We remain hopeful there will soon be a vaccine and medications to battle COVID-19, but in the meantime there are some nutritional options and dietary choices we can make to boost our immune systems.
Nutritional Physician Dr. Cass Ingram says we should be considering what he calls a pandemic pantry.
One study Ingram mentions tested five universal natural germicides. “Oregano is the most powerful, then sage, cumin of all things. Cumin we took the oil out of the seed. Cinnamon, the oil not the powder. And, bay leaf. When was the last time you saw a bay leaf go moldy,” said Ingram. Nine essential pantry ingredients Ingram suggestscan be found below.
“These proven, natural virus killers come as close to stopping viruses in their tracks as Mother Nature can get,” Ingram, author of Natural Cures for Killer Germs. “They’re part of the arsenal of germ-busting, health-promoting natural foods, herbs, and spices that should be in everyone’s ‘Pandemic Pantry’.
Ingram says herbal medicines and things like vitamin C and zinc also stimulate or strengthen the immune response. “Some of these natural herbs actually kill viruses in test tubes, and in vitro and even in human.”
Ingram’s list and the full interview below.
1. ELDERBERRY
The common black elderberry has long been used to reduce the length and severity of flu symptoms. Elderberry extract binds to the tiny spikes on a virus protein that are used to pierce and invade healthy cells and destroys them so that the virus is ineffective.
2. ECHINACEA
The herb Echinacea is supportive of the immune system and has a direct anti-viral action against colds and viral bronchitis. Preparations that include both the roots and the flowering tops are the most effective at helping the body resist the viruses.
3. GARLIC
Garlic has been prized for its medicinal properties for thousands of years. The compounds allicin and alliin are responsible for this common plant’s reputation as a triple threat. Garlic is anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal and it is especially effective against viruses if chewed raw.
4. GREEN TEA
Green tea contains a group of flavonoids called catechins, which appear to inhibit viral infections by blocking the enzymes that allow it to reproduce.
5. LICORICE
Licorice contains a substance called glycyrrhizin that reduces the replication of viruses and halts their ability to penetrate and replicate inside healthy cells.
6. OLIVE LEAF
The leaves of olive trees contain elenoic acid and calcium elonate, substances which block the production of enzymes that allow viruses to replicate.
7. PAU D’ARCO
Pau d’arco is an Amazon tree with an inner bark that can treat colds and influenza by inhibiting virus replication by damaging their DNA and RNA.
8. ST JOHN’S WORT
St John’s Wort is well-known for its ability to treat depression and neuralgia but it also has potent antiviral chemicals that proactively fight off viruses that thrive by imitating existing body cells through “cloaking”, like Herpes, HIV and Hepatitis C.
9. OREGANO
A powerful antiviral, oil from wild oregano plants has been shown capable of virtually dissolving viruses, shattering them without harming human tissues. Oregano and its active ingredient, carvacrol, have been shown effective at inactivating not only viruses but a wide array of germs, bacteria, fungi, and yeast.
Dr. Cass Ingram is a nutritional physician who received a B.S. in biology and chemistry from the University of Northern Iowa (1979) and a D.O. from the University of Osteopathic Medicine and Health Sciences in Des Moines, IA (1984). He is one of North America's leading experts on the health benefits and disease fighting properties of wild medicinal spice extracts.
,quality(10),blur(50))