Friday, September 10, 2010

Frugal tip Friday - for the cold and flu season!


With the colder weather coming (I'm so excited to wear sweaters and drink hot chocolate!) so comes the colds and sore throats along with purchases of Vix, various sore throat sprays, tylenols and aspirins. These over the counter medicines can add up throughout the winter, wouldn't it be great to not have to spend the 40-50$? A few years ago my husband introduced me to something that would change my need for all that! Its called Oil of Oregano. Whether your coming to the city to attend college or your moving here, the cold winters and so many germs can be pretty scary to think about when riding the trains and being around so many people.This stuff has been pretty amazing the past few years, I've only been sick maybe once a year at the most and I ride the subways, the bus and meet lots of people at work.  The trick is to take 2-3 drops once a day when you feel a cold, sore throat or sickness coming on. It will kick it right out!  I remember one time when we were in a health food store at there was a girl selling a food with high amounts of Vitamin C, we let her know that we took oil of oregano during the winter and she let us know that we wouldn't need the Vitamin C if we were taking that stuff! (I do believe in taking Vitamin C in the winters though). There seemed to be this knowledge already that we had just recently learned. Alot of people are using oil of oregano to help their immune systems throughout the winter!

There have been issues with some over the counter medications recently, so this might also be a great alternative to them.

Ingredients in oil of Oregano and what they do from Natural News:

Carvacrol has been proven in studies to be a powerful antimicrobial, so powerful that it can be used to preserve food and render it self-stable. Reseach has shown it to be effective against candida albicans, the aspergillus mold, staphylococcus, campylobacter, klebsiella, e.coli, giardia, pseudomonas, salmonella, and listeria. Carvacrol provides many of the health benefits of oil of oregano .

Thymol is a natural fungicide with antiseptic properties. It is the active ingredient in Listerine mouthwash. Thymol is also an immune system booster and a shield against toxins. It is capable of preventing tissue damage and encouraging healing.
Terpenes is the source of the word turpentine. Terpenes give off a pine scent and are also produced by pine trees. Terpenes have potent antibacterial properties.
Rosmarinic acid is a stronger antioxidant than vitamin E. It prevents free radical damage and is instrumental in preventing atherosclerosis and cancer. Rosmarinic acid has shown to be effective in the treatment of allergic asthma. It reduces fluid build up and swelling during an allergy attack, and is an effective natural antihistamine.
Naringin is the substance that gives grapefruit its bitter taste. It has been shown to inhibit the growth of cancer cells and helps boost the effect of antioxidants.

Oil of oregano also contains a good amount of the vitamin E complex, as well as calcium, magnesium, zinc, iron, potassium, copper, boron, manganese, vitamins A and C, and niacin.

and not only that but:

ScienceDaily (Oct. 11, 2001) — (Washington, DC) – Oil from the common herb oregano may be an effective treatment against dangerous, and sometimes drug-resistant bacteria, a Georgetown researcher has found. Two studies have shown that oregano oil—and, in particular, carvacrol, one of oregano’s chemical components—appear to reduce infection as effectively as traditional antibiotics. These findings were presented at the American College of Nutrition’s annual meeting October 6 and 7 in Orlando, Fla.
*** Pregnant women should not take oregano oil as it is very blood moving.***
Oregano oil can be found at any Whole Foods or other health food store and runs between 7-9$ for a bottle that will last you most of the winter.

Happy Frugal Tip Friday and New Friend Friday!

7 comments:

  1. SO awesome to know.....I hear you...once someone in our house gets sick....it spreads like wildfire....thanks for this great post!!

    Statements in Fashion

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  2. Hi! thanks for sharing this tips. I am a new follower from the Follow me Friday!
    Please stop by my blog if you have some time.

    Have a great weekend!

    Ruth
    http://ruthsimplelife.blogspot.com/

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  3. I have never heard of that before. And yeah, it is starting out here too. It's like you get 2-3 months germ free....oddly enough it revolves around summer! You know when kids are not all concentrated together for 6 hours a day!

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  4. I have a girlfriend who swore by that last year! Thanks for the reminder:)

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  5. This sounds so great! I love using natural things for my family's health and try to avoid over the counter meds as much as possible. I have not heard of this before but will definitely be reading up on it! Our family takes a really good probiotic called Vidazorb to help keep our immune system boosted. It's a chewable that doesn't need refrigerated and their kids line helped our little boy with his severe eczema. Anyway -love your site! Mine is smilinggreenmom.com if you ever want to visit! :)

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  6. I'll check this out at my local natural food store. I am catching a cold right now and all I can think of is "here we go!". Ever since our 3rd child started school, it is like one cold after another around here. Before that, we were those people who never get sick. Thanks for the advice.

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