by Svetlana Konnikova

Chamomile, the motherly herb, can also help you to ease colds, flu and the most common illnesses. Look at the night sky full of stars. It looks like a miraculous island of lights. An ancient legend tells that one night tiny stars dropped from the sky and fell to the earth as chamomile flowers. Chamomile, because of its rich medicinal properties is used extensively in many natural remedies to treat colds, insomnia, allergic reactions, occasional constipation, and bowel cleansing.

The Latin name for chamomile is Matricaria Chamomilla.      The name is derived from the Latin word mater, which means mother. A kind herbal healer for the people, chamomile is like a good nurturing mother and is a favorite, valued folk remedy in Europe and worldwide.

  • *Combine one tablespoon chamomile flowers, two tablespoons licorice root, two tablespoons thyme, and two tablespoons marshmallow flowers with one quart of boiling water. Steep for 20-30 minutes. Take one cup three to five times daily after meal. This is a natural cough suppressant.
  • Mix one teaspoon each chamomile flowers, elder flowers, linden flowers, and mint leaves. To one tablespoon of the mixture, add one cup boiling water. Steep for 20 minutes, and drink 1/2 cup of the hot drink three to four times a day as a diaphoretic.

Warm baths can be soothing and relaxing in colds and flu treatment. Try this fragrant, mixed herbal bath:

  • Combine two ounces each chamomile flowers and linden flowers with one quart water in an enamel pot. Boil slowly for 15-20 minutes. It is a fever-reducing treatment and also helps sleeplessness or skin irritation.
  • After taking bath, prepare one cup warm water or chamomile tea with one tablespoon organic raw honey and drink before bedtime. This natural sedative promotes sound sleep and regulates stomach activity.

These are just a few of the old Eastern European herbal remedies for colds, flu and some other common ills. You can use other effective natural treatments. Be smart! Start your own green clinic right in your house or backyard. Reinvent yourself this New Year! Knowledge is power that will improve your life and will warm your heart as you sit by the blazing fire reading a good book, like Mama’s Home Remedies, and sipping the delicious, spicy, steaming cup of tea to cure that cold. 

I mentioned this book because it comes from centuries of healthy wisdom. Our ancestors tell you from their life experience how to keep yourself at the best.  Just FYI: You can discover there nearly 800 remedies and recipes, secrets of joie de vivre, carefully kept “under seven seals,” motivational mottoes, inspirational advice and interesting facts. If you are interested in something mysterious and entertaining, you’ll also find there intriguing superstitions, colorful folk tales, fairy tales, stories and ancient legends that you can read yourself with great interest and read to your children and enrich them. This combination creates perfect balance for readers (including your children) seeking to nourish both body and spirit.

Albert Einstein said once, “If you want your children to be brilliant, tell them fairy tales. If you want them to be very brilliant, tell them even more fairy tales.”

I included in Mama’s Home Remedies plenty of fascinating fairy tales and stories to make you and your children wonder. Together we’ll teach them that good actions always give them strength and inspire the same in others.

Photo: Daisy by Svetlana Konnikova, Copyright 2009;  Photo: Chamomile, courtesy of www.pdclipart.org; Photo: Camomile, courtesy of wpclipart.com (Paul Sherman)

Sourse: Mama’s Home Remedies: Discover Time Tested Secrets of Good Health and the Pleasures of Natural Living by S. Konnikova, MA, AN; chapter.4, page 268, Aurora Publishers, 2008