Swine Flu, Naturally! 3 comments
According to government figures, there have now been over 2,500 reported cases of Swine Flu in the UK! With the WHO now calling it a Pandemic and governments the world over stocking up on anti-viral drugs such as Tamiflu, what are the natural alternatives.
Well, Swine Flu, just like Bird Flu and others are all strains of Influenza, each of differing severity and contagiousness, but nevertheless flu.
Tamiflu has been shown to reduce recovery time by between 1 and 1.5 days if started within 40 hours of the symptoms starting.
Recently there have been three studies using between 6 and 8 grams of vitamin C daily, showing that if taken within 24 hours of the symptoms beginning, this recovery time can be reduced by as many as three days! The anti-viral properties of vitamin C and many other antioxidant nutrients are comparable to many conventional drugs.
For any serious infection we would recommend taking vitamin C to ‘bowel tolerance’. Start with 2 grams (2000mg) every 3 to 4 hours. Some people find Ascorbic Acid (the most common Vit C source) too acidic, in which case I would recommend a combination including Sodium Ascorbate.
Other nutrients that have anti-viral activity and are a great addition to vitamin C include; Selenium (at least 50µg), Zinc (15mg), vitamin A, vitamin E and vitamin D. From a herbal prospective one of the very best anti-viral and health giving products is Mushroom Complex and of course the old favourite Echinacea!
The trick with any infection is not getting it in the first place, so always keep your immune system strong. But if the Swine Flu pandemic really does break out then always keep a stock of vitamin c and other antioxidant near by!
Sources:
Direct Gov UK: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Swineflu/DG_177831
Natural Products: Natural Products Magazine – June ’09 issue
Centre for Disease Control: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/