Catching a cold is literally a headache.

Starting with severe pressure on the temples and an aching throat are warning signs. They signal that you’re about to get a nasty cold that won’t leave you for several days. Steaming pots of water, doses of Vitamin C and hot drinks follow, along with a box of tissues that never leave your side. Catching a cold is not a pleasant experience, but is also something we all have to endure from time to time.  

While a cold isn’t always serious enough to require a visit to your GP, no one like to catch one. The good news is that there are many home remedies we can use to fight the common cold and boost our immunity it against catching another one. Sri Lankan kitchen are often packed with all the right ingredients you’ll need to fight the cold from the comfort of your home. Solet’s explore some of these remedies:

1. Honey & Lemon

Try mixing two tablespoons of bee’s honey with the juice of one lemon. Add a sprinkle of salt and black pepper into the concoction and drink. Honey and lemon juice work like a soothing balm on your throat, so we highly recommend having it at least three times a day. Adding honey and lemon juice into a hot cup of plain tea can also work wonders.

2. Balm & Steam

Everyone knows that bending your head over a hot pot of water opens up your pores and help loosen phlegm. Adding a dollop of Ayurvedic balm to the hot water can work even better so we highly recommend doing this at least once a day. Use Nivaran pain relieving balm down your chest, around your neck and small portions near your nose before sleeping can also help you wake up feeling better.

3. Humidity and Showers

We call a cold a cold because it thrives in damp and cold environments, but this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have a shower. Staying clean is a necessary part of keeping germs away, so try having a warm or hot water shower once a day because the heat of the water can also help by loosening your sinuses and relieving pain. Just remember to towel dry well after the shower and in general try to keep your bedroom humid. Try closing large windows and reducing your ceiling fan speed.

4. Five Herb Elixir 

When all is said and done, there’s nothing quite like a traditional Sri Lankan paspanguwa to drive a cold away. Always keeping a few sachets of Nivaran Paspanguwa in stock because paspanguwa is the strongest collection of Ayurvedic herbs especially created to fight colds and flu. Like its name suggests, a Paspanguwa contains five key herbs: Ginger, Pathpadagam, Katuwalbatu, Veniwalgata and Coriander. Lessor known is the fact that several other minor herbs are also infused into these 5 major ingredientsincluding. Thippili, Black Pepper and Pawatta. Collectively, you get one massive dose of all-natural medicine when you’re down with the flu.