Sue Hardman

Nourish + Rejuvenate

Herbs

Broccoli and Potatoe Soup

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Broccoli Soup

 

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

4 cups salt-reduced vegetable stock

400g/14oz potatoes, peeled, coarsely chopped

450g/1lb broccoli, cut into florets

2-3 handfuls of baby spinach leaves

1/2 cup fresh basil leaves

1/3 cup light sour cream (optional)

1 tablespoon store bought basil pesto / homemade

 

METHOD

Heat a large saucepan over medium heat with the olive oil.

Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes until soft. Add the garlic and cook until lightly browned.

Add stock and potato to the saucepan. Bring to boil. Cover. Reduce heat to low. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add broccoli and simmer for 6-7 minutes or until all vegetables are tender.

Remove from heat, add spinach and stir until wilted. Leave to cool slightly so you can blend. This might take up to 15 minutes.

In a blender add basil leaves and half of the soup mixture and blend until smooth. Pour into a clean saucepan and repeat until all the soup mixture has been blended into a smooth consistency.

Heat soup over medium heat for 2 minutes or until just before boiling point.

Combine sour cream and pesto in a bowl. Divide soup among bowls. Top with pesto cream and serve.  For vegan option, simply top with a half teaspoon of the basil pesto and omit the sour cream.

Brain Health – Use These Steps To Regenerate It

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You can regenerate you brain

We were always told once a brain cell dies, it’s gone forever. However, scientists are now proving that brain cells can be regenerated. Just like your muscles the brain needs regular use.

While many diseases and conditions have genetic predispositions to them. The truth is, you do have the power to control these genes by living healthily. All your brain wants is a little attention.

The same basic rules apply for both your brain and body when it comes to health. A well-balanced healthy diet, with a rainbow of colourful food, lots of good oil, exercise for oxygenation, and time out.

Free radicals break down the neurons in your brain causing damage. Colourful fruits and vegetables are packed with antioxidants – the dark purples ofAntioxidants for brain health blueberries, the deep reds of pomegranates, the rich green of kale and collards, the bright orange of sweet potatoes.

A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people who ate more dietary antioxidants had 70% less Alzheimer’s and dementia.

Food is a powerful ways to control or neutralise the major causes of all disease in your body – aim to eat 8 – 10 servings (1/2 cup = 1 serving) of fruit and vegetables everyday.

Oil and more oil, everyone of your brain cells is insulated by a layer of fat, and your brain is made up of 60 percent fat cells. So it needs oil for nourishment. Among the best nutrients are omega 3 fatty acids – the kind of fats found in salmon, tuna, mackerel, nuts, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds and green leafy vegetables.

In fact Omega 3’s have been shown to boost intelligence. Walnuts are considered a super brain food in Ayurvedic medicine and if you look at a walnut shape it looks a lot like the cerebral cortex.

Exercise is one of THE most important anti-aging medicines known. It’s a natural antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and stress buster. It will also help you sleep better, lower your cholesterol, lower your blood sugar and insulin levels. Aim to exercise 4 times a week –whether it’s walking, running, swimming or dancing, your brain will thank you.

Some supplements to consider if you’re under a lot of stress – take a good all round combination that contains vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. B-Vitamins are essential for normal brain function.

Super anti-ageing herbs:

  • Rosemary, sage, rose and mint – research has shown that inhaling these essential oils when learning a new task or studying enhances your recall. Put them in an oil burner when studying or rub into your temples.
  • Gingko bilobo – very commonly used supplement to enhance cognition and memory as it helps to increase blood flow to the brain. A word of caution for those people on blood thinning medication, consult a qualified professional.
  • Gotu kola – traditionally used and renowned for it’s intellectual-promoting, nervous system soothing and general mind enhancing properties. This is one of my favourite herbs Herbs for the brainbecause it has so many benefits, to name a few – anti-ageing & wonderful skin healing benefits.
  • Rhodiola – can greatly improve concentration and memory. In Siberia where they drink Rhodiola tea regularly, many people live well past 100. It also has the ability to reduce stress hormones.

