10 Point Strategy for a Flu Free Winter

This is my personal to-do list for the next couple of weeks to make sure we are prepared for the Winter season. It includes tried and tested remedies and strategies as well as a couple of new ones to try. My daughter goes to a bilingual pre-school where a lot of kids come from international families. This means – holidays abroad, airports, trains and an impressively wide variety of all kinds of viruses.

1. Start being more disciplined about taking Fermented Cod Liver Oil – transition from summer “once-in a while” to winter “everyday”

Cod Liver Oil is like a flu shot, I feel an energy boost after I’ve had a spoonful and we definitely catch less bugs when we are taking it every day. A lot of people say it makes them gag and they share their experiences of the best way to take it, for example, with honey, with juice, and so on. So I was filled with trepidation when I put my first spoon of FCLO (fermented cod liver oil) near my mouth. I was disappointed that I found it quite palatable (but then I love liver and fish eggs), no need to invent weird and wonderful combinations of fish oil and honey or juice or syrup for me. My daughter takes it neat from a spoon as well. Maybe we are both just weird 🙂 or aliens….

Cod liver oil is rich in fat soluble vitamins A and D, that all of us on a western style diet are most likely deficient in. The fish oils you find in a standard pharmacy are processed using high temperatures whereby vitamin D is lost completely and vitamin A is significantly reduced. Because of this, a synthetic Vitamin D is then added.

The advantage of taking a food naturally rich in vitamins rather than synthetic or naturally isolated vitamins, is that, as in any other natural food, the vitamins in an unadulterated cod liver oil are present in just the right proportions so that our bodies can assimilate them and use them in the right way.

Read about safety of taking cod liver oil and benefits of taking vitamin A and D together.

If you are in Switzerland /EU/UK you can get it here.

If you are in US get it here (aff link)

I ordered a bottle of oil to try from a new supplier, a small company in Norway called Rosita Foods. It makes us giggle every time we walk past the bottle, as it says “Extra Virgin Cod Liver Oil”. We have only tried it a couple of times, and the taste is less strong, just like any oily fish, my daughter prefers it to FCLO, so we will see.

2. Make a new batch of cough remedy for feet.

I discovered this recipe about two years ago and it changed our lives. My daughter had a recurring bronchitis in her early years, so bad that we would have to drive to a surgery to get steroids in the middle of the night on several occasions. This cough balm for feet works for her without fail. I even made an experiment – didn’t put it on – she coughed, rubbed it on the next night – she didn’t. I have repeated this “experiment” by accident a number of times, so my sample size is good, take it from a statistician 🙂

Melt together:

• 5 Tbs. extra virgin coconut oil
• 1 Tbs. olive oil
• 2 Tbs. beeswax

Add and mix in:

• 10 drops tea tree essential oil
• 20 drops rosemary essential oil

Find out how to buy top quality oils (the only ones I recommend) here.

3. Make a new batch of vaporub.

Both my daughter and myself love the ritual of rubbing a nice smelling rub on her tummy in bed. I make a simple mixture of coconut oil and the Peace & Calming essential oil blend for every day use, and the vapor rub, in the link above, for when she is feeling under the weather.

Why not use something like Vicks Vaporub? First reason – I do like to know exactly what is in the product that I put on my child’s body. Second reason – I like concocting things. Third reason- Petroleum Jelly as a base, apparently safe but is it good in any way? According to one source “it creates a false sense or “feeling” of skin comfort and hydration while in fact it does nothing to nurture, heal or restore natural moisture to the skin.

4. Up our Sauerkraut intake and make some new one (The one we are using now is 1 year old and its delicious)

Sauerkraut is our easy and favourite salad that requires no preparation apart from sinking a big spoon into a jar of it. Luckily we love it, but I think even if you don’t like the traditional recipe, you can make your own mix that will speak to your taste buds. More carrot? Onions? Fish paste and chilli? – this would be going direction Kimchi. As long as cabbage is the main ingredient – the fermentation will happen without any problems.

Sauerkraut is lacto-fermented white cabbage. The health benefits (aside from it being super yummy 🙂 ) are higher vitamin C content then raw cabbage, a super food for cancer prevention and as any other fermented food, it helps your digestion, keeps your gut healthy and thus supports your immune system.

In Switzerland you can get raw Sauerkraut in the supermarkets (look for unpasteurised one in Migros) and also on some farmers markets, such as in Wädenswil on Saturday morning. What is sold here is, however, too mature  and too finely cut for our taste and doesn’t have any carrot added. See my super simple Ukrainian sauerkraut recipe!

