancer overall.

However, not all studies agree and there are questions still to answer. For example, we still don't know how large a dose of lycopene you would need to reduce the risk of cancer. Even so, eating lots of tomatoes can help you get your recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. They are also an excellent source of vitamins A, C and E.

Vitamin and mineral supplements

Vitamin supplements do not have the same benefits as getting naturally-occurring vitamins in your food. It is thought that in fruit and vegetables, vitamins and nutrients interact with other chemicals to produce positive effects. On their own, they could be much less beneficial.

Several clinical trials have looked at the effects of vitamin supplements on cancer risk. Some of these have found that very high doses could actually increase the risk of cancer. An organisation called the Cochrane Collaboration first carried out a review of the evidence in 2008, which was updated in 2012 and now includes the results of 78 clinical trials of vitamin supplements. It found that these supplements, far from prolonging a person's life, either have neutral or harmful effects.

The best way to get your full range of vitamins and minerals is to eat a healthy, balanced diet, with a variety of fruit and vegetables. Supplements do not substitute for a healthy diet, although some people may be advised to take them at certain times in their lives. For example, doctors may advise women who are planning to have a baby to take a daily 400-microgram supplement of folic acid. And dark-skinned or elderly people may need to take vitamin D supplements since they need more sun exposure than other people to make enough vitamin D.

Jeff Iliff: One more reason to get a good night’s sleep

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJK-dMlATmM