5 Herbal and Natural Decongestant Recipes

With the winter winds blowing in, it can be easy to catch a cold and end up in bed, sneezing your head off and grabbing a cup of hot tea. If that sounds like you, wait and think before you pop a pill- there are amazing natural and herbal decongestants that could help you battle your cough and cold, minus the side effects.

Interested? Read on to know more about the 5 best natural and herbal decongestant recipes.

1: The Essential Oil Tea

Essential oils are now getting popular as a home remedy for many health conditions, and are believed to be effective against cough and congestion too. Adding a few drops of essential oils that contain natural decongestant properties could be beneficial- here we’ve listed down the best essential oils you can add to your tea.

Lemon balm
Peppermint
Sage
Chamomile
Eucalyptus

2: Chicken Soup

This one comes right from grandma’s recipe book, and is wonderfully effective against cold and cough, which is surprisingly common during winter. A bowl of hot chicken soup, preferably with some chopped garlic, onions and a couple of whole black peppercorns, when taken twice, could be a natural way to combat cough and congestion effectively. The warm soup soothes the irritated and inflamed internal linings, relaxes them, and pushes out the mucus stuck within the nasal sinuses, acting as a natural expectorant.

3: The Herbal Mix

Herbs are an amazingly effective and natural way to deal with cold and cough- adding more of these herbs and botanicals to your everyday foods could help you deal with cold and congestion single-handedly and in a jiffy. The best herbs and plant extracts that are believed to be effective against congestion are:

Ginger
Garlic
Onions
Elder flowers
Lemon Balm
Sage
Basil
Echinacea
Blueberry leaves
Blackberry leaves
Cayenne pepper
Thyme
Black pepper
Marshmallow root
Mullein
Malva flowers
Dill seed
Aniseed
Linden flowers
Licorice root

All of these herbs are known to contain properties and substances that act as an expectorant, help loosen a cough, and soothe irritated nasal passages. Another great way to use these herbs would be to use their extracts as a chest rub or add them to your steam bowl- the healing properties of these extracts could speed up your recovery process and get you up in no time.

4: Spice it up

Spices are a good way to relieve nasal congestion- they’re natural and have no side effects whatsoever associated with their use. Infact, the use of herbs for common cold and cough could bring added benefits as well. Here we’ve listed down some good ways to get the right spice to your food, and make sure you’re free from cold and congestion in a jiffy.

Add cayenne pepper and ginger to your soups, gravies and pasta dishes for an extra spice- the hotness will stimulate the loosening of the cough, and cause it to get expelled, thereby clearing away the congestion.
Add more of ginger to your dishes, preferably in the raw form- grate raw ginger over your salads and soups- the heat so produced is believed to calm down internal inflammations and release mucus clogged up in the nasal passages.

5: Soothing Herbal Tea

Herbal teas are a great way to kick-start your day- they are packed with wonderful antioxidants that boost the body’s natural immunity, prevent free radical damage, and guard the body against various illnesses.
Herbal teas are also effective against general cold and cough, and is a good way to start your day with lots of energy and freshness. Here we’ve listed down the best herbal teas you can grab from your supermarket, or prepare yourself in the comfort of your home, to make sure you’re cold-free.

Green tea
Catnip tea
Sage tea
Peppermint tea
Lemon and honey tea
Ginger tea
Cayenne pepper with green tea
Lemon Balm tea
Echinacea tea
Vervain tea
Chamomile tea

Before you get started on any of these natural and herbal remedies, make sure you seek medical advice- many herbs may interfere with your medications (if you have been taking any).