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

[ShaneC]

A Scottish doctor once told me to mix up Theraflu and spike it with a wee bit of brandy. Just a wee bit though, or it can seriously mess you up. I'm talking like 1oz or so MAX. (Made the mistake once of making it a bit too stiff and it ended up being far worse than any cold).

Kimchi Chigae is also a great 'cure'.

• 1 cup kimchi, 16 oz pork belly (or any part with fat), thin sliced (uncooked bacon can be used as a substitute)
• 2 green onions, slice in a bias
• 1/2 pack dooboo (tofu)
• 2 kochu (hot green chili), chopped
• 2 tbsp kochujang (Korean chili paste)
• 1 tbsp kochukaru (Korean pepper powder)
• 2 tbsp minced garlic, 1 tsp soy sauce
• 3 cups water, salt, pepper

Cooking Directions

1. Place a pot on the stove, turn the heat on. Add pork belly (or bacon), saute for a minute or so.
2. Add kochujang and cook until meat becomes white.
3. Pour the water, add kimchi. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer.
4. Add soy sauce, kochukaru, and garlic. Cook for 20-30 minutes.
5. Add chilies, green onions, salt and pepper. Cook for another minute.
6. Serve with rice.

edit: I've never made it, so I'm not sure if that recipe is actually any good. It sounds about right though.

 

[Howard Newell]

Hey, Shane, you forgot to add a recipe for curing your breath after that meal!

 

[Clockwork John]

My Cure All Toddy
-1-2 measures of Scotch whisky
-1-2 tsp lemon juice
- a bit of cinnamon
- a bit of nutmeg
- 2-5 whole cloves
- honey to taste (optional)
- hot water

-Put the lemon juice, cloves and whisky in a glass or mug. Fill the glass with hot water. Add cinnamon, nutmeg, and honey, if used. Stir. Sip slowly, and inhale the vapors if you have head or chest congestion.

Or, skip all that crap and go straight for the whisky!

 

[AaronX]

What no Matzo Ball Soup?!

 

[micah1_8]

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!

Doesn't that stuff turn you into a smurf?

 

[Btheis]

Doesn't that stuff turn you into a smurf?

Only if you megadose and don't use "common sense". I know common sense isn't common but a tablespoon under the tongue once or twice a day while experiencing symptoms won't turn you into a smurf.

 

[urr-lord]

chicken rice soup with lots of garlic,cilantro and lime juice.
vitamin c
colloidal silver
echinacea
shots of tequila while sitting in a tub of hot water ,read your favorite book and add eucalyptus oil or camphor.

 

[urr-lord]

Originally Posted by micah1_8
Doesn't that stuff turn you into a smurf?
not colliodal silver,all the people who have turned blue-gray used silver salt,silver protein or water contaminated with lots of nitrates.colloidal silver should be made w/distilled water.i've used it to cure a strep throat that antobiotics didn't touch.there are a lot of people who use it and never change color,just get healthier.
oh yeah zicam helps a good bit also.

 

[OldSaw]

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!

Doesn't that stuff turn you into a smurf?

Only if you megadose and don't use "common sense". I know common sense isn't common but a tablespoon under the tongue once or twice a day while experiencing symptoms won't turn you into a smurf.

Is this stuff poisonous? Are you trying to kill us?

 

[expatCanuck]

Red wine.

Plonk, not the good stuff.
(Any Rumpole fans?)

Yak butter tea.

Listed as number two on Lonely Planet's "Top Ten Worst Experiences in Tibet.
[http://www.bootsnall.com/articles/05-07/yak-butter-tea-tidrum-tibet.html]

... eucalyptus oil ... .

Absolutely.

Probably why koalas are so chill.

 

[ouch]

Really? What was number one?

 

[Brewster]

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

sweet geezus i'd rather die than endure the cure

 

[profsaffel]

Other than a few straight shots of whiskey (which quite frankly just makes you forget you had a cold in the first place), I would suggest BC Powder. It's one of the strongest over the counter medications you can find that really knocks the cold out of your head, at least temporarily.

 

[expatCanuck]

Really? What was number one?

Cold Yak Butter Tea.

The thought of either ... well, I'd rather not think about it.

 

[Dave_D]

If I'm lucky enough to get a headstart on it, as in just starting to sense the sore throat and feeling generally lousy.. I megadose the heck out of it by eating a clove of raw garlic for starters, chewing this up in a mouthful of apple juice to make it more palatable, it aint pleasant. I'll do this twice a day every day for a few days, taking plenty of vitamin C, drinking lots of water, and eating organic cayenne powder on everything I can, plus lots of rest.

Usually I can avoid the nastys by not touching my face without a handkerchief during flu season, or making sure I wash my hands first. A piano class teacher taught us all a good lesson in college when he reminded us of all the goopys that were on the keyboards before we got there, and that despite his best efforts to keep the place clean, we would be well advised to wash our hands as soon as we left and to avoid touching our faces while at school. It sounded a little screwy at the time but I followed his advice and decreased my incidence of colds, etc by about 75% that year.

 

[homebrewer]

I'll second the vote for BC powder, even over my previous rediculous advice. Those not living in the south may not know about BC's or goodies, but they are ehadache heaven....

A powdered form of aspirin and caffeine, they cure sicknesses FAST. Your head will feel like it is going to explode for about 30 seconds after you take it, but 5 minutes later the cold is gone. Well worth the the initial pain and time.... BC's is the best way to fix a headache.

 

[Cheech]

This is an old folk cure from eastern Europe, the home of all (okay, a few) good things:

In the evening, first put a compress on your neck. What I mean is, wrap a warm damp cloth around your neck, and wrap it in saran wrap (or the equivelent). Make it loose enough so that it is comfortable.

Then, have a cup of tea with honey and a shot of whiskey. Maybe two. Not three. You're not trying to get liquored here.

Go to bed in sweatpants and a sweatshirt.

Try to sleep, while you sweat like a pig.

Wake up the next morning and shower.

I always thought folk cures were questionable at best. This one, however, works for me like a charm. I've known other people to try it and it seems to do the trick.

 

[TimmyBoston]

Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime (or Sleeptime Extra) Tea and add a bit of honey, a squeeze of lemon, and a small splash of Glenlivet.

One of the most soothing drinks I've ever had before bed.

 

[Giant]

garlic, lotsa garlic

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

+1

My grandmother used to eat whole cloves of garlic when she had a cold. If nothing else, it will definitely clean out your sinuses.

 

[labrat_333]

Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime (or Sleeptime Extra) Tea and add a bit of honey, a squeeze of lemon, and a small splash of Glenlivet.

One of the most soothing drinks I've ever had before bed.

This or any Chamomile tea with lemon and honey works great. Use 2 tea bags of Chamomile tea and while it is steeping hold your head over the cup and breath in the vapor. It really helps relaxe and soothe your sinuses, and a shot of your favorite spirit and it relaxes the rest of you.

A lady I work with also suggest making Theraflu spiking it with Jim Beam and Niquail, and going to sleep. Every time you wake up drink and repeat. Haven't tried it though, not to shure if you could wake up from that.