what's YOUR best way of knocking out a cold?

[chyisan]

Well? I wanna know the tried and true methods. And don't tell me chicken soup. I'm vegetarian.

[Repulsive Monkey]

I'd say needling Lung 7 to be honest. If theres not heat indications eating ginger.

[dezhen2001]

i practise qigong (chi kung) and it keeps me healthy, so i haven't been ill for a long time, or caught a cold.

david :)

[NPMantis]

Personally I just stay in bed if I can with plenty of Lucozade and Oranges and it usually goes pretty quick.

[iron mantis]

An herbal remedy that works for me is as follows:
Take 2 capsules of echinacea 3 times a day at the first sign of cold symptoms. Echinacea boosts the immune system, giving you a jump on the oncoming cold. When I use echinacea this way a cold never fully sets in.

:D

[yu shan]

Hey Iron Mantis,

I do the Echinacea root as a daily treatment. I never get sick, hold on, ok, went to knock on wood. I hear mixed opinions about this usage, daily I mean. What are your thoughts on Echinacea as a preventive maintinance?

Silly as this sounds, wash your hands, Alot, keep the contact to your eyes, nose and mouth to a nil. Geez man, I sound like a grandma here!

[iron mantis]

Yu Shan-
I really can't say about daily usage. My feeling is to use it when the body needs it. I'm not really sure how the body processes the stuff, and the effects of cumulative exposure. It's probably safe though, I mean it's been part of healing traditions for a long time. I would definately trust it over ANYTHING the pharmaceutical companies make!
Washing your hands is excellent advice and let me add my two cents. When you are around sick people exhale when they do and breathe in when they do. My qigong instructor told the medical practicioners of our group that this is the way to minimize the exposure to the patient's stagnant/bad chi.
Now I've got a question for you. Do you know anything about Traditional Chinese Medicine? My research leads me to believe that young people shouldn't use ginseng, because the body's response to it will minimize the effectiveness over time. Are there any tonics that can be recommended for younger people that have a similar effect as ginseng?
Good luck and stay healthy!
I.M.

[yu shan]

Iron Mantis

My circle of friends seem to think daily intake of Ech. root to be beneficial, yet I have been told it is damaging to the liver. What do you think? But isnt just about everything harmful to this organ?
Thank you for the info from your Qigong teacher, I will remember. I am like a sponge, every little morsel of Chinese medical or Martial, I deeply appreciate!
I am very lucky to have the Teacher I have, but we all should be thankful of the quality of peoples on KFO. Thanks I.M.

yu shan

[iron mantis]

Yu Shan-

I don't really know about the toxicity of the root, but if this were the case then it would seem like daily use would be unwise. If I were you I would only use it when the cold comes on. For general health, exercise and a healthy diet should take care of you. Kung fu and qigong build the flow of chi, which will in turn make you less susceptable to getting sick in the first place.
Be well-
I.M.

[Spark]

FYI

I used to take ecinecia (sp!? oops) everyday, until I realized that it is a natural laxative!!!!

I was wondering why everytime I was eating, as soon as I was done, it was a mad dash to the can!!!!!

[Ford Prefect]

Get a bunch of garlic from a store and have a clove or two twice per day once you feel the cold starting. Most of the time, my colds won't even get past the initial stage when I do this. To eat the clove, just chop it up into pill size peices and down as many as you can in one gulp with water.

[IronFist]

Are you serious about the Garlic?

I've been keeping a cold at bay for 3 days now but I think it's starting to win...

IronFist

[Losttrak]

Hell yeah... all about the garlic, onions, and honey. Plus drink lots of fluids. You can nip many colds rite in the bud.

[fa_jing]

I hear y'all. I have the frickin flu and haven't been able to work for three days. I'm in the "wake up in a sweat" stage which is getting near the end.

[yenhoi]

marijuana + sleep.

worked at the frat house....

Prevention works better, qigong, 1 spoon of local honey each day, regular herb use, clean enviornment, getting rid of excess toxins in the system to make it run cleaner and better.

etc!

:eek:

[TKD]

Hey people, we can't forget about vitamin C. An immune system booster, and it is also recommended for daily use. Unlike Echinacea, which is not recommended for daily use.

[ZIM]

Garlic [and onions] are useful for clearing out the nasal passages and to keep other infectious ppl away from you :D

I use sudafed and brandy. Doesn't get rid of it, but I don't feel it anymore, so it doesn't matter. :D

Can't drive, tho...

[David Jamieson]

a cold is your bodies way of getting rid of viruses and for preparing it for extreme weather changes.

you can ease the symptoms but you simply can't get rid of a cold.

drink water, rest and eat regularly. in 7-10 days your cold will be finished.

cheers

[Rolling Elbow]

I haven't had a cold in over a year.

