Catching a cold? Your kitchen holds the help you need.

In my experience, these 2 kitchen spices are miracle foods in the truest sense of the word miracle.

I want to share a couple stories with you and some simple recipes to help you with this winter ail.

Prior to Thanksgiving, I had company for 2 weeks straight practically. It was wonderful and fun and I have no regrets, but also my visitors were here during one of the busiest times of the year for me with Christmas orders and a bazaar to prepare for.
Along with this busy time, came colder weather and festive eating and drinking which as we know can really wear down the immune system.
The Friday evening after Thanksgiving, it came. A dreaded cold. The first night I did nothing and retired early.
Waking up Saturday morning, I was worse than the night before.
At that point I felt miserable and could hardly get anything done.

So I made haste to my kitchen. I pulled a chunk of ginger and 2 cloves of garlic.
I drew some fresh water and began to bring that to a boil. Maybe 2 cups worth of water.
I then grated ginger. Once the water came to a boil I took my water off the heat and added my grated ginger to the pot and allowed to steep for awhile.
As that was steeping, I crushed the garlic and allowed it to sit out for at least 15 minutes to release the powerful component,allicin.

Once the tea was ready I strained a cup and drank that slowly. I was in no hurry for heavens sake I was sick.:)
Once I got through my first cup I grabbed a pinch of the crushed garlic and put it into my mouth and washed it down with some water. Much like taking a vitamin or pill.

About an hour later, I felt like a brand new person! It was so amazing.
I also did this the next day along with echinacea and elderberry and osha for several days afterward to ensure I remained well.


So Sunday night my 11 year old comes home from a weekend with his dad. He looked sick and said he felt awful. So to bed he went the first night. The next day he too was miserable and so of course, I insisted he let me do the ginger and garlic with him to help him at least feel better.
After I administered all the herbs, I had to leave to take Olivia to her class. Jonathan had been laying around under a blanket when I left.
After dropping off Olivia and running by the grocery to pick up an organic chicken breast for some homeade soup, I arrived home to find my son up and happy. He asked me if he could go outside...lol
Your medicine worked mom, he said.
Well, of course he still needed to rest and keep up the immune building so I have him on echinacea several times a day now, and have him doing ginger again today.

Ginger is a warming herb and pushes through cold. It increases circulation and causes sweating.
Ginger taken before the garlic helps digestion prepare for this potent remedy and since the circulation is moving, gets the medicinal components through the body much quicker.
Garlic is a detoxifier and aids in respiratory disorders so well. If you are coughing due to bacteria type infection, garlic might clear that up quickly for you.
Both ginger and garlic are expectorant to help move out that stuck mucus from your lungs.
When I was sick, I did have lung issues. Jonathan did not have any lung issues with his cold, yet this remedy turned us around quickly in both our situations.

The Pungent Powerful Medicine of Garlic

Garlic-
Most of us have heard of garlic and majority have eaten it at some
point in our lives I am sure.
Garlic proves not only to liven up foods with its pungent flavor, but
also to add its medicine to prevent illness.
Garlic is antibiotic, antimicrobial antioxidant, antifungal,
antiparasitic and probably several other ANTI's. (maybe anti social
for those opposed to the aroma which is excreted throught eh breath
and skin)
Harvard describes an antimicrobial as an agent that acts against
bacteria, fungi, and parasites in the body.

MD Anderson describes it as a substance that kills microorganisms
such as bacteria or mold, or stops them from growing and causing
disease.

Who would have thought this culinary herb to be so powerful?

Garlic also acts on the circulatory system and has been used
traditionally for cholesterol regulation.

Other ailments that have been trated with garlic are
acne, allergies, asthma, tumors, candida and vaginitis, urinary tract
complaints, chronic fatigue, hemmorhoids, HIV/Aids, hypoglycemia,
impotence, liver problems, and respiratory issues.
It has been reported that some midwives have treated their clients
with garlic to fight strep b in pregnant mothers.

If a cold begins to creep on you, eating a raw clove of garlic can do
wonders for many people, pretty much wiping the cold out immediately.
Eating huge amounts of garlic may cause stomach upset or sore rectum
upon elimination so small amounts are recommended until you are aware
of how much your body can take at one sitting.

My husband typically craves Italian food when he begins feeling bad.
Once we read the research on garlic, we both agree that it must have
been a natural craving for some germ killing needs in the body.
Pretty cool I'd say.

If eating raw garlic does not appeal to you, you can create pesto or
hummus. I sometimes chop mine up small and swallow like a pill,
although some disagree on the potency of doing it that way.

I would like to leave you with a simple rememdy any of us can make at
home to help ourselves or our children.

Garlic Foot Application
I was recently reminded of this simple remedy by John Gallagher of
learningherbs.com

Crush a few cloves of garlic in a mason jar or even a small bowl and
cover with olive oil (or whatever food or skin grade oil you have at
home)
Allow the garlic to macerate in the oil for at least a half hour, or
warm on the stove for 20 minutes or so. The goal is to extract the
medicinal constiuents from the garlic into the oil.

At that time, you can apply the garlic oil to your feet and apply
socks on your feet after application.
(this helps keep the oil on your feet as well as prevents slips)
Rest and relax while the garlic is absorbed through the pores of the
feet and circulates through the body. Of course, it will go to the
lungs since it has that affinity to do so, and you will probably have
garlic breath not long after application or the next day.

This might be a good time to have pizza delivered for the family
since you probably will not feel like cooking anyway. You will all
have the same garlic smell and you wont feel like you stick out like
a sore thumb.

Well wishes and Green Blessings
Kristena Roder
http://www.dreamseeds.org