This next remedy couldn't be simpler. Whenever we get respiratory illnesses, all we do is take a clove of garlic, peel it, and cut off a little slice. Then we take the cut clove and rub the juice over the soles of our feet. Apparently, the things we rub into the soles of our feet are very quickly absorbed into the blood stream, so when we use things like garlic or essential oils, this is one of the first places we use them. When we try the garlic trick early in an illness (within the first day or so of showing symptoms), the duration and severity of the illness goes way down--a 7-10 day cold is totally gone in 2-3 days, at least for us.
One of the best experiences I've had with this was shortly after we brought our new baby home from the NICU. She was born with double pneumonia, and her doctor told us that because she'd had such a serious respiratory illness so early in life, she was likely to have a lot more trouble with such illnesses throughout her childhood. Well, we have 3 other kids (all under age 7), and with that many little kids, it's hard to avoid getting sick for very long. Sure enough, within a few weeks of bringing her home, one of us caught a cold and started sharing it. I was so worried that she'd get it and we'd wind up having to take her in that I preemptively started rubbing garlic on her feet at night. I know she came down with it because she started sounding congested; over the next 3 days I had to suction her nose 4 or 5 times, but on the fourth day, her breathing went totally back to normal. No screaming fits, no fever, no serious difficulty breathing--just a couple more boogers than usual.
Ah garlic, how I love you!
