Don't catch that flu!

I pick up the phone and it's my dad, ‘have you got any of that ginger stuff you make?’ he asked in an unusually rough, nasally voice. He didn't need to say anymore. I made a batch and went straight over.

I rang the next day to follow up and his exact words were ‘I feel right as rain!’.

He recounted how he drank two cups before bed, feeling like he was going to wake up ‘full of it’ but to his relief woke up feeling better. He still had a slight bunged up nose, but he didn’t feel ill and had plenty of energy. Essentially, he felt like the oncoming flu or cold had been nipped in the proverbial bud.

The ‘ginger stuff’ he is referring to is a simple, yet effective ginger-lemon-honey mix, and it is one of my personal favourites when my immune system needs a natural boost to combat that dreaded cold or flu.

As with any recipe I find it is not only the ingredients used that are important, but also how it’s prepared that makes the difference.

First let me explain how to make it, then I will delve into why you should make it.

For this drink you will need:

• 1 liter water

• 3-4 unwaxed lemons

• Approx. 3 inches of fresh ginger root

• A dash of honey

Step One:

Wash your lemons, slice them and put them in a saucepan.

If you have any apple cider vinegar rinse your lemons with it, it helps remove any lingering pesticides etc.

Step Two:

Peel your ginger and finely grate. This is the important bit. Too many people chop ginger in cubes but by doing this you are not getting the full benefit of its juice, so grate, grate, grate that ginger!

Place in saucepan with the lemons.

Step Three:

Pour the cold water over the lemons and grated ginger and stir the pot. Add a dollop of honey (organic where possible!).

Step Four:

Bring the water to boil and allow to simmer for 2-3 minutes. Then turn off the heat and let sit for around 20 minutes.

It’s important here not to over boil as the heat would nullify the essential vitamins we need.

Step Five:

Strain out the lemons and ginger.

Step Six:

Enjoy this concoction hot or cold!

Drink it throughout the day. Here quantity is as important as quality. One cup a day may not do the trick if you are feeling the effects of a cold or flu coming on. But it is ample if you are using it as a preventative measure.

Now to the interesting part…

Ginger root is said to help regulate good gut bacteria (1). And let us not forget that the gut is the brain of the body.

Among other things, ginger root has levels of vitamin B3 and B6. It also carries vitamin c too (2).

B3 vitamins (also called Niacin) promote healthy skin, better digestion and it can lower cholesterol (3).

B6 helps the body fight infection, produce insulin and creates serotonin and dopamine (3).

Lemon has high levels of vitamin C and this of course helps our immune system. Vitamin C helps produce collagen and is an antioxidant. It is a vitamin we need to replenish daily as it is water soluble, meaning that the body does not store it (4).

The combination of the two helps strengthen our natural defenses and gives our immune system a fighting chance against all those nasty bugs floating in the air.

Both ginger and lemon have anti-cancer properties.

As an interesting side note, I first tried this concoction when my mother sent me an article about a woman who claims she was given this recipe by her doctor. But it wasn’t to combat a sniffling nose, it was to help ease the pain of bunions. Yes, I said bunions!

This is something I suffered from after years working in catering and wearing cheap shoes on hard floors. So, I gave it a try. For bunions it was suggested to drink one liter a day of until the pain stopped.

Well what can I say, after a month my bunion was no longer! Turns out bunions are a build-up of toxicity in the bone and this drink gets rid of that build up. Needless-to-say, I was impressed at being pain free, but more than that I realised, since starting to drink this concoction, I hadn’t caught one cold when everyone around me were hauled up in bed for weeks with one version of a cold or another.

So, me being me, I got other people around me to try it too and each time, without fail, they felt better the next day. One person even said I’d changed her life when I stressed that ginger should be grated! She couldn’t believe the difference it made compared to merely chopping in cubes and throwing in hot water.

So there you go. Give it a try and see how it makes you feel.

Happy tea making!

DISCLAIMER: This is not medical advice. I am neither a doctor nor nutritionist but an advocate of natural remedies. I only offer information on remedies that I have tried and tested, on myself and on others. Remember everyone is an individual and as such what may work for one may not be suitable for another.

References:

(1) https://www.the-scientist.com/the-literature/molecules-found-in-ginger-remodel-the-microbiome-65369

(2) https://www.everydayhealth.com/diet-nutrition/diet/ginger-nutrition-facts-health-benefits-alternative-uses-more/

(3) https://betteryou.com/health-hub/magnesium-b-vitamins-benefits-taking-together/

(4) https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/219352#sources_and_requirements