Exercise does it..as soon as you feel anything, do some form of exercise. You need to sweat it out. This has kept me cold free for a year.

Wash your hands a few times a day with soap.

When you do get a cold and you just can't exercise, he is a strategy to follow:

day 1- recognize and acknowledge the cold
day 2- let it set in
day 3- suffer ONE bad day
day 4- mentally acknowledge some recovery
day 5- workout, take mind of cold with taxing your muscles.
day 6- you'll see how much better you feel.

[Laughing Cow]

Back home we got an old saying:

Treated Flu = 2 Weeks
Untreated Flu = 14 Days.

But than I always swear by the 2 following remedies:

250ml of Slivowitz before Bed, gets you nice drunk and sweaty.

Tamago-Sake: Raw Egg dropped into hot japanese rice wine.
:D ;) :p

Best thing I found as prevention is regular exercise (Qi-Gong) and a balanced diet.

[prana]

Originally posted by Rolling Elbow
I haven't had a cold in over a year.

Exercise does it..as soon as you feel anything, do some form of exercise. You need to sweat it out. This has kept me cold free for a year.

Wash your hands a few times a day with soap.

When you do get a cold and you just can't exercise, he is a strategy to follow:

day 1- recognize and acknowledge the cold
day 2- let it set in
day 3- suffer ONE bad day
day 4- mentally acknowledge some recovery
day 5- workout, take mind of cold with taxing your muscles.
day 6- you'll see how much better you feel.


I dont know about this one. I ended up with pneumonia exactly this way. Different strokes for different folks, I guess

[Cheese Dog]

Whenever I get a cold or flu, I do the following. It works every single time IF I catch it right when it first starts.

1. 100 mg of zinc
2. 5 grams of vitamin C
3. Garlic capsules 2-3, I usually use Kyolic brand
4. Echinacea, 2-3 capsules

Each day take at least 10 grams of vitamin C, 100 mg zinc, 6-9 capsules garlic and 6-9 capsules of echinacea. Sure this is alot, but as soon as you're well drop the echinacea and go back to a normal dosage of the rest.

I can nearly always knock out a cold overnight with this. Last winter everyone was getting a killer flu and being sick for 2 weeks, I caught it and was almost well in 2 days and completely better in 4. The key is to catch it at your first symptoms. If for whatever reason I don't catch it right at the outset, this regimen still gets me well in about half the time I would normally take.

[IronFist]

Originally posted by Cheese Dog
2. 5 grams of vitamin C


At once?! That would probably give me one heck of a stomach ache.

Too much vitamin C at once = diahrrea.

Although I've heard of some people taking up to 10g at once. That would be about 16,000% RDA I think!

IronFist

[yenhoi]

How does takeing vitamins work with regular qigong practice?

Specifically garlic.

[bob10]

Once or twice a day stand barefoot outside and up end a bucket of cold water over your head. As the water hits take sharp deep breaths.

Works a treat.

[Cheese Dog]

Ironfist, it can give you diahrea, especially if you're not used to it. It doesn't bother me much but I usually take 3-4 grams of vitamin C a day, spread out into 3 doses. But the way I look at it, a couple of bathroom visits is alot better than being sick for 2 weeks. ;)

[yenhoi]

Info about cold showers on rmax.tv (i think.)

[David Jamieson]

any vitamins or food you give your body that won't be used to create stored fats and immediate glucogens will be converted to waste.

frankly, unless your diet is incredibly selective with a lack of fruits vegetables and just hgeneral balance then you likely don't need to take supplemental vitamins.

your body will only take what it needs, cold or no cold.
Fluids are very important to the recovery process as is rest.
The rest is symptom suppresion and that's all it is really.

cheers

[yenhoi]

What about garlic use + qigong?

[Cheese Dog]

Kung Lek, I have to respectfully disagree. There is a good deal of research on uses of anti-oxidents, herbs, etc. nowadays, and I know it works well for me and for friends that have tried it. IMO, if it was just symptom suppression, I wouldn't be able to train hard 4 days after catching the flu. After all, cold and flu medicine suppresses the symptoms, but you still feel like crap and can't train hard.

And while it's true that most people's diets are adequate for health, I don't want adequate health, I want OPTIMUM health.

