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Natural Cold and Flu Relief: Your Questions Answered

Cold and flu viruses spread easily, especially in the colder months or during stressful periods, and even the strongest among us can succumb to infection. If you feel unwell, natural medicines can help you recover by supporting your immune defences, and when taken long-term, can even reduce your risk of getting sick in the future. Before we look into how they do this, let’s examine what happens when we get a viral infection.

What Happens in an Acute Common Cold or Flu?

Viruses such as influenza (commonly referred to as ‘the flu’) and the common cold enter through the nose and mouth, with the goal of multiplying and making your body their new home. These viruses can’t multiply without a human cell, so once they enter your body they immediately start the infection process, hijacking cells and turning them into virus-replicating factories. They do this by injecting their genetic material into your cells, which both provides a blueprint for how to make more viral particles and forces the ‘machinery’ of your cells to create them. These brand new viral particles then exit the cell and seek out new cells within your body to infect, continuing the cycle of infection.

Fortunately, your body doesn’t just take this lying down. Instead, the infected cells signal danger to the body, stimulating the protective inflammatory response, which allows your immune system to fight back. It does this by sending white blood cells (WBCs) to the infected areas, which then lock on to viral particles and destroy them. Interestingly, rather than being caused by the virus itself, the symptoms that make you feel terrible, such as a sore throat, chills and aches, are actually a side effect of your immune system fighting off the virus. As such, the quicker and more effectively your immune system can get rid of the virus, the fewer days you will spend being sick, and the better you will feel.

Should I Take Antibiotics for a Viral Infection?

Viruses and bacteria are completely different organisms. Antibiotics are designed to destroy bacteria, so viruses are totally unaffected by them. Since antibiotic medications come with side effects, such as disrupting the balance between beneficial and harmful bacteria in the gut, it’s worth speaking with your doctor about whether you really need them when you’re battling a viral infection.

Does Cold and Flu Medicine “Cure” Viral Infections?

In a word, no. Common cold & flu medicines contain decongestants, cough suppressants and analgesics which may provide relief of symptoms. This relief can help you ‘charge on’ while affected, but it’s important to understand that cold and flu medicine does not help your body recover from the infection.

Can Taking Natural Medicines Help Me Get Better Quickly?

The major advantage of natural medicines is they reduce uncomfortable cold and flu symptoms while also helping your immune system fight off viruses. Taking natural medicines at the first sign of infection means fewer days spent feeling miserable, less time off work or school, and more time to enjoy the things you love! When taken on an ongoing basis, many nutrients and herbs can even help to reduce your risk of getting sick at the outset – good news for those of you who feel under the weather regularly.

To help you feel better sooner, here are three-star players you can call on to support your immune system and get you feeling back to normal ASAP:

1. Andrographis (Andrographis paniculata)

A herb used in traditional Ayurvedic (Indian) medicine to manage upper respiratory diseases, fever and sore throat, research shows that andrographis reduces symptoms of the common cold and other mild upper respiratory tract infections.¹⁻² It does this by helping your white blood cells destroy viral particles and fight off infection.³ Andro NK contains Andrographis in combination with other key immune-enhancing ingredients including zinc, vitamin C, vitamin D and green tea, to reduce the severity of common cold infections and provide symptom relief from fever, cough, sore throat and phlegm.

2. Medicinal mushrooms

The combination of cordyceps (Cordyceps sinensis), coriolus (Trametes versicolor), reishi (Ganoderma lucidum) and shiitake (Lenintula edodes) mushrooms reduces common cold symptoms by enhancing immune strength and function, preventing viruses from entering cells, stimulating white blood cell activity, and helping your immune system recognise and fight infection more effectively in the future.⁴⁻⁷ Super Mushroom Complex contains a blend of these four immune-strengthening mushroom extracts to provide relief from the common cold infection.

3. Probiotics

Did you know that a healthy gut microbiome plays a role in immune health? The bacteria in your gut interact directly with your immune system and can affect your response to infection. You can support a healthy gut microbiome and healthy immune system function with Ultra Flora Immune Enhance. This probiotic supplement contains an exclusive blend of three immune-stimulating bacteria strains that have been shown to support immunity and reduce the duration and severity of colds.

    What Else Can I do to Get Better Quickly?

    Woman Ladeling Out Home-Made Soup
    Fortunately, there is a lot you can do to help yourself feel better and recover faster:
    • Start your natural medicine regime as soon as you feel yourself getting sick – the quicker you get on top of the infection the better you will feel!
    • Get plenty of rest and sleep, taking as much time away from work or school as necessary to fully recover
    • Eat nourishing whole foods with plenty of vegetables and easily digested proteins, such as fish or eggs
    • Consume plenty of fluids such as water, herbal tea and homemade chicken and vegetable broth
    • Consume plenty of garlic (bonus points for raw!) and onion as they help boost immune function, and
    • Try steam inhalations to reduce congestion so you can breathe easily again.

    What Should I do if I Keep Getting Sick?

    If you suffer from recurrent colds and flus, prevention is better than cure. Make an appointment with a natural healthcare practitioner for a personalised immune-boosting natural medicine program that fits your lifestyle.

    References

    1. Poolsup N, Suthisisang C, Prathanturarug S, Asawamekin A, Chanchareon U. Andrographis paniculata in the symptomatic treatment of uncomplicated upper respiratory tract infection: systematic review of randomized controlled trials. J Clin Pharm Ther. 2004;29(1):37-45.
    2. Hu XY, Wu RH, Logue M, Blondel C, Lai LY, Stuart B, et al. Andrographis paniculata (Chuān Xīn Lián) for symptomatic relief of acute respiratory tract infections in adults and children: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PloS one. 2017;12(8):e0181780.
    3. Kumar RA, Sridevi K, Kumar NV, Nanduri S, Rajagopal S. Anticancer and immunostimulatory compounds from Andrographis paniculata. J Ethnopharmacol. 2004;92(2-3):291-5. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2004.03.004
    4. Chu KK, Ho SS, Chow AH. Coriolus versicolor: a medicinal mushroom with promising immunotherapeutic values. J Clin Pharmacol. 2002;42(9):976-84. PMID:12211223.
    5. Lin YL, Liang YC, Lee SS, Chiang BL. Polysaccharide purified from Ganoderma lucidum induced activation and maturation of human monocyte‐derived dendritic cells by the NF‐κB and p38 mitogen‐activated protein kinase pathways. J Leukoc Biol. 2005;78(2):533-43. doi: 10.1189/jlb.0804481
    6. He XJ, Niu X, Li J, Xu S, Lu A. Immunomodulatory activities of five clinically used Chinese herbal polysaccharides. J Exp Integr Med. 2012;2(1):15-27. doi: 10.5455/jeim.211211.rw.004.
    7. Ramberg JE, Nelson ED, Sinnott RA. Immunomodulatory dietary polysaccharides: a systematic review of the literature. Nutr J. 2010;9(1):54. doi: 10.1186/1475-2891-9-54.
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