5. Stock up on Apple Cider Vinegar. Give ACV and maple syrup /raw local honey to Kat as a drink. Continue to drink my ACV water daily.

I remember my mother bringing home a book about apple cider vinegar – the cure all, when I was about ten. I can’t remember if it cured all back then, as it was not the only thing we have experimented with (I had hot honey and aloe vera juice as nose drops for example – still remember the excruciating pain! But thanks to my mother I am very used to natural remedies now). I have found this vinegar again, luckily, about 10 years ago. It is indeed one of those no fail home remedies that are good for a multitude of ailments. It makes a palatable drink, it takes away my sore throat after a couple of gargles, it makes you forget about a mosquito bite itch, and also regulates blood sugar and much more. read further at Authority Nutrition.

I buy ACV from Morga, if you buy a different brand – make sure its not pasteurised! It should be opaque and have a sediment (that’s the “mother”, the best part of it).

The most popular brand in US is this one (aff link)

Maple syrup is a mineral rich sweetener that being in a liquid form lends itself easily to being diluted with water. It contains loads of manganese which has antioxidant properties, vitamin B2 and other minerals, the darker the syrup the more minerals it contains.

For those in the US you can get grade B syrup here  (aff link)

In Switzerland, I buy the Madal Bal syrup in a health food shop or online 

Raw honey “provides antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, amino acids, enzymes, carbohydrates, and phytonutrients.” while Processed honey is just another refined sugar”

To benefit from the hay fever fighting properties of honey  and to support local honey producers we buy local raw honey, which is thankfully easily available from local farm shops and markets.

The ancient Egyptians used honey for the production of medicines and ointments and were well versed in its production and use,

Honey has been used for centuries to relieve a tickling throat and scientists now believe it may be effective because it has constituents that kill microbes and acts as an antioxidant The Guardian 

The original study comparing the effect of honey to OTC cough syrup on nocturnal cough in children can be found here

6. Make master tonic

This year was my first time making this magic concoction. Last year I put it off until we all got a cold, so I thought there is no point in making this a preventative medicine. This year I almost made the same mistake: I made it and at the same time my daughter brought a lovely new strain of some vicious virus from school ( I’d much prefer she brings only paintings and crafty things but alas viruses stick to that too). So when the tonic was only 2 days old, I developed muscle ache and terrible sore throat the night before we were due to leave on holiday. I figured I can have the tonic even if it’s not at its most potent point of brewing. It smelled strongly of fresh horseradish and garlic, I had a teaspoon maybe 3 times and woke up without any symptoms ready for our holiday in Italy! So this will definitely become a go-to remedy in our family.

7. Build up the essential oil “medicine” cabinet.

These are the oils and blends I am going to get especially for winter from Young Living Essential Oils:

–R.C – can be helpful as an expectorant for productives cough according to many testimonials
–Raven – can be helpful for wheezy coughs and bronchitis
–Breath again – for sinus congestion
–Melrose – lice prevention

These oils I need to make sure I have enough of as we use them a lot:
– Thieves – for diffusing (antibacterial), gargle for sore throat, vaporub
– Rosemary – for using in the cough balm
– Tea Tree – for using the cough balm
– Purification – for diffusing and making a deodorant (and just sniffing the bottle often, as I love the smell)
– Lavender – for lots of things like calming shower gels, creams, diffusing at bed time etc etc

I have been using EO for years and totally believe in their potency as natural remedies against many ills. But that experience with cough rub for feet was probably the most convincing thing that ever happened to me.

8. Make Thieves wipes kit to carry around in my bag and wipe those little hands.

I used nappy liners (these are basically dry thin wipes) soaked in the solution of 20 drops of thieves oil on a pinch of salt diluted in 150 ml of water. I poured the solution into a rectangular glass dish and then soaked as many wipes in it as was possible. A ziplock bag works as the packaging for the time being, however I’d like to find a flat box for them.

In Switzerland, I use the nappy liners from Coop, “Windeleinlagen” in German.

For the US ,the liners most similar to the ones I use are these (aff link)

9. Try to get at least 7.6 hrs of sleep every night to keep my immune system strong and aim to keep my daughters sleep at 11 hours a night.

10. Find my neti pot and buy some more Himalayan salt

You can get a neti pot online  (aft link) or in health food  or Indian shops.

As for the sore throat, my number one remedy is ACV gargle, for a runny nose it’s a saline wash with a neti pot. As soon as I feel the first signs of a cold coming, even before the congestion happens, I start gargling with ACV and doing my neti pot nose wash, if I am disciplined – I can normally get rid of all the symptoms in ONE DAY. If you haven’t used the neti pot before, here is a great how to cartoon