As renowned women’s health expert Dr Christine Northrup says ‘Be a life long learner’, she believes this could be one of the most important factors in maintaining and enhancing your brain function, be actively engaged in some pleasurable activity that involves growth, development and learning. Do crossword puzzles or suduko.

So why wait? Start protecting your brain now because mental decline is not inevitable, you can boost your memory and mental alertness at any age. Research shows clearly that healthy, well-nourished and well-educated people show no signs of declining mental function with age. Feed your brain, both with the right nutrients and the right information.

 

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  • Just to say that I do really like your newsletters and many thanks! I always read them all the way through and there’s not many newsletters I can say that about. Sue Saker – London UK www.thecouplescoach.co.uk,

  • Thanks for this – I love receiving your emails ! So interesting.
    Emma – London UK     The Decor Cafe.

  • Fabulous, Excellent Sue!!
    Julie Cleverdon – South Africa. Director of The MTN Science Centre mtnsciencentre.org.za

  • I love your updates Sue -find them really informative and useful. Thank you for sharing important information so freely, what a gift to the health of humanity.
    Pippa Dowding, Leadership Coach and Facilitator – Cape Town, South Africa

  • This is a great newsletter Sue! ([email protected])

  • Great artical, keep them coming. Doug – Frankfurt, Germany

Stress is Not Good For Your Immune System

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We Live in an age of anxiety caused by stress

 

Our modern, rushed lifestyles have allowed stress to filter into almost every area of our lives. When you feel stressed your body reacts by releasing chemicals giving you more energy and strength.  A good thing if you’re facing physical danger and a bad thing, if it’s due to emotional stress and there is no outlet for this extra energy and strength.

There are many different causes — could be physical (such as fear of something dangerous) or emotional (such as worry over your family or job.) Identifying what may be causing you stress is often the first step in learning how to better deal with it.

So stress is best described as a state of mental and emotional strain resulting from adverse or demanding events in your life.  Of course, it’s impossible to avoid all the stressors that come your way.

The solution however, lies in the way you react to it.

How stress weakens the immune system

Scientists have long been aware of the connection between your stress and your immune system, and how it compromises your immunity.

The immune system is your body’s form of defence, which is made up a myriad of cells, tissues and organs, which work together to fight toxins and other foreign substances which threaten to do harm to your body.  When you’re stressed the immune system’s ability to defend the body is reduced, and we become susceptible to infections etc.

This is how your immune system is compromised by stress:

  • Studies have shown that the immune system of highly stressed people have sluggish responses to health challenges.
  • The raised levels of the stress hormone cortisol, over-produced by chronic stress, can suppress the effectiveness of the immune system, making you more vulnerable to reduce stress responseinfections.
  • While cortisol does its job, the immune system receives signals to slow down, and if the stressor is not eased and cortisol stays high, the immune system may remain in low gear.
  • The under-performing immune system can then result in serious inflammatory conditions, which is the cause of many ailments.
  •  The immunity of those who would normally have a healthy immune system, is subsequently lowered.
  • Chronic levels leads to a lower amount of a certain protein being produced, which is instrumental in the signalling for “reinforcements” between immune cells. Without this communication the body is in danger of contracting acute illnesses, and may have to endure extended recovery times.
  • Can have an indirect effect on the immune system if a person uses unhealthy coping strategies like binge-eating of unhealthy foods, and smoking or drinking much more than usual.

The bottom line is that if you have constant, chronic stress which is not effectively handled, you lay yourself open to various illnesses which can have a devastating effect on your health. Learning to cope in a healthy way will minimise the negative impact it may have on how your immune system functions.

