What's in Your Winter Healthcare Arsenal?

[rolltimer]

My winter arsenal to fight against the elements that encourage illness and wreak havoc on my skin include:

° Fresh Ginger Root: Found in the produce section of any supermarket or at Wal-Mart for $2.98 per pound, I buy maybe a dollar's worth every couple of weeks, scrub it under running water with a vegetable brush and store it on the counter so I don't forget about it. To prepare ginger tea, pare the outer skin from a 2 or 3 inch section, slice it into quarter-inch pieces and boil in a pint of water for 5 minutes. Let steep for another 15. Add honey to taste. When I have no time for tea, I chew a 1-inch pared chunk after meals to cleanse the mouth and throat. You may wish to keep a glass of water nearby as the moderately hot juice burns like pepper. It aids digestion and acts as a decongestant. After extracting the juice, swallow or spit out the fibrous remains.

° Aloe Vera Juice: Swill a couple of ounces to soothe a burning mouth after chewing fresh ginger root. I keep a spray bottle of aloe to spritz on after a shower to add moisture to my skin before applying lotion.

° Tea Tree Oil + Olive Oil: I add a couple teaspoons of tea tree oil to 2 ounces of olive oil and keep in a spray bottle near my body lotion. It has a light "pine sol" odor that doesn't linger. A spritz or two added to a dab of lotion and applied after a shower works better than baby oil to fight skin-clawing itchiness in dry winter weather.

What frugal and/or natural products have you added to your winter routine?

[Jess]

I don't have ginger root on hand with me, but I do order ginger tea when I'm out (also less expensive than a cup of coffee) if I feel like I'm starting to come down with something. Ginger has great anti-cold properties

My tricks of the trade are year-round:
Take a multivitamin. I know a lot of people argue against them, as the theory is to obtain nutrients from foods, not a pill, but it's a great supplement. I'm a vegetarian and I'm trying to keep my iron up (although I do eat a lot of iron-rich vegetables). Also, this way you've got your vitamin C.
Garlic. I adore garlic, and it has tons of healthy properties. I find that if I increase my garlic intake by a clove or two each day when I'm getting sick, I recover quicker. I suggest smearing a raw garlic clove crushed up onto some toast, or sneaking it into a salad dressing, etc.

[Rebecca]

A net pot! If you've never heard of it, look here: http://www.healingdaily.com/exercise/net-pot.htm

But actually just used a small teapot that I had on hand (and never use, yay for recycling). I swear it shortened the life of my cold. Plus, it makes it easier to breath.

[Milehimama]

Garlic oil for ear infections. None of us have ever been on antibiotics for ear infections (and I have 7 kids!)

And I swear by the old Vitamin C and Echinacea for colds, with zinc. If you take echinacea when you feel one coming on, it helps - if you take it every day, it becomes less effective.

If you don't have neti pot, you can use those blue bulbs that doctors use on babies. Works just as well!


That said, having a healthy immune system by eating nutritious food to begin with goes a long, long way.

[flyinginn]

We give the kids elderberry syrup every day, and we take Occilococcinium by Boiron (a homeopathic remedy) at the first sign of flu. We like a tea called Throat Coat by Traditional Medicinals for sore throat, and we use a $12 vaporizor every night.

[Milehimama]

Ooh, ThroatCoat is awesome. Have you seen TM's children's line, with ColdCare and a Throat one for kids? Mine love it. I'm big on the medicinal teas around here!

Red Raspberry leaf isn't seasonal, but great for "female" things!

[Michelle Dawn]

Vaseline for my lips and jojoba oil for moisturizing after baths/showers.

[kav122]

I use a humidifier in my son's room because MN winters are very dry. DCT for my lips. Throat Coat, echinacea, O.J., Chicken Noodle Soup and Vick's Vapo Rub when me or mine are sick. We also drink water with apple cider vinegar in it at the first sign of a cold and it head it off.

[Xin Lu]

I drink a lot of ginger tea, too, and just other teas in general. My hubby hates how spicy ginger is so I buy the prepared ginger extract with sugar in it for him. He likes loquat tea better. There is also a chinese remedy called Pi Pa Gao which is made out of all natural ingredients like loquat and honey. It's available at Asian stores and I've been using it since I was a child. It's like a cough syrup that makes your throat feel a lot better.

[Annie]

Lots and lots of vitamins and chicken noodle soup! It's gotten me through the last two years without taking cold meds. Honey/lemon tea is lovely as well.