Three natural ways to fight a cold

November 20, 1:00 AMNY Women's Health ExaminerAmy Capetta

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Cure my cold, honey! (free-stock-photos.com)

The temperature is dropping, the mittens have been taken down from the top shelf, and the heat is cranking. And you know what that means? Grab the box of tissues, ‘cause a cold may be coming on.

Whether you call it the sniffles or being stuffed up, no one looks forward to being unable to breath through their nose and having no choice but to sleep with their mouth open. (And forget about how disgusting cold water tastes, never mind actual food.)

Since living in a plastic bubble isn’t an option, there’s a very good chance you’ll catch a cold this season. (It’s not called the common cold for nothing!) And while your world doesn’t need to come to a screeching halt, it can leave you feeling sluggish and out-of-sorts.

So what else can you do besides down a carton of orange juice? Below are three simple-yet-effective remedies from top doctors around the country on how you can stop the sneezing:

Chop some garlic: “My favorite remedy is eating raw, freshly chopped garlic,” states Victoria Maizes, MD, Executive Director, Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine. “Garlic has been studied and in one trial, subjects who took garlic supplements for three months had fewer colds than the placebo group.” Keep in mind that cooking the garlic is a no-no. “That inactivates the anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties,” adds Dr. Maizes.

Get sweet on honey: “Honey is well known for its antimicrobial action when applied to wounds and burns, and studies have also shown that it can work as well as medication for cold and flu symptoms,” states Mark Moyad, MD, Phil F. Jenkins Director of Preventive & Alternative Medicine at the University of Michigan Medical Center. He also advises to sweeten your water or tea with one to two teaspoons each day of the darker-colored honey since it contains higher levels of disease-fighting ingredients.

Flush it out: “I ward off and resolve colds by irrigating the sinuses out with salt water using a neti pot,” says Dr. Jordan S. Josephson, Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist at Lennox Hospital in New York City and author of Sinus Relief Now (Perigee Trade, 2006). These special pots can be purchased online (like on Amazon.com) and patients are advised to follow the directions included in the packaging.