From Vaporub to throat lozenges, get your patient back to best with these natural substitutes for commercial cold remedies. These cold and flu remedies will get you and your family back on your feet in no time at all.
VapoRub
Clear the stuffy noses, tight chests and coughs that a cold may bring the natural way with this all natural vaporub. This recipe makes about 12 oz. of comforting ointment that is just what the doctor ordered.
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 cup coconut oil
- 35 drops eucalyptus essential oil
- 30 drops mint essential oil
- 15 drops rosemary essential oil
- 15 drops lavender essential oil
- 10 drops camphor essential oil
- 3/4 cup grated beeswax
Melt beeswax, olive oil and coconut oil in a double boiler* over low heat. Remove from heat and add essential oils. Stir well and pour into a small container. Leave to cool for 20 minutes.
* Don’t have a double boiler? Get a small pot filled with water and float a glass or metal bowl in the water.
Cough Syrup
- 4 cups water
- ¼ cup ginger root (grated)
- ¼ cup marshmallow root
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup chamomile flowers
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 3/4 cup raw honey
Place water, ginger, marshmallow root, cinnamon and chamomile flowers and simmer until the water is reduced by half. Strain to remove the herbs, and leave to cool for 20 minutes. Add lemon juice and honey.
Homemade Cough Drops
- 1 cup elder flowers
- 1/2 cup horehound
- 1/2 cup hyssop
- 1/4 cup lemon balm
- 5 drops menthol
- 2 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups honey
- 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
- thermometer
Place water and elder flowers, horehound, hyssop and lemon balm in a pot over a medium heat and bring to boil, then simmer on low for 30 minutes. Strain off 1 cup of liquid. Place in a pot on the stove, add honey and heat over a medium heat until it reaches 300 degrees Fahrenheit (this can take up to an hour)*.
Use the olive oil to grease a baking sheet.
Just as the liquid reaches 300 degrees, add menthol and stir. Pour the liquid out into the baking sheet and leave until it is still warm, but cool enough to handle. Pull off pieces of the hardened candy and roll into lozenges, then place back on the greased baking sheet to cool completely.
If you live in a humid climate, you can dust the lozenges with slippery elm bark before storing in an airtight container.
* If your liquid starts to burn before it reaches 300 degrees, add a tablespoon of butter.
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