Steps you can take to help reduce stress
reduce stress

  • Follow a healthy diet, be sure to eat a good nourishing breakfast. Stress reduces levels of magnesium and vitamin C – be sure to boost your intake of these. For MORE detail on this read Boost Your Immunity and Keep Healthy All Year Round
  • Stay away from sugars and bad fats (trans/processed). These put unnecessary stress on you, spiking blood insulin and your digestive system.
  • Avoid excessive caffeine, which may give you a short boost, but could leave you feeling jittery and anxious as you wind down.
  • It’s very important to get enough sleep. Sleep pattern disturbances, or even mild insomnia, will be perceived by the body as major stress. The cortisol will rise to new heights, and immunity will fall to new lows.
  • Interact socially often, and talk to family and friends if you feel the need to unburden or get some advice. Boost the love hormone to reduce your stress.

The efficiency of your stress-coping skills will be the key to a vital, fully-functioning immune system.

Some good news

The good news is that a little stress is not a bad thing, as it keeps you alert to react to sudden, unexpected dangers. Short-term suppression of the immune system will not put you into danger, it is only when it’s chronic that you will be prone to infection and disease.

Brief, and short bouts of stress due to unforeseen events or circumstances in your life, will simply keep you on your toes to respond quickly to the situation, and will have no negative effect whatsoever on your immune system.

In conclusion

Stress is no laughing matter, as it plays a part in many diseases such as high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, AIDS, obesity, and chronic digestive problems (IBS), to name but a few.

Many women don’t realise the knock on effect that it has on their hormonal system – think Adrenal fatigue, PMS, hot flushes, skin problems. After all everything is connected, cortisol – the stress hormone causes all the other hormones to go out of balance.

Surveys conducted worldwide have revealed some disturbing facts.

  • In the US results showed 75% of adults reported experiencing high to moderate stress in the past month, and more than half felt it had increased over the past year
  • 91% of Australians presently feel stress in at least one part of their lives. Australian employers report absenteeism due to stress costs the economy about $14.2 billion annually.
  • 3.7 million working days are lost annually in the UK, thanks to stress related issues, at a cost of about 28.3 billion British pounds.

A serious situation indeed!

You do not have to be a statistic of poor health because of stress. If you cannot handle it on your own, get assistance from someone who has the expertise to help you. Do what is best for your health.

My clients have seen the benefits of using herbs called adaptogens which have an amazing ability to help you’re body deal with stress,  Adaptogens Might Be Your Answer To Fatigue, Stress or Anxiety

 

 

 

If you want to get all the latest news, blogs and programs be sure to sign up to Sue’s newsletter. You” also get your copy of the FREE e-book: 5 Foods that will help boost Your Energy Levels and Lose Weight Naturally. Sign up here

When you sign up you’ll also receive ‘The Good Health Guide’ newsletter with inspiration, practical, easy to follow tips and articles on healthy eating, recipes, exercise and natural medicines to help you live a healthier life.

These newsletter are all delivered straight to your inbox.

This is what readers of the ‘The Good Health Guide’ newsletter are saying about it:

  • Just to say that I do really like your newsletters and many thanks! I always read them all the way through and there’s not many newsletters I can say that about. Sue Saker – London UK www.thecouplescoach.co.uk,

  • Thanks for this – I love receiving your emails ! So interesting.
    Emma – London UK     The Decor Cafe.

  • Fabulous, Excellent Sue!!
    Julie Cleverdon – South Africa. Director of The MTN Science Centre mtnsciencentre.org.za

  • I love your updates Sue -find them really informative and useful. Thank you for sharing important information so freely, what a gift to the health of humanity.
    Pippa Dowding, Leadership Coach and Facilitator – Cape Town, South Africa

  • This is a great newsletter Sue! ([email protected])

  • Great artical, keep them coming. Doug – Frankfurt, Germany

 

 

Get your copy of the FREE e-book:
5 Foods that will help boost Your Energy Levels and Lose Weight Naturally.

