Posted on: Saturday, November 29, 2003

PRESCRIPTIONS
Help your immune system fight a cold

By Laurie Steelsmith

Q. Every year, right after Thanksgiving, I tend to get a cold. Do you have any suggestions for reducing the symptoms?

A. You are one of millions of Americans who experience symptoms of the common cold during the holidays. There are many things you can do to help your body fight the infection.

When you are exposed to viruses or foreign bacteria, your body's immune system goes into high gear to destroy them. Natural medicine offers you a large toolbox to help your immune system do its job.

As soon as you start to experience the symptoms of a cold, such as fatigue, a drippy nose, a sore throat, a mild headache, body aches and a low-grade fever, take these steps to prevent the cold from getting worse.

• Get some rest and relaxation. Take time out from work, and nurture yourself. Your body needs extra energy to get well.

• Stop eating sugar. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reported that ingesting too much sugar suppresses the immune system.

• Drink hot fluids. I recommend ginger tea, miso soup, vegetable broth or chicken broth to help thin out mucous secretions and soothe a sore throat.

• Use zinc gluconate lozenges. Studies have found that this form of zinc can help shorten the duration of a cold. Buy 15-milligram lozenges and suck on four a day, for up to five days.

• Let food be your medicine, and eat garlic. Garlic has strong antiviral, antibacterial and immune-stimulating properties. When cooked, some of garlic's medicinal properties are destroyed, so eat it raw if you can tolerate it.

• Take the herb echinacea to enhance your immunity. I recommend a standardized extract of echinacea containing 3.5 percent echinacosides. Take 300 milligrams three times a day, for up to one week. (Echinacea should not be taken by people who have an auto-immune disease.)

• Take oscillococcinum, a homeopathic medicine that has been used by naturopathic physicians for decades to treat the common cold. The recommended dose is one tablet under your tongue at the onset of symptoms, and every six hours (except when sleeping) for two days.

By taking care of yourself as soon as you begin to experience a cold, you can make all the difference in how quickly you restore your health and have a wonderful holiday season.

Laurie Steelsmith (www.drlauriesteelsmith.com) is a naturopathic physician and licensed acupuncturist in Honolulu. This column is for information only. Consult your health provider for medical advice.

Send your questions to Prescriptions, Island Life, The Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802; fax 535-8170; or e-mail islandlife@honoluluadvertiser.com.