Mar 192 min read

Spring Cold & Allergies

Updated: Jul 9

Today is the first day of spring and many of us are sick with colds and allergies. Spring colds are different from winter colds, in that the mucus is thicker, and we may have achy muscles and joints (like the flu), swollen lymph nodes, and ear pressure. To help your body rid itself of these toxins, try the following.

Herbs & Spices

Cook with lots of warm, pungent, and astringent herbs and spices to help dry up excess mucus. Use cayenne pepper, black pepper, ginger, turmeric, mustard seed, cinnamon, and cloves. Stinging Nettles are great for allergies, and they’re coming in right now where I live. You could also mix any of these herbs with raw, local honey to soothe a sore throat, act as a cough suppressant and expectorant. Eat a spoonful of herbal honey or mix it in hot tea and drink.

Diet

Avoid heavy foods, such as wheat, red meat, sugary sweets, and dairy (yogurt and soft cheese are fine); because heavy foods are difficult to digest, and they increase mucus in the body. Rather choose lighter foods, such as green leafy vegetables, rice, berries, cooked fruit, fish, and poultry. For a nourishing meal to help combat the symptoms of a cold or allergies, there's nothing like good old-fashioned chicken soup. When we eat, blood is pulled to the digestive tract for digestion; but chicken soup pulls less blood than other meals, which means there's more blood in your circulation to fight disease. So make a big pot of this Chicken Soup.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. olive oil or ghee
1 yellow onion, diced
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
½ cup celery, diced
4 carrots, sliced
1 cup Basmati Rice or Potatoes cut into bite-sized pieces
1.5 lb. organic or free-range chicken, cut into chunks
8 cups chicken broth or stock
Mineral Salt and Pepper to taste
½ cup or more of herbs of your choice, such as thyme, oregano, basil, or cilantro.

Directions:

Heat the oil or ghee in a large soup pot over medium heat and add in onions. Sauté until onions are soft.
Add garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes.
Add all the spices; mix them into the onion and garlic and sauté for about a minute until spices are aromatic.
Add the remaining vegetables and cook for 5 minutes.
Add the chicken and incorporate into the mix.
Add in the rice or potatoes; pour the chicken stock/broth over everything. Turn the heat up and bring to a boil.
Turn the heat down to simmer and cook until everything is cooked through – about 30-40 minutes.