HERE

 

 

References.
www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in/stress/art-2004603
www.livestrong.com/article/22689-stress-affect-immune-system/
www.gostress.com/stress-facts/

Stress, Cortisol & Weight Gain

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Do You Need To Flip Off The Cortisol – Stress Switch?

Over the last 40 years rates of depression, anxiety, stress and insomnia have soared and the World Health Organisation is saying that these problems are the biggest threat to our health.

Stress releases cortisol in your body, and of course cortisol has both a positive and negative effect on your body.  We wouldn’t survive if it wasn’t for the positive effect of cortisol.Reduce stress

Cortisol is the main stress hormone that is made in your adrenal glands and it’s designed to get you out of danger, you feel the positive vibe of cortisol and adrenalin– releasing extra energy, getting you focused, it raises blood sugar (to feed muscles fight or flight), raises blood pressure, and modulates your immune function.

Unfortunately many of us live with chronic daily stresses and so live with constantly high cortisol levels and your body ceases to experience the positive aspects of cortisol and if these high levels are sustained this is when the problems start occurring.

Stress is triggered by a huge range of psychological factors and external events. We can become stressed by relationships, by work, by finances, and by our thoughts of what we think may or may not have happened.

Daily stress of any sort sends your bodies into the “fight or flight” mode, releasing adrenaline and cortisol.

Cortisol releases extra energy for us to deal efficiently with the physical effort involved in fighting or fleeing, but when that effort doesn’t come, the extra energy (in the form of glucose and fat) just gets re-deposited as fat – around the middle.

Why there?  It’s close to the liver where it can quickly be converted back into energy when needed.

A lean man or woman of normal weight can even have to much fat around the centre of their bodies as a result of the stress hormone – cortisol.

Fat cells in the belly have four times more cortisol receptors compared to fat cells elsewhere.

A study done by Nuffield Health found that women with thicker waists are at higher risk of various cancers as well as heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

If you have a high level of stress then you will be particularly at risk of the dreaded muffin top and stress keeps feeding the muffin top as your cortisol stays high.How-To-Get-Rid-Of-Muffin-Top-In-2-Weeks

Increased abdominal fat, is associated with more health problems than fat deposited in other areas of the body.

There’s another hormone that is released due to stress. High levels of blood sugar released by cortisol, trigger the pancreas to release the hormone insulin.

This tells your body to store fat and triggers a craving for something sweet and fatty like chocolate.  So rest assured that it is
not just weakness that draws you towards the fridge – it’s physical urge.

Abdominal fat cells have many receptors for cortisol, if you’re very stressed and have high levels of cortisol, your abdominal fat cells will be calling out for it, encouraging your body to store more fat there, which explains why fat accumulates so readily in that part of the body.

For a start you can control your blood sugar roller coaster and this will help reduce the amount of stress hormones that are being released and helping you feel calmer in yourself.

High or Excessive cortisol levels can create a broad range of undesirable side effects:

Physical Signs

Emotional 
Signs

Additional

Signs

-Muscle weakness

-Chronic fatigue

-Obesity

–Digestive problems

-Excess belly fat

 – Nervousness
– Anxiety
– Depression
– Irritability
– Craving carbs
– Insomnia
– Difficulty falling asleep

= Emotional over-eaters

– Illness after completing a project
– Sick on vacation
– Mental preoccupation with a  stressful event

6 things you can do straight away to support yourself and balance your cortisol levels

Stress relieving food
1) Eat fresh, healthy food as close as possible to the original source. Loads of veggies. Avoid refined carbs and sugar.

2) Find out which supplements can support you –

Certain nutrients such as the B vitamins, vitamin C, magnesium and essential fatty acids can be extremely helpful if stress is a problem as they will help boost the functioning of your adrenal glands.

You should be getting these nutrients from your healthy diet but if you are under stress you might want to add in more B vitamins, found in nuts and whole grains, essential fats found in oily fish, nuts and seeds, and plenty of vitamin C found in vimages-15eggies & fruit.

