Cold Remedies With Honey

Although honey has not been scientifically proven to possess therapeutic benefits, it is still a part of innumerable folk medicines and home remedies, dating back thousands of years. Abundant anecdotal reports claim honey has natural antimicrobial, antibacterial, antifungal and antibiotic properties, which could explain why it's used in so many cold remedies. By itself, honey is believed to soothe sore throats and relieve coughing. Many home remedies for colds further incorporate the benefits of honey with other healthful ingredients like lemon, certain herbs and spices, garlic and even alcohol.

With Lemon

• To alleviate sore throat symptoms associated with a cold, mix a spoonful of honey and a squirt of lemon into a glass of warm water and sipping it. Lemon is high in vitamin C, which is medically known to be beneficial in relieving and resisting colds, and contains phytochemicals that bolster the immune system. You can also make syrup for coughs by mixing honey and lemon juice without the warm water. Warm water with honey and lemon staves off dehydration and loosens up congestion.

Hot Toddy

• A common folk remedy for colds is a variation on warm lemon water with honey that includes 1/2 shot of whiskey. Advocates of this remedy believe the alcohol in the whiskey reduces fever, alleviates muscle aches and pains and, as an anti-inflammatory, brings down swelling of the mucous membranes.

With Herbs

• Make herbal teas as a cold remedy, which can then be sweetened with honey. Mix one to two teaspoons of marjoram, sage and thyme into one cup of boiling water and letting it steep for 1/2 hour. Marjoram and sage both have antiseptic properties and thyme has antimicrobial properties. Putting goes on to point out other herbs beneficial in teas to alleviate cold symptoms, including astragalus, cat's claw and Echinacea for their immune system enhancing properties.

With Spices

• Two spices recommended by Bonnie K. McMillen, a college health nurse at the University of Pittsburgh, in a home remedy for coughs with honey as its base are cayenne pepper and ground ginger. She cites Penelope Ody's book "Home Herbal" in pointing out cayenne's benefits as a naturally warming cold remedy that helps relieve chills and ginger's properties as a natural antihistamine. She also cites Dr. Andrew Weil's book "Herbal Medicine" in observing ginger's ability to relieve congestion in the chest.

With Garlic

• Garlic is a powerful antiviral and antimicrobial. Andrea Putting suggests letting four to six cloves of chopped garlic sit in a jar of honey for a few weeks. The combination of honey and garlic makes this an effective remedy against sore throats, coughs and colds.

Precautions

• Because of honey's antibiotic properties and its risk of botulism, doctors recommend not giving any honey to children under one year old. That means neither these nor any other cold remedies with honey are recommended for infants.