One symptom of a bad cold is a deep cough that won't go away. Your doctor's antibiotics can deal with the phlegm, but the suppressants and throat lozenges may not do much for that cough. Head to the kitchen and make a cough remedy with garlic and honey.
Old Recipes
Simple cough-relief remedy recipes made with garlic and honey date back centuries. One example specifies 2 tsp. honey with a pinch of black or white ground pepper, to be taken three times a day. Another advises mixing a crushed clove of garlic into 1 tsp. honey, then adding 1 tbsp. lemon juice or vinegar. For something more substantial to drink, there's also ginger tea spiked with garlic and honey: boil together a cup of water, 2 tsp. ginger, 1/2 lemon and 1 garlic clove, before adding 2 tsp. honey. All these sound like old wives' tales, but recent medical research have confirmed that they make sense.
Honey
Science Daily reports that Canadian researchers from the University of Ottawa have discovered honey's effectiveness in killing bacteria responsible for chronic sinusitis. It's even more effective than common antibiotics. MayoClinic.com also confirms that honey works on calming coughs caused by respiratory tract infections, especially when taken at night to reduce coughing fits. Take 2 tsp. of honey at bedtime. However, don't give honey to children under the age of 18 months, to avoid causing infant botulism.
Garlic
The University of Maryland's Medical Center says garlic can also help prevent and treat colds. A 2001 U.K. study by Peter Josling of the Garlic Centre in East Sussex gave either a placebo or garlic supplements for 12 weeks to 150 respondents. Those who had taken garlic developed fewer colds during the winter months, from November to February, than those who did not.
BBC News also interviewed Professor Ron Eccles of the Common Cold Centre at Cardiff University regarding his opinion on the same study. According to Professor Eccles, the chemical allicin present in garlic as responsible for fighting the common cold virus. Garlic allicin supplements have even been proven effective against MRSA or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a drug-resistant form of bacteria which commonly finds its way through the nostrils.
Extra Tips
There's no established "safe" honey dosage for any adult, whether it's imbibed through the mouth or applied on the skin. MayoClinic.com does mention that adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus and hypertension or high blood pressure have been safely tested with solutions of 1 to 3 oz. of honey for every cup of water.
If you hate the taste or smell of garlic, take commercially-prepared garlic supplements. Or, if you must still use that fresh garlic in your kitchen, take the garlic-honey cold remedy with a sip of milk. BBC News Health reports of a 2010 study published in the "Journal of Food Science" in which scientists proved the water and fat in milk reduces the smelly effects of garlic.