When you’re stressed you use more vitamin C and magnesium than at any other time, and it is vital for keeping your immune system strong.  Women who are deficient in the antioxidant mineral selenium, also experience feelings of depression and anxiety.  Selenium if found in fish and shellfish, whole grains, avocados.

3) Use natures’ own plant medicine –  nervine and adaptogen herbs like Scuttelaria, Passiflora, Ginseng or Rhodiola.

4) Get your cortisol levels tested. Know your levels and measure – where are they to high or to low? These can easily be addressed with the proper support.

5) Exercise –  is good and changes the levels of hormones in the blood and it can elevate the mood, affecting brain chemicals. Find time to do simple exercise daily.

6) Deep, long  and restful sleep is essential for recharging your energy levels. A proper sleep relaxes both your body and the mind. It will improve your mood and give you the ability to deal with daily stress.

7) Spending time in fun, positive environments to boost your ‘feel good’ hormones – with your family and friends, spend some time close to nature.

8) You need to get out of the sympathetic mode (fight or flight and stress) and as often as you can into the parasympathetic mode (rest and digest i.e. calm, relaxed). Try breathing exercises, meditation, pilates, walking in nature, yoga and prayer. There are several scientific studies that provide solid information about the physical and psychological health benefits of meditation and prayer.

Stress and relaxation

Dr. Herbert Benson, a cardiovascular specialist at Harvard Medical School and a pioneer in the field of mind/ body medicine discovered what he calls “the relaxation response,” which occurs during periods of prayer and meditation. At such times, the body’s metabolism decreases, the heart rate slows, blood pressure goes down, and our breath becomes calmer and more regular.

The body responds with slower brain waves, and feelings of control, tranquil alertness and peace of mind. This is significant because Benson estimates that over half of all doctor visits in the U.S. are prompted by illnesses, like depression, high blood pressure, ulcers and migraine headaches, that are caused at least in part by elevated levels of stress and anxiety.

If you are still scratching your head, don’t let it discourage you!!! It can take time to learn and get in the swing of things.

 

If you’re struggling with any kind of hormone imbalance, tiredness, low energy or wanting to lose your excess weight. I’ve  put together a FREE guide for you, so you can start to learn how and why specific foods, and drinks, can help you have more energy and lose weight naturally. 

You’ll find it is easy to add these ingredients into your diet on a daily basis – get your downloadable guide here

In fact, at the end, I’m going to share one simple recipe you can make in under five minutes that incorporates all of these foods.

5foods-loss-weight

Get your copy of the FREE guide:
5 Foods that will help boost Your Energy Levels and Lose Weight Naturally.

HERE

Herbal Teas – kitchen healing essentials

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FullSizeRender-3Nothing like a good cuppa tea to sort out the problems of the world. My grandmother loved her tea and it was the first thing we’d do when we visited her, I do miss being able to sit down and share a pot of tea with her.

Who meets for a cup of tea these days? It seems we’re all more likely to meet for a coffee. But, a cup of tea is so much more than just about the socialising. I wanted to share with you how ‘just’ a cup of tea could be one of THE most simple ‘healing’ tools that you could have in your kitchen. I know you might say, it’s only a cup of tea!

Research studies and ancient eastern traditions show that herbal teas can have the most positive effect on supporting you with illness, ailments and for ensuring optimum health.

As a herbalist and lover of simple, effective, quick and easy solutions there are some essential herbal teas in my kitchen for when first aid is needed – either to settle a sore or nervous tummy, insomnia, anxiety, cramps, heartaches, the beginnings of a cold or flu, bloating, indigestion and even PMT.

Be sure to stock up on chamomile, rose, peppermint, cinnamon and ginger teas for your home and then you’ll be covered with the basics. Of course you05_05_10_01_12_chamomile-bsp-150x150 need to know which one to use when and you may have be unaware of some of the other things these common herbal teas can be useful for. Chamomile is calming but so much more, peppermint for wind and so much more, ginger for nausea and so much more…..

