How to ease cold symptoms the Ayurvedic way

With no official cure for the common cold, you might feel powerless against this bothersome imbalance. And while Western medicine doesn’t have much to offer for the common cold, Ayurveda does. It is possible to prevent colds living an Ayurvedic lifestyle by taking care of yourself throughout the year, and even fight colds with holistic remedies.

Why do people get sick?

Ayurveda has a concept of immunity known as ojas. This is your vital essence. It is ojas that gives you your endurance, vitality, glow, and immunity. When ojas is drained due to poor diet, irregular sleeping, or stress, your resistance to disease is diminished.

This helps explain why one person in a family can have a cold while others stay healthy. Two people with different quality ojas who are exposed to the same cold germs will be affected differently. The person with low quality or weak ojas will get sick, while the person with strong ojas is less likely to become ill.

If your ojas is compromised and you happen to fall prey to a cold, you can assist your body by maintaining balance of your doshas. This includes strengthening your digestive system and supporting the digestion of ama or toxins. The better you take care of your body while you’re sick, the less severe the cold will be and the faster you will begin to heal.

This immune boosting tea fights off viruses, digests toxins, and opens the respiratory channels. Here is how you can make your own! 

Ingredients:

• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 2 teaspoons fresh ginger
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 5 peppercorns
• 1 tulsi(holy basil) tea bag

Instructions: 

1. ​Combine all ingredients in a mug. 
2. Allow the ingredients to simmer in 2 cups of water for five minutes. 
3. Drink three times daily.

Rest, rest, rest

During a cold, the body needs rest more than it does activity. So, skip yoga your workouts, and other strenous physical activity. If possible, take the day off work at the onset of a cold. Allow your body focus on getting better. While this may seem ridiculous,  it is possible to stop a cold dead in its tracks.

Keep Warm

Do you think that it is impossible to catch a cold from being cold? Sleeping in an overly air-conditioned room or going without a coat for too long in the winter is enough to make you sick. Wearing an undershirt that covers your chest (a main site of kapha, which is out of balance during a cold) and layer with a warm sweater. Drying your hair after a shower or bath and always cover your head and body when going outside.