You are reading this column because you are concerned about your health.
You may have lived long enough to wish you had taken better care of your body when you were younger. Yesterday is gone, and there is no better time to start taking better care of your body than now.
You are responsible for your health and in choosing your health care professionals to assist you.
Most people go for periods of time taking care of their own body until they hit a snag where they do not have the expertise to go it alone.
I want to broaden your knowledge of how to care for yourself by sharing with you some remedies that I give my patients in the hope that you will use them and share them with others you feel will benefit.
The flu season
The flu season is upon us. How can we avoid it?
As you know it isn’t always possible, but the most important way is to avoid exposure by washing your hands and face often.
When we have the flu, or even a cold for that matter, it is the waste products from the virus that makes us feel badly.
I have a bath recipe that will make you feel better even though it will do nothing to the virus. Sometimes just feeling better is priceless.
Bath Recipe:
1/3 cup Epsom salt
1/3 cup hydrogen peroxide
8 cups of chamomile tea
Steep 2 chamomile tea bags in 8 cups of boiling water for 15 minutes.
Pour the tea, the Epsom salt, and the hydrogen peroxide in the bathtub. I prefer a hot bath, but tepid water is fine. Hot water may make you feel weak, so don’t make it too hot. Soak in the tub for 20 minutes.
When I have really felt bad, I’ve taken this bath every couple of hours.
It is ok even for small children and it will be obvious they feel better.
With the flu or a cold, I suggest the following:
- Take the bath recipe as needed but especially at night before you go to bed. Some people find it so relaxing that they use it as a sleep aid even when they are not sick. If you are sore from some activity like the first day of exercise class or too much shopping, you will find if you take this bath at night, the next morning, you will feel much better.
- Make sure you rest as the body needs it.
- Make sure you keep warm.
- Don’t push yourself to eat, but make sure you drink plenty of fluids. As the appetite returns, feel free to eat. When you are sick the best thing to eat is warm vegetable soup. Avoid cold foods.
- I take a 500 mg. vitamin C every two hours or until I have loose stools. Vitamin C will not be stored in the body. When you are taking more than the body can use, it will cause loose stools. That is when you know to cut back on the vitamin C.
- For the accompanying chest and sinus congestion, be sure to use a vaporizer. Buy some eucalyptus oil at the health food store and put it in the medicine container on the vaporizer. Your mucous membranes will love the effect of the eucalyptus.
- As you feel better, the temptation is to overdo because you have been taking it easy. Remember that a relapse is usually worse than the original illness so make yourself take it easy and slowly resume your activity, as you feel better. We all need to cultivate listening to our body and when it wants to rest, let it rest.
The key to these suggestions is to have what you need on hand because when you are sick, you don’t feel like going to the store to get the products.
Keep chamomile tea, Epsom salt, hydrogen peroxide, a vaporizer, and eucalyptus oil on hand. You will be glad they are there when you need them.