Fresh grated ginger is one of my personal favourites, it has an amazing taste and is more than a treatment for nausea, which many pregnant women can attest to. It’s one of the foundation herbs used in Ayurvedic and TCM and it’s brilliant for balancing your digestion, great to have before a meal to boost the ‘fire in your tummy’ to help digest your food and get the nutrients you need.  I would say most of us would benefit from drinking warming ginger, daily.

I love having a flask of ginger tea ready to drink at anytime, during the day. Ginger is one of the most researched herbs (along with turmeric) and it has many uses, it’s anti-viral too – so brilliant for colds or flu. Herbalists consider it a universal medicine with multi-healing properties that benefits everybody and all diseases. With ginger think – digestion, lungs and circulation.

Chamomile is most commonly considered a calming tea, but herbalists call it the ‘Mother of the gut’. I found this tea to be particularly useful when ever we have tummy upsets because it works on the nervous system found in your gut or as we like to call it the – ‘second brain’. Think tummy aches from unknown causes, IBS and when someone is nervous about something and have that tight feeling in their tummy. Chamomile excels at treating what is commonly known as a “nervous stomach”, which generally implies digestive upset alongside anxiety, nervous tension.

That aromatic component from Chamomile’s high essential oil content, has a specific relaxing, calming effect on your nervous system and can be helpful for insomnia, cough, bronchitis, cold or fever, gas, gut cramping and mild constipation. .

iStock_heart_of_rosesxSmallRose – heals the heart, balances hormones and is uplifting. It’s a bitter, cooling herb so it can help with headaches and inflammation. Used in combination with other herbs it adds beauty and colour to a blend.

I often recommend rose tea for PMT, periods that are painful, excessive or irregular and if there is an underlying nervousness, sadness or grief the role of rose is nourishing on the nervous system. It has a calming effect on the emotions and as it has an affinity for the heart. It’s often used in times of sadness and grief.

Peppermint – a great pick-me up if you ever need an alternative to coffee. It’s full of aroma that awakens the senses helpful in congestion in the head, use as a hot tea to cause sweating with colds and flu. Useful when there is a lot of mucous. It can lift feelings of emotional ‘heaviness’ and relieves the symptoms of abdominal gas, bloating, muscle spasms and nausea (without vomiting).  Peppermint tea can also be made using fresh herbs from the garden’and it’s one of the easiest herbs to grow.

Researchers from the University’s Department of Psychology have found that drinking peppermint tea improves alertness, while chamomile tea has a calming effect. These findings were presented at the annual British Psychological Society Conference in Nottingham this week (26-28 April 2016).

Cinnamon – useful for poor circulation, colds, flu and a bout of diarrhoea but among this spice’s most impressive health benefits is its ability to cinnamonreduce your sugar cravings. By controlling blood sugar levels you can prevent spikes after meals, normalise your blood sugar levels and improve glucose control.

Cinnamon has more antioxidants than many so-called antioxidant foods, like-for-like. For example, one teaspoon of cinnamon has as much antioxidant capacity as a full cup of pomegranate juice or a half-cup of blueberries. Two of the main types of cinnamon, are Cassia and Ceylon. A better option for taste and health is Ceylon cinnamon (also called Sri Lanka cinnamon or “true cinnamon”).

I recommend that you drink herbal teas because it’s a fantastic and safe way to maintain your health over time. Consistent tea drinking gives your body what it needs in doses that it can handle.

Teas are a really wonderful way to boost your body’s hydration, and because we’re made of 65-80 percent water, the constituents that hot (and cold) water pulls out of the herbs are really absorbable for us. Each herb has a myriad of actions so it isn’t hard to come up with a tasty blend that does a lot of good in your body.

