Beat Cold and Flu Season

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There may not be a cure for the common cold, but there are certainly things you can do to prevent as well as recover faster. One of the things that you can do it have hot tea and hot drinks to elevate your body temperature. Viruses do not like this kind of environment and it is a good thing to do particularly if you have a sore throat.

According to Pat Crocker, Author of "The Smoothie Bible" Some ideas to help prevent a cold is to have plenty of lemons, onions, citrus, fruits and carrots, as well as herbs such as echinacea, elderflowers and elderberries as well as garlic, ginger and licorice. Peppermint was also included in her list. I would not advise just dumping a whole lot of these herbs together and having them without guidence, for example, if you are pregnant limit your intake of partley to 1/2 teaspoon per day. If you have high blood pressure, avoid licorice. To purchase her book, (for a limited time it is less than $10 Canadian dollars) The Smoothie Bible, you can click here. 
According the the author, Basil is an antispasmodic, soothing digestive, antibacterial, antidepressant and adrenal gland stimulant. She recommends using 1 - 3 leaves for each cup of smoothie. It is used to help indigestion, stress and tension headaches. And you thought it was only used for Pesto!

I came up with my own version of the cold fighting smoothie, although inspired by Pat.

Here it is:

By Melony Teague

Mango and Basil Cold Buster

4 Basil Leaves, washed
1 small knob of fresh ginger
8 - 10 cubes of frozen carrot juice*
2 cubes of frozen spinach,
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup Fresh Mango juice
1/2 cucumber, chopped
1 apple, cored and cubed 

Blend these together in a blender and enjoy!

Part of the prevention process is getting enough rest and not letting yourself become run down. Enough rest, sleep and exercise will help your immune system avoid succumbing and if you do get sick, if you take care of yourself, you will recover quicker.


By Melony Teague
www.melonyteague.com 

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Melony Teague a freelance writer and columnist who lives in Canada with her husband and two young children.