It's the cold and flu season again, and the dreaded lurgy is fast sweeping across the length and breadth of New Zealand. Symptoms of cold, cough or flu, although not life threatening, can be very discomforting. Nothing like a cold or flu to keep you feeling irritable and miserable all day. If you've ever been down with cold, cough or flu you'll agree with me that you would want to try everything in the book to get rid of those pesky symptoms.
Meanwhile, most respiratory tract infections including cold, flu and some coughs are caused by viruses. Taking antibiotics for them won't be of much help, unless for bacterial cough or sinus infections. This is why your doctor would usually suggest you wait such ailments out. Well, waiting for the virus to run its course may take days or even weeks. Hardly what anybody who's down with a common cold or flu wants to hear. On the other hand, non-prescription medications for cold, cough and flu only offer short-lived relief and may not protect you from catching another bout of cold or cough.
Thankfully, nature has provided us with a good number of effective remedies for cold, flu, cough and other seasonal allergies. One of the most effective natural remedies for cold and flu is eucalyptus essential oil. Eucalyptus essential oil, an essential oil extracted from the leaves of the Eucalyptus tree, is a powerful and fast-acting remedy for cold, coughs, flu and other respiratory diseases. Eucalyptus oil is popular in the natural medicine of almost all the cultures around the globe, and is used for the treatment of several diseases.
What Makes Eucalyptus Essential Oil a Powerful Remedy for Cold, Coughs and Flu?
If you're searching for a fast and natural home remedy to get rid of scratchy throat, stuffy nose, dripping nostrils and irritating cough, eucalyptus essential oil is exactly what you need. Indeed, eucalyptus oil is a powerful natural remedy for cold, cough, and flu that everyone should have in your NZ home. To get through winter living your normal life without the misery and discomfort of cold and flu, your bottle of eucalyptus essential oil should be your best friend.
As we all know, prevention is better than cure and so finding a way to stop yourself from catching cold, cough, flu and other similar seasonal ailments is very important. And guess what, eucalyptus essential oil does not only alleviate the symptoms of cold and flu, it also protects you from these pesky winter ailments.
However, is eucalyptus oil really good for cold and flu in New Zealand? Absolutely yes. This concentrated oil contains a number of medicinal chemical constituents that make it an effective home remedy for flu and cough. Chief among these active chemical compounds are eucalyptol, alpha-pinene, and limonene. These compounds possess powerful medicinal properties, and together they help to resolve flu and other seasonal respiratory conditions quickly.
Eucalyptol is the primary active constituent found in eucalyptus essential oil. It's been shown to have anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties which make it effective for treating cold and flu. It actively decongests stuffy chest and nose, and makes breathing easier.
Alpha-pinene also possesses strong antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties. It potentially breaks up mucus buildup in the chest and nostrils, thus relieving congestion. It also reduces aches and pain, and speeds up your recovery during respiratory tract infections.
Limonene, on its own part, has been proven to be effective against destroying viruses that attack the respiratory system. Limonene strengthens your immune system and helps your body fight these viruses off.
How Eucalyptus Essential Oil Cure Cold, Coughs and Flu
Eucalyptus essential oil packs a truckload of benefits to the human body. Let's take a look at the activities and medicinal properties that make eucalyptus a potent remedy for cold, cough, flu and other related ailments.
1. Antimicrobial Activity: Eucalyptus essential oil attacks harmful microbes in your body and stops them right in their tracks. Microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses are responsible for most respiratory ailments. Eucalyptus oil is effective at combating these microorganisms, including fungi. This super essential oil has antiviral, antifungal and antibacterial properties.
2. Anti-inflammatory Activity: Inflammation refers to the tenderness, pain, redness, hotness or swelling you experience when your body is injured or infected. Eucalyptus essential oil reduces inflammation, and this means less aches and pain. It also helps to break a fever naturally.
3. Analgesic Activity: In addition to reducing inflammation, eucalyptus essential oil also has pain-killing properties. Cold and flu normally come with headaches, joint aches and muscle pain. Eucalyptus essential oil gives you