What You Should Know About Natural Flu Treatment

By Author: Vikram Kumar
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These days more and more people are turning towards natural flu treatment methods instead of the flu medicine that has traditionally been given. The increasing popularity of natural flu treatment is mainly because of extensive studies that have shown that traditional over the counter medications do have some side effects especially for people in certain age groups. If you are not sure what natural flu medicine works and what doesn't, here are a few valuable tips and suggestions that will give you some relief from the stuffiness and congestion that typically accompanies the flu.

Did you know that getting a fever is actually a good thing? The fever creates an environment that is hotter than normal. This does 2 things simultaneously. For one thing, it kills off the flu causing virus and secondly, it accelerates the movement of proteins through the blood, which makes them more effective at killing these germs. Your body temperature will go back to normal. You just need to be a little patient and try not to use any over the counter flu medicine. Flu medicine only acts to impede the flow of blood to the vessels in your throat ...
... and nose. This only makes matters worse as your aim should be to keep the nose and throat areas warm so that the germs get forced out. Flu medicine also contains alcohol, which tends to dry out the nose and throat membranes, which only exacerbates things.

Coughing is also the body's natural flu treatment in action. When you cough, you are helping the breathing passages and lungs to get rid of the thick virus-carrying mucus.

The best natural flu treatment is undoubtedly staying hydrated. Drinking plenty of water when you are down with the flu is hands down the best natural flu treatment and beats any over the counter flu medicine. When you drink water, it dilutes the mucus. Diluted mucus cannot hold its form and it gets eliminated from the body along with all the germs that it contains.

While you can get different types of flu medicine to reduce congestion, again, it is best to try natural flu treatment, which is more effective and does not have any side effects. Here is one simple natural flu treatment recipe that will help ease nasal congestion: Take 8 oz warm water. Add to it ¼ teaspoon baking soda and ¼ teaspoon salt. Stir and then gently squirt this saline solution into each nasal passage. When squirting the saline into any one nostril, keep the other one blocked. You will feel this liquid seep down at the back of your throat. Do not swallow it but try and let it run out of the nostril itself. Repeat twice or thrice daily as required.

For sore throats too, you can find several different types of over the counter flu medicine. However, not only are these pretty expensive but they can also have side effects. The best natural flu treatment for a sore throat is gargling with a salt water solution. Dissolve 1 tspn salt in 8 oz warm water. Gargle at least 4-5 times daily.

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Don't waste money on over the counter Flu Medicine ; very often these do not work at all. If you are down with the flu, check out Fluendz instead. Here you are sure find a Natural Flu Treatment that is effective as well as safe.