Home Remedy to Kill the Flu Virus

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), between 5 and 20 percent of the U.S population catches the flu every year. With newer and stronger flu types, like swine flu and avian bird flu, the numbers could be even higher in the future. There are, however, some powerful herbs that may be able to protect you from the flu this season, and in the future.

Asafoetida

• Asafoetida is a herb that is best known as a major spice in Indian curries but it is also commonly used in Iranian cuisine. Asafoetida was once popular in ancient Rome as a culinary and medicinal herb but has fallen out of use in the west, even though it was used as a home remedy to fight the Spanish Flu epidemic in 1918. A study published in the Journal of Natural Products in 2009 found that compounds found in asafoetida were able to exhibit stronger antiviral potency against the H1N1 virus, otherwise known as swine flu, than the pharmaceutical amantadine, a drug commonly used for Influenza A. Asafoetida can be found in many supermarkets in the spice rack, and in many Indian and Iranian grocery stores. Add asafoetida to soups, curries, sauces and meat dishes or any other savory dish.

Dark Berries

• Dark colored berries, like elderberries, have been used as cold and flu busters in western herbalism for centuries. In a study published in the journal Acta Virologica in 2001, Japanese researchers discovered that black currants had antiviral activity against Influenza A and B. The researchers extracted flavoniods from the currants called anthocyanins and again tested them against the influenza virus. They found that several of the anthocyanin flavonoids had "potent" antiviral properties. Anthocyanins are present in high amounts in dark fruits like blueberries, cranberries, blackberries, cherries and concord grapes. It may be no coincidence that the berry season ends just as the flu season in the temperate northern hemisphere begins.

Licorice

• Licorice is an herb that is very commonly used in both eastern and western herbalism for a large number of therapeutic medicinal actions. A study published in the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy in 1997 found that an active ingredient in licorice, glycyrrhizin, was able to protect mice that were given a lethal dose of Influenza A2 (H2N2) from death. Mice that were not given licorice died in an average of 10 and 1/2 days, while the glycyrrhizin treated mice survived the whole 21 day trial period and beyond. The researchers theorize that glycyrrhizin stimulates interferon (a natural antibody) production, which could mean it is a wide spectrum antiviral. Licorice can be purchased at health food stores and Chinese herb shops, and is used to flavor high quality Scandinavian licorice candies.