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Yes! Elderberry fights the flu!

1/22/2013

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So I got the flu this year. Fortunately, I had elderberry lozenges on hand.  Fever, aches and chills were gone within an hour, and by day 3 I was able to go back to work for half a day. Yes, elderberry is good stuff.  Read the rest of this entry for details and a link to a study detailing the effectiveness of elderberry in lessening flu symptoms. 

These are the lozenges I used. I now have 4 packs on my shelf!
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Zinc Elderberry Lozenges Raspberry - 14 - Lozenge
I’m not in the habit of catching the flu. It’s a horribly miserable sickness that makes you think you’re dying as you wish for a bullet in the head.  Until 2 weeks ago, I had only had the flu once in my adult life (which was, I might add, the year following my first – and only – flu shot).  Symptoms are high fever, slight nausea, headache, muscle aches, chills, fever and dry cough.  These symptoms last for 5 – 10 days.  

Two weeks ago I woke up with a dry cough.  By evening, I was experiencing an extreme headache, chills, aches, high fever, nausea – the works!  I tossed and turned and whined and bathed (a retreat which feels good at the time but always ends in higher fever and more misery).  I finally remembered that I had bought some Quantum Elderberry Lozenges at the health food store a few weeks earlier just in case my husband or I contracted an evil germ during the cold and flu season.

I drink a tea for colds that contains elderberry, so I know the power of elderberry in fighting off sickness, but I had never had the opportunity to test it against the flu. 

At 4:30 a.m. I took one lozenge and let it dissolve in my mouth as I tossed and turned and ached and whined.  By 5:30 a.m. I noticed my aches were 50% better.  I was sweating; my fever was breaking.  When I awoke at 10:30 a.m., I felt okay except for the headache and weakness. I giggled and laughed and cut up with my husband. I got up and ate. It was a wonderful little miracle of nature.

I took the elderberry lozenges throughout the day and made my husband eat them as well to keep him from getting sick (he never did). I lounged and rested for two days and on the third day I was back at work for half a day. I still had some weakness and fatigue, but this was NOTHING compared to the flu I had experienced years before.

So, that’s my experience with elderberry as a flu remedy.  I have since heard that Dr. Oz has promoted it on his show. I cannot recommend this little natural remedy enough. 

Here’s a link to a study that concludes, “Elderberry extract seems to offer an efficient, safe and cost-effective treatment for influenza.”  According to the study, “Symptoms were relieved on average 4 days earlier and use of rescue medication was significantly less in those receiving elderberry extract compared with placebo.”

There are many forms of elderberry. I know one of the more popular ones is the syrup. The elderberry with zinc lozenges worked wonders for me, and I recommend keeping these on hand and taking at the first sign of sickness. 

This flu season has been a doozy, but you don’t have suffer! 

Stay well and stay natural!

Elisabeth

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    Elisabeth

    Who is SHE?

    I'm just a girl who loves the abstract, the colorful, the mysterious and the impossible.
      
    My favorite thing in this life is having a fella with whom I can be unashamedly gross and silly and in the next moment discuss the philosophy and physics of the universe. 

    I also love pumpkins, the color orange, trees, autumn leaves, the writings of Soren Kierkegaard, creative endeavors of all kinds, and the beauty, wonder & healing power of nature. 


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