Grabbing the lozenges or Vicks can help if you have the flu, but hot honey and lemon or even garlic and onions can be just as good.
Winter insects have increased dramatically in recent weeks, leaving millions of people with sniffles, coughs, fever and chills.
Unfortunately, the old saying is true: there is no cure for the common cold. Or the flu, for that matter.
But there are some simple methods that will keep you from suffering the worst symptoms and help you feel more cheerful – all without having to take medication or buy expensive cough medicine.
Pharmacist Dr. Leyla Hannbeck explained that staying hydrated and drinking enough fluids are essential.
A warm, sweet drink, such as a cup of honey with lemon or blackcurrant, is a simple way to relieve the symptoms of a sore throat.
‘Drinking tea with honey, lemon and ginger is a great way to feel better,’ she told MailOnline.
She added: ‘Honey has anti-inflammatory properties, lemon contains vitamin C which supports the immune system and is particularly effective against respiratory viruses such as the flu virus, and ginger has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and can help with muscle pain from flu. ‘
There is no way to cure the flu. But there are some simple home remedies that can help patients feel a little better
Official NHS guidance says there is ‘little evidence’ that vitamin C prevents colds or speeds up recovery.
Only one judgement of the evidence supporting taking vitamin C to fight colds, published in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine in 2016, found that data “show reduced severity and duration of colds when vitamin C is consumed in doses of 200 mg or more per day’ .
In the same way, a chicken bowel soup can soothe flu symptoms.
That’s because chicken soup is a source of healthy and easily digestible calories and nutrients. Plus, it helps you stay hydrated.
‘Chicken soup contains nutritious ingredients such as proteins (in chicken), garlic and vegetables that help strengthen the immune system and help with constipation. It’s also warm and the steam helps too,” Dr. Hannbeck said.
A 1998 study The American College of Chest Physicians looked at the effect the comforting broth has on our immune cells.
It has been suggested that chicken soup may contain a number of substances with medicinal properties, including anti-inflammatory properties.
A chicken soup can also be made with garlic and onions, both sources of zinc – an essential mineral that is crucial for the development of cells that form the immune system.
A warm, sweet drink, such as a cup of honey with lemon or blackcurrant, is a simple way to relieve the symptoms of a cough and sore throat
There is some evidence that taking a zinc supplement can help your body fight off colds.
One Cochrane Library judgement examined previous data from eight studies involving more than 900 volunteers on whether zinc could relieve cold symptoms.
Scientists found that taking small doses of zinc supplements of 10-40 mg for a few days could be helpful in shortening the duration of a cold.
However, supplements are not always necessary because the mineral occurs naturally in red meat and dairy products and most people can get all the zinc they need from their diet alone.
Although taking supplements can help boost your zinc levels, the NHS recommends not taking more than 25mg of zinc per day as too much can cause gastrointestinal problems and even weaken your immune system.
Adding garlic to food, including chicken soup, can shorten the time a person is sick.
A study by researchers in Sussex, 146 healthy adults were given a placebo or a daily garlic supplement for twelve weeks during the winter.
The group given the placebo suffered 65 colds, resulting in 366 days of illness – while those given garlic supplements suffered only 24 colds, with 111 days of illness in between.
Chicken soup is a source of healthy and easily digestible calories and nutrients. Plus, it helps you stay hydrated
Other nutrients in chicken soup may also have medicinal properties.
A study Research during the winters of 2016 and 2017 showed that taking a multivitamin containing vitamins A, D, C, E, B6, B12, folic acid, zinc, selenium, copper and iron can reduce the frequency and duration of colds.
Gogol Mogol is another famous sore throat remedy that contains sugar, raw egg, honey, milk and unsalted butter.
Like hot lemon and ginger, the Eastern European drink is thought to soothe the throat and make it less scratchy because the honey and eggs coat the throat.
But there are no studies measuring the effectiveness of the drink.
Steam inhalation, which can help loosen mucus in the nose and sinuses, relieve sore throat and hoarseness, is a remedy recommended by Dr. Hannbeck.
She added that a few drops of eucalyptus oil in the hot water can also be soothing to inhale.
Professor Ron Eccles, an expert in life sciences at Cardiff University, and former director of the Common Cold Centre, also previously told MailOnline that hot steam or a warm sweet drink can help the symptoms of a cold or flu.
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He once studied the effects of drinking a comforting warm drink on a stuffy nose.
The 2008 study Drinking warm blackcurrant syrup provides immediate relief from a runny nose, coughing, sneezing, sore throat, chill and fatigue.
In contrast, a room temperature drink only relieved the symptoms of a runny nose, coughing and sneezing.
Professor Eccles said any hot, sweet drink should have the same effect.
He explained that the steam in the hot drink can soften and break down the mucus, making it easier to breathe. It also reduces the swelling of a sore throat, but experts aren’t entirely sure why.
A hot shower or steam bath is likely to have the same effects, relieving a stuffy nose, cough and sore throat, explains Professor Eccles.
In addition to these homemade treatments, Dr. Hannbeck recommends taking over-the-counter pain relievers such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen to help with muscle pain and fever.
These can be purchased from a pharmacy, but Dr. Hannbeck recommends that people with underlying conditions or who are taking other medications talk to the pharmacist first.
Other treatments she suggested include saline nasal drops to help with nasal congestion, ointments with eucalyptus or peppermint that can be used topically to soothe cough symptoms and congestion, and echinacea, an herbal remedy that has anti-inflammatory and immune-boosting effects.
Dr. Hannbeck emphasized that those who notice their symptoms worsening or not improving, especially if they have trouble breathing, should see a doctor.