Post your "old wives tale" style cures for a cold.

[Confuzius]

So I've got a cold; runny nose, sore throat, and all sorts of fluids leaking out of the holes in my face.

So I ask you what's your "cure" I posted it in the speakeasy because I figured (hoped?) that there was a good chance that spirits would be involved.

I'll start;

I call it Gin, honey and lemon
2oz of Gin
2 tbsp of honey
Juice of one lemon

Pour it all in a mug and top it off with boiling water, breathe vapors deeply while drinking, sleep.

 

[Ltltony]

That's a hot toddy variation.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_toddy

 

[AACJ]

I have a cold too, but no remedies. I will be paying very close attention to this thread, especially since it ivolves alcohol.

 

[sol92258]

So I've got a cold; runny nose, sore throat, and all sorts of fluids leaking out of the holes in my face.

So I ask you what's your "cure" I posted it in the speakeasy because I figured (hoped?) that there was a good chance that spirits would be involved.

I'll start;

I call it Gin, honey and lemon
2oz of Gin
2 tbsp of honey
Juice of one lemon

Pour it all in a mug and top it off with boiling water, breathe vapors deeply while drinking, sleep.

that appears to be the general recipe, except in my neck of the woods calls for whiskey, generally

 

[micah1_8]

I once had one of those I-wince-I-wud-dead-begauze-by-head-id-killig-be type colds. That evening I was eating at Chili's and ordered a Martini. What limited ability I had to smell told me that it was really just a glass of Final-net hairspray, and the taste confirmed this. About 30 minutes later, everything opened up and I felt fine--no more cold.

 

[TimmyBoston]

Buffalo Wings (or other very spicy food)

 

[chickpea]

one half LIME (not lemon) the real deal not that bottled crap
2 tbs Honey (any sort will do)
4 oz water

mix together.

drink.

 

[Howard Newell]

I drink lots of rooibos tea when I'm sick. The warmth soothes my throat, and all the extra fluid intake helps clear the sinuses.
Any hot sauce will work too, but I prefer drinking tea to burning my mouth.

 

[ouch]

I sneak up behind you and shout "BOO!"

No, that's for hiccups. Sorry.

 

[momo360]

scotch.

 

[Btheis]

echinacea
Colloidal Silver
Lots of vitamin C
plenty of sleep and couple layers of clothing to help sweat it out.

Don't forget the booze!

 

[jkh]

A pack of Camel non-filtered cigs and case of Schlitz beer. Your cold will be a blessing after that

 

[CitizenDan]

Sleep, sleep and more sleep, plus whatever meds you prefer to help break up any congestion.

If it's just a head cold, I like to make up a very spicy and garlicy batch of chicken soup. I like to use green chilies like Serrano or even jalapeno and fresh herbs not dried. For vegetables, they vary depending on freshness but usually it's onions, carrots, new potatoes, celery, and maybe cabbage, green beans, broccoli, really just whatever looks good to me at the time. The soup needs to be thin and brothy, not thick and hearty like a stew. Don't know why this seems to help, I started doing this a few years back and it always seems to help.

 

[Doc4]

A cold will last a full week if you do nothing to treat it, but only seven days if you take a full barage of medication and remedies.










I usually go for lots and lots of green tea, and ginger tea (sliced ginger steeped in ex-boiling water in a teapot ... great for sore throats.)

 

[RichGem]

garlic, lotsa garlic

(the allicin in garlic kills bacteria and may be helpful with viruses as well).

Olive leave extract also works very well.

 

[ratcheer]

The Granny Clampett sure-fired cure for the common cold: Take a dose of Granny's corn squeezins every night before you go to bed. In a week or ten days, your cold will be gone.

Tim

 

[aybe]

Take a cup of water and boil ginger in it for a while and then pour it in a cup. Add lots of honey to it along with the ginger and drink on. That helps me everytime.

Oh also in a tablespoon of honey add crushed black peppers and take it without water or anything.... that works for a bad sore throat.

 

[Anton von Tripp]

There is no cure for a cold - all you can do is make yourself comfortable as possible and refrain from infecting anyone else.
Drink (rehydration) lots of green tea (antitoxant)with fresh lemon, lime or ginger - or all three (vitamin c) and honey (antitoxant & soothing), and there is absolutely no reason why you cannot be allowed a teaspoon full of medicine in your tea to cheer it - and you - up.
Rest as much as you can and although you will have no appetite try to eat - tempt youself with your favourites (food)!
And don't shave while you are sneezing!
Look after yourself & Get well soon.

Cordially, AvT

 

[homebrewer]

Not an old wives tale by any means, but my method has served me well for years.

Head to your local hippie (i.e. natural) grocery store, and pick up a few things. First, get some sushi, and ask them for extra wasabi. Use triple the wasabi that you usually do, and gorge yourself on sushi... as much as you can (it helps later on). Next, open up that bottle of lemon-ginger-echinacea juice that you bought and drink a couple of glasses of it while you eat the sushi. Hot or cold is your preference, I prefer hot. My friends and I used to call that juice "Human draino" because when you're sick, it burns like all hell going down, and tends to wipe out anything in your system.

Once you've finished all your sushi, and the juice begins to swell up all of that rice you just stuffed down, go take a nap. The infamous "sushi nap" induced by massive quantities of swollen rice lasts a long time, and is the pinnacle of napping experience IMO. In the end, the combo of loads of wasabi, juice that burns like bay rum, and sufficient sleep wipe out most any cold I've ever had.

 

[ouch]

Yak butter tea.