Natural Remedies & Herbs for Colds And Flu Prevention

Echinacea has long been used for colds and flu. Double-blind trials in Germany have shown that infections associated with flu-like symptoms clear more rapidly when people take echinacea. Echinacea appears to work by stimulating the immune system. The usual recommended amount of echinacea is 3–5 ml of the expressed juice of the herb or tincture of the herb or root, or 300 mg of dried root powder three times per day.

The effect of a syrup made from the berries of the black elderberry on influenza has been studied in a small double-blind trial. People receiving an elderberry extract (four tablespoons per day for adults, two tablespoons per day for children) appeared to recover faster than did those receiving a placebo.

In a preliminary study of elderly nursing home residents in Japan, only 1.3% of those who gargled with a green tea extract three times a day during the winter developed influenza, whereas 10.4% of those who gargled without the green tea extract developed the disease (a statistically significant difference). The presumed active ingredients in the extract were a group of flavonoids called catechins, which were present in the extract at half the concentration as that in green tea. It is possible, therefore, that gargling with green tea itself might also be effective for preventing the flu....