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Pelargonium – Quickly Stops Coughs, Colds & Sore Throats

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#Plant Medicine 101

Your nose is running, you can’t breathe, your throat is dry and scratchy – it happens to most of us and it’s especially hard when it effects your kids because there aren’t to many effective solutions.

woman-blowing-nose-400x400Pelargonium (Pelargonium sidoides) is gaining huge popularity in Germany because of it’s effectiveness against the symptoms associated with colds and flus, and it is the best researched herbal cold and cough remedy.  It helps to reduce the mucus of snotty noses and phlegm that makes it hard to breathe, improves a bad cough and any associated chest pain, and decreases congestion to help open the breathing passages.

I keep this herbal medicine in my Home Medicine Cabinet, along with some of my other favourites – including Echinacea vulgaris.

Pelargonium has long been used by the South African Zulu’s, it’s also known as the black geranium, “umckalwabo”,  roughly translated as ‘for heavy cough and chest problems’.

Back in 1897, the remedy was popularised in England as ‘Steven’s Consumption Cure’, having been brought back by an Englishman ‘cured’ of tuberculosis by a Zulu tribal healer. With the advent of anti-tubercular drugs, it went out of fashion until recently rediscovered by  researchers in Europe.

In the last few years Pelargonium has gone from being an obscure herbal remedy to become one of Germany’s most popular herbal medicines.

While most other cough, cold and sinus medicines tend to mask your outward symptoms, pelargonium shortens the duration and reduces the severity of your respiratory irritations and helps boost your body’s natural defence system.

Scientific research also shows it to have potent anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and immune-boosting properties.

Pelargomium Sidoides has been successfully used for treatment of:

  1. Respiratory infections like bronchitis, sinusitis, and pneumonia, tonsillitis.It is very effective for treating acute bronchitis as it Pelargonium sidoidesincreases your body’s natural healing rate. Studies have found that 40-60% of patients suffering from acute bronchitis fully resolve their symptoms within a week of Pelargonium sidoides supplementation.Some people reported experiencing benefits after just two to three days. People that are not cured after a week still experience benefits from Pelargonium sidoides supplementation, since it can treat the symptoms associated with bronchitis, including headache, fever, fatigue, cough, chest pain while coughing, sputum in the lungs, rhonchi, and nasal dripping. A 2008 report published in Phytomedicine. In their analysis of six clinical trials testing pelargonium’s efficacy as an acute bronchitis treatment, the report’s authors found that pelargonium significantly improved symptoms of acute bronchitis without causing any serious side effects.
  2. It is often used as an alternative to antibiotics – Pelargonium sidoides has anti-infective properties. It prevents bacteria from adhering to cells, helps fight viruses and stimulates the immune system to hunt down pathogenic invaders.
  3. Acute and chronic ear, nose and throat infections.
  4. Rapid improvement in the symptoms associated with colds and flu. Pelargonium may help relieve your common old cold. A  2007 study published in Explore revealed that pelargonium helped reduce the severity of cold symptoms, as well as shorten the duration of sickness.

The alcoholic extract of the root has been shown to have a three-way effect:

1.) Anti-bacterial: The herb extract prevents bacteria from attaching to cells in your mucous membranes. 

2.) Antiviral effect: It prevents viruses from attaching to your mucous membrane cells and stimulates your body’s immune system in such a way that both bacteria and viruses are prevented from multiplying. 

3.)Expectorant: the extract acts as an expectorant, allowing your body to expel contaminated mucous making conditions less suitable for the multiplication of the bacteria and viruses. 

The three-way effect stabilises the immune system, preventing a re-infection, shortens the recovery phase.

Due to its anti-bacterial and immune-modulating characteristics Pelargonium appears to be a good alternative to the conventional therapy of treating respiratory illnesses with antibiotics.

 

                 

Whether you’re considering using herbs for colds, flu, and boosting your immune system it’s best to see a qualified Herbalist. 

A Herbalist will formulate a personalised treatment plan to suit each person depending on their needs, with the correct dosage and combination of herbs.

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(Please note: The information in this article is general information and not a substitute for medical care. As always, consult your own physician should you have any concerns.)