Archive for Wednesday 30th October 2002 - Winter protection
AS winter approaches, now is the perfect time to test the power of herbalism to protect yourself from seasonal ailments.

I asked herbal expert Penelope Ody for her top ten seasonal remedies for warding off the winter blues. Ody, author of the Essential Guide To Natural Home Remedies, recommends:

1. To strengthen your energy for winter, take 600mgs of good quality Korean ginseng daily for a month.
2. For colds – for a short period, large daily doses of Echinacea, up to 20 mls of tincture, and of Vitamin C, (one gram, mixed with zinc).
3. For coughs – thyme and licorice cough medicine.
4. For chills – to stimulate circulation, make ginger tea by simmering three or four slices of fresh peeled ginger for 15 minutes. You can add cinnamon (stick or powder) for flavour. Try it with buttered toast sprinkled with cinnamon.
5. To boost your immune system: eat lots of garlic with meals. It is cheaper and less-processed than capsules.
6. For chilblains – try arnica cream, but only if the skin is unbroken. 7. For aching joints caused by damp, cold weather – mix five to ten drops of rosemary oil with a teaspoon of vegetable oil. Massage the mixture into your joints
8. For catarrh – try elderflower tea, or elderflower cordial with hot water.
9. For asthma – inhale the steam from chamomile flowers steeped in a bowl of hot water. (Cover your head with a towel for 30 minutes.)
10. For chesty coughs – inhale the steam from hot water with a few drops of thyme, eucalyptus and/or hyssop essential oil.
If symptoms persist, always consult your doctor.

Alternatively, a trip to the off-licence could be a very good complementary way to beat the worst our winter weather has to offer. Over 2,000 years ago, Hippocrates, known as the father of modern medicine, recommended a diet of roasted food as an antidote to cold weather, especially if it is washed down with good wine!

Order Penelope Ody’s Essential Guide To Natural Home Remedies (hardback, rrp £19.99) for just £17.99 (post and packing is FREE). Call: 0870 0703 200 or send a cheque/PO payable to “Mirror Direct”, PO Box 60 Helston Cornwall TR13 OTP. Over open to UK residents only.

Mark Winter