3 Essential Homeopathic Remedies For Cold and Flu Season

As cold and flu season arrives, there are three homeopathic remedies that are crucial to have on-hand. When used properly, these remedies can quickly stop an illness from worsening and, in many cases, completely cure the illness within a short time period. Homeopathic remedies work by stimulating the body to cure the underlying cause of the symptoms, and they do so without side effects.

These three remedies are useful at the beginning of a cold/flu, when the symptoms are still developing. In my experience, many colds and flus can be completely aborted with the use of one of these remedies if given within the first 24 hours of the illness. Once the illness has progressed past the initial stages, these remedies lose their wide applicability. After the first day or two of the illness, success through homeopathic treatment relies upon choosing a remedy that matches the specific signs and symptoms each ill individual, as discussed below in the section titled, "What About After the First 24-48 Hours?"

Three Remedies to Have On-Hand

When choosing which of these three remedies to use for a cold or flu, it is important to match the illness to the remedy based on the characteristics described below.

• Aconite (Aconitum Napellus) 30c is the remedy to use for an illness that is coming on rapidly with strong symptoms. Often (but not always) this type of illness comes on after exposure to cool winds and/or fright. Sometimes the symptoms will also include fearfulness (such as being scared of death, darkness, animals, etc). When I've had this type of illness, the symptoms seem to become fully developed in about an hour, starting from breathing normally to being completely stuffed up and sneezing in that short amount of time. One or occasionally two-to-three doses of Aconite are all that have been required to make the symptoms completely resolve with no further illness. When used in this way, Aconite is very effective if used in the first 24 hours of the illness. 

• Ferrum Phos 30c is the remedy of choice for a cold that is not coming on so strongly or quickly as the Aconite-type illness. (If there is fearfulness, though, I always go with the Aconite instead of the Ferrum Phos.) I've used Ferrum Phos successfully for the type of cold that just comes on throughout the day, starting with perhaps some sniffles or a mild sore throat, and slowly progressing over multiple hours. Most commonly, I find that the illness will resolve within 2 to 4 doses of Ferrum Phos, taken every 1-4 hours (depending on the severity of the illness, remedies can be taken more or less frequently). This is another remedy whose beneficial action is most effective if used during the first 24 hours of the illness. 

• Oscillococcinum (also known as Anas Barbariae) 200c is the remedy to use when the illness has flu-like symptoms, such as body aches, fever, or just a general feeling of being “off” and not quite right. This remedy is sold differently than the others; it comes in a white box that has several small tubes of remedy inside. Although the box says to take one full tube as a dose, that is generally much more remedy than is necessary. We can easily get 5-10 doses from just one tube. Oscillococcinum is also sold in a higher potency than the others as it is usually sold as a 200c (instead of the 30c as with the others). The rule of thumb on 200c potencies is that they need to be used less frequently than 30c's. I use 200c potencies no more than 2-3 times a day, and if there is no obvious improvement within two doses, I stop using the remedy. Oscillococcinum is for use during the first 48 hours of illness only, after which it loses its efficacy.

 

Proper Dosing

One of the biggest mistakes that people often make when they first start using homeopathy for acute illnesses is taking remedies too often.  Homeopathic remedies should not be used in a mechanical fashion, such as "take this every 4-6 hours for 7 days". With all homeopathic remedies, the least number of doses is always the best plan.  

Anytime there is obvious improvement happening, the best policy is to stop taking the remedy and then watch-and-wait.  Taking too much remedy can actually interfere with the curative action of the remedy, or in some cases cause a full relapse. Once the remedy has stimulated the body to cure itself, and the body is showing signs of definite improvement, the remedy should be stopped. No more remedy should be taken unless it is indicated by a regression in symptoms or a plateau (where the symptoms stay the same for several hours).

 

Antidotes and Handling

Whenever homeopathic remedies are being used, certain substances should be avoided because they can antidote the remedies.  The following are best avoided while using homeopathic remedies:

• mint (including mint tea and toothpaste)
• camphor/menthol (including Vick's VapoRub, Tiger Balm, cough drops, etc)
• coffee or decaf coffee (tea is fine to consume in moderation)
• any substance that causes a change in the nervous system (such as alcohol, recreational drugs, etc)
• over-the-counter and prescription medications (always talk to your doctor before stopping any prescription medication)
• skin medicines (such as cortisone cream)

Additionally, homeopathic medicines should be taken with a neutral mouth (no taste or smell of previous food/drink), which usually means at least 10-20 minutes after eating.  No food or drink should be taken within 10-15 minutes after taking each dose of the remedy.

Care should be taken handle the remedies properly by:

• not touching the remedy with your hands
• storing the remedy away from sunlight, strong odors, and heat
• not opening the remedy in a room with strong smells (such as herbs, cooking smells, etc)

 

What About After the first 24-48 hours?

The three remedies listed above work wonderfully in the first 24-48 hours of illness, but after that time homeopathic remedy selection is not quite so simple. Homeopathy can still work wonderfully after the first 24-48 hours of an illness, but the remedy has to be selected to match the very specific symptoms that have developed.

For instance, some remedies work better for burning heat and high fevers, whereas other remedies work better for low-grade fevers; some remedies work well for illnesses that feel better while lying down, while others work for illnesses where the patient feels best outside. Being able to select the proper remedy at such a time requires a good knowledge-base or at least some very good reference books on-hand. Some of my favorite reference books for relatively quick remedy selection in acute illnesses are:

• Homeopathic Medicine at Home by Maesimund Panos and Jane Heimlich
• Homeopathic Medicine for Children and Infants by Dana Ullman
• Common Ailments of Children and Their Homeopathic Management by Santwani (this book is a bit more advanced than the others and assumes more knowledge on the part of the reader, but it is truly an excellent resource)

 Have you tried homeopathic remedies for acute illnesses?

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or licensed healthcare professional. I am a homeopathic practitioner whose services are considered complementary and alternative by the state of New Mexico. The uses of homeopathic remedies described herein are provided for educational use only.


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