The last couple of weeks Kenya and Tanzania were extremely dry, the effects of El Niña being felt strongly. Many people suffered from the dry heat and the enormous amounts of dust that were in the air. With the sudden onset of rains viral infections become widespread. This is the time of the year when people start suffering from eye infections, cough and flue. Quite a few people have recently asked me for a natural cough remedy and I would like to share with you what we do when we are suffering from coughs. But let me start with a word of caution: if your cough don't seem to get any better by itself after a few days PLEASE go and see a doctor! You don't want to develop a full-blown bronchitis or pneumonia and you also need to make sure your cough isn't in fact caused by an allergy or hay fever.
Lemon-Ginger-Honey
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Our all-time favourite cough remedy (actually I am sipping one right now while I am writing this) is a brew from freshly ground ginger, some lemon or lime juice and a spoonful of honey topped up with boiling water. This will draw a sweat and is also a great remedy for flue. Best taken at bedtime or whenever your cough doesn't want to stop. The lemon juice will give you a good dose of Vitamin C and boost your body's selfdefense. The ginger helps in fighting bacteria and inflammation and the honey is a natural antibiotic. All three together make a powerful natural remedy against cough and flue.
Peel and grate a piece of fresh ginger 1/2 the size of your thumb.
Squeeze a the juice from 1 small lemon or lime.
Add 1-2 teaspoons of natural honey, depending on your taste.
Top up with boiling water. Stir and let brew for a moment. Then drink as hot as possible.
Pineapple-Mint-Juice
Sometimes when you have a cough, especially the kind that is caused by dry heat and dust like we experienced recently, you feel more like drinking something cold to get relief. In that case pineapple-mint juice is my remedy of choice. The pineapple juice provides me again with a good dose of Vitamin C and acts as an anti-inflammatory. The peppermint works as an expectorant, which means it helps to loosen and cough up the mucous. And tastes absolutely delicious and refreshing. If you can only invest in one kitchen machine, I suggest you buy a good juicer. Fresh, homemade juice is just sooooo much better than anything you can buy in a carton and it also saves you a lot of money. Right now is the time of plenty (regrading availability of suits) here in East Africa. Make the best of the season and store as much juice or fruit pull as you can. I will poet a few more recipes for that in my next blog post. I promise!
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With a good juicer you don't need to cut off the peel. Just rinse 1 fresh, ripe pineapple with water, remove the leave crown at the top and the stalk at the bottom. Cut the pineapple into 1/8 lengthwise and run them through the juicer.
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Wash a bunch of peppermint or spearmint and run them through the juicer together with the pineapple.
Dilute with clean water to your own preference. Refrigerate the juice for a while and enjoy every time you feel like you need some cold drink to give you relief from your cough. Make sure your family doesn't finish it before you. That is the danger of it being soon good!
These few ingredients can of course also be used in other combinations.
Lemon-Ginger syrup
You need:
This syrup can be diluted with cold or hot water to taste.
- 1.5 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup peeled ginger, finely grated
- 3/4 cup fresh lemon or lime juice
This syrup can be diluted with cold or hot water to taste.
Honey-Ginger-Peppermint syrup
You need:
2 Tbls fresh ginger, finely grated
1 Tbls fresh or dried mint, crushed
2 cups of water
Mix all ingredients in a pan and bring to a boil. Let simmer over low heat until liquid is reduced bu half (5-10min).
Add:
1/2 cup of natural honey.
Stir in well until completely dissolved. Fill into a bottle and close immediately. Keep refrigerated and take 1 tsp full whenever needed (every few hours).
2 Tbls fresh ginger, finely grated
1 Tbls fresh or dried mint, crushed
2 cups of water
Mix all ingredients in a pan and bring to a boil. Let simmer over low heat until liquid is reduced bu half (5-10min).
Add:
1/2 cup of natural honey.
Stir in well until completely dissolved. Fill into a bottle and close immediately. Keep refrigerated and take 1 tsp full whenever needed (every few hours).
Mint, Honey & Ginger
Other natural remedies
Most of all - drink enough! Especially in this hot and dry weather help your body to stay hydrated. This will also help to loosen the mucous. If you find some liquorice tea simply add a fews sprigs of fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon of dried thyme) and brew yourself s cup of tea from those. Sweeten it with natural honey if you like. The thyme will help to relax the muscles and bring relief if you suffer from cough spasms. The liquorice soothes the throat and also aids in loosening the mucous. So in case the ginger-lemon tea is not after your taste, this is a nice and soothing alternative.
Steam
One home remedy that often also works wonders is a steam bath. This is a bowl of steaming hot water over which you bend your face as closely as you can bear and cover your head with a towel to catch as much of the steam as possible. This helps hydrating and soothing your respiratory tract. It also applies heat to your sinuses, something that also helps with a blocked nose and sinus pain.
To make a steam bath more effective you can add a number of different herbs or etheric oils to the hot water. A great relief for dry cough is in that case chamomile, which soothes and relaxes. Other good choices are peppermint or eucalyptus leaves. If you use a steam bath to mainly help with a blocked nose and flue, a few sprigs of fresh marjoram or a tablespoon of dried marjoram added to the hot water do an excellent job.
To make a steam bath more effective you can add a number of different herbs or etheric oils to the hot water. A great relief for dry cough is in that case chamomile, which soothes and relaxes. Other good choices are peppermint or eucalyptus leaves. If you use a steam bath to mainly help with a blocked nose and flue, a few sprigs of fresh marjoram or a tablespoon of dried marjoram added to the hot water do an excellent job.
Marjoram
Natural home remedies are excellent helpers to prevent a cough or flue from getting worse or settling in your body for prolonged periods. Start using them as soon as you experience the first symptoms of a cough or flue coming. Use them several times throughout the day as often as is convenient for you. Besides that always remember that some symptoms and illnesses need to be assessed and treated by a doctor. So never keep on treating yourself if you feel the situation is not improving.
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