[Fish of Fury]

My vote :

500 mg Echinacea every hour or 2 while acutely ill
fresh garlic (if you eat a couple of cloves of it it'll hurt, but it'll work)
Vit C 2- 5 grams / day

I've used massive doses of Echinacea on a daily basis and I did notice that I developed a tolerance to it ie. it stopped working so well, so I'd recommend only using it when you need it.\
Don't be afraid of it though.
Also, the Echinacea liver damage thing is not true, the rumour was based on an incorrect extrapolation about the types of constituents in the plant (basically it contains natural substances that are similar to those in other plants that can be harmful to the liver, but the ones in Echinacea are OK)

Also, everybody tends to be able to absorb different amounts of Vit C. Many natural therapists suggest the more you need it the more you're able to absorb

[Mr. Bao]

There is no cure to the common cold. If there were, we wouldn't have this post up wouldn't you think. While people will post up magical secrets and home made remedies and or supplements. Honestly, the only cure is preventive medicine which is simply a healthy diet, good cleaning habits, good exercises, and a balance supplementation. If you get sick, get plenty of rest and take some good over the counter medicine and let nature that its course.

[Mr. Bao]

kathy,

where did you get this tea idea? why does it work?

[Ming Yue]

I have learned recently that lots of pepper - black and red - and garlic in the diet will shorten a sinus-related cold or head one off. Ginger helps too.

Drink sugarfree, non-caffeinated, non-aspartame beverages (decaf tea or water, pretty much) till you slosh, and give your body extra sleep to heal.

Of course the best way to avoid a cold is wash your hands more.

[Mr. Bao]

Just recently I came acrossed something in about colds and flu, there is actually something scientific about a certain chinese herb that actually shown to lessen and prevent the common cold or flu.

For the Past 13 years by the Swedish Health Council has honored the winner product award to a company called Sweedish Herbal Insititute for "Kan Jang". This chinese herb is called "andrographis paniculta", a natural defense against respiratory dieases, irritation and general fatique. It has also shown to process anti diarrheal and anti malarial activity. The Nordic people have benefited from Kan Jang with much success.

In Chile, there were a double blinded test which shown Kan Jang to accelerate the recuperative powers in patients with common colds. It was found within four days, that it reduced the symtoms of the common cold. Another test shown it to be a superior preventive medicine for the common cold. It has shows to stop colds and flu 2:1 quite effectively without hurting the body's own natural defenses. It safe and does not interact negatively with any other drugs as well. However, pregnant ladies may want to talk with their doctors before taking this product.

You may purchase this Kan Jang at your local herbal stores or health stores. It recommended to take two pills at day. For more infor check out www.adaptogen.com.

I hope this helps and I will take this product during the cold seasons and if you have kids, pls consider giving this preventive medicine to your little ones.

[ricksitterly]

I could recommend some natural herbal medicines proven to have anti-microbal / anti-biotic properties. Some of these helped me get over some illnesses I've had, although any type of antibiotic is not good for you, especially prolonged use, as they kill the good microbes in your body, particularly the flora in the digestive tract, which can result in candidiasis and all types of nasty ailments. Many people recommend taking acidopholus supplements while on any antibiotic to help maintain healthy flora.
Personally, I've found that if I can live with it, I'll just stick it out and wait for the cold to go away. If I'm nearly bed-ridden, I'll see a doc. No sense buying a bunch of a crap and playing doctor (although doctors are also lately being accused of perscribing antibiotics unnecessarily). Anyways here are some "natural remedies" that are supposed to be decent antibiotics.

Such medicines are

tea tree oil (strong)
oregano oil (strong)


colloidal silver ( debatable, but supposedly very strong antibiotic, anti viral, etc. ... look it up)

garlic (mild)
echinachea (mild)

others:
goldenseal (root)
cat's claw (tree bark)
tiger claw
licorice root
ginseng
ginger there's a ton of em'
who knows if they work

[Oso]

"a cold is your bodies way of getting rid of viruses and for preparing it for extreme weather changes."

hmm, I thought a 'cold' was germ related and the flu was viral.

And how does the 'preparing for extreme weather changes'
make sense?

Something else that I think affects us is rapid temp changes
that accur often in winter as you move from the outside cold
air to inside warm, and usually very dry air.

I didn't have a cold for 3 or 4 years till this past fall.

For 3-4 years I was intaking up to 2 teaspoons of black pepper
every morning with breakfast. I was also doing chi kung on
a regular basis.

This fall I broke a 3-4 years breakfast routine and did almost no
chi kung. I had the most severe reaction to allergies I've ever
had, which led to a bad sinus infection. I also had an absessed
tooth which got infected. This actually happened before the sinus
infection and I think really nailed my immune system.

So, I feel the black pepper (or any pepper) works. I was told it
is a natural anti-biotic (which works on germs but not viral
infections) and it seemed to be.

The chi kung was also a factor in overall better health, imo.l