Alternative Treatments For Colds & Post Nasal Drip

One of the most puzzling aspects of colds and post nasal drip is finding the right medicines to treat the symptoms. Many commercial cold medicines fight a variety of symptoms, sometimes appearing to work at cross purposes. Antitussives quiet coughs, while expectorants make them more productive. Antihistamines dry up runny noses and watery eyes, while decongestants unclog stuffy nasal passages so things flow more easily. Alternative treatments may be less confusing.

Rest and Fluids

• Rest and fluids are the foundations of any alternative cold regimen. If you can't stay in bed, limit your physical activity as much as possible. Drink plenty of water and Vitamin C-rich, freshly squeezed juices, like orange and grapefruit. The Food and Nutrition Board of the National Academy of Sciences has established 2,000 mg per day as the highest safe daily dose of Vitamin C.

  The University of Maryland Medical Center says chicken soup, the most familiar alternative cold remedy, may provide some relief with its hydrating liquid and warmth. A low-salt chicken soup may be a better choice if you have high blood pressure.

Echinacea and Zinc

• According to Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, although clinical trials on the effectiveness of echinacea as a cold treatment have produced mixed results, you can take it in the following doses three times per day: 3 to 4 ml of alcohol tincture, 2 to 3 ml of echinacea juice, 300 mg of echinacea powdered extract or 1 to 2 g of whole dried root.

  The center also says research on zinc supports its use as a cold remedy, with the stipulation that you not take it for more than two weeks and that you not use lozenges with tartaric or citric acid. These can reduce zinc's effectiveness. The recommended dose is 13 to 23 mg in lozenge form every two hours, starting with your first symptoms and continuing until they are gone.

Alternative Treatments for Post Nasal Drip

• When excess mucus caused by your cold or allergy runs down the back of your throat, you have post nasal drip. Alternative treatments for post nasal drip include using saline solution with a neti pot to flush you nasal cavities. You can buy one at your local health food store or pharmacy, or online. Other alternative remedies involve thinning the mucus so it's not as irritating. Limiting your intake of dairy products is a good place to start. Drink warm liquids to provide fluid to thin your mucus and warmth to make it easier to expel.

  Gargling with warm salt water, suggests Dr. Douglas Hoffman, M.D., Ph. D, may cleanse your throat of all the pollutants and irritants found in nasal mucus, perhaps alleviating the immune system's inflammatory response to them that's giving you a sore throat. Make the water too salty, however, and those sore tissues could become painfully dry.