The cold weather is now upon us and this is the season for colds. We’ve all heard that washing your hands is one of the most effective ways to stave off a cold in the first place. But what if you did everything right and still ended up with a cold? You feel miserable with all the coughing and nose blowing.  Your chest hurts and you feel like the cold will hang on forever. That’s how I usually feel when I get a cold but fortunately, I have not had one for this year … yet.

About a decade ago, I had a very bad cold and after 5 weeks of coughing which seemed to get worse at night, my father finally told me to do what I used to do as a child (or what my parents used to make me do as a child). He reminded me of the tea that we drank when we had a cold (mostly because medical care was prohibitive and many elders relied on herbal remedies which always worked). Here is the all-natural recipe and here is why it works:

•  1 cup hot (not boiling) water
• 2 tsp. ground ginger
• ½ tsp. turmeric
• ¼ – ½ tsp. ground black pepper
• 2 tsp. honey

Put the hot water in a mug, preferably a thermos type. Add the other ingredients and blend until everything is dissolved. Drink this mixture throughout the day for as long as you are still coughing. You’ll start noticing that when you blow your nose or cough, there will be a lot of mucous (I know… this sounds gross) but try to blow your nose or cough it out. Within a few days, you should start noticing a significant difference in the severity of your cough.

Turmeric: there are numerous health benefits including its anti-inflammatory and detoxifying properties. It helps to alleviate the pain in your chest.

Ginger: Also helps to relieve pain and inflammation especially in the chest.

Black pepper: Eating/drinking this will help clear up your nasal passages (sometimes a nuisance but it gets rid of the cold)

Honey: Soothes your throat which is probably raw from all the coughing; anti-bacterial boosts your immune system

I have shared this recipe with many family and friends and it really does work. Since it is all natural, there are no side effects. Try it and if it works, pass it on to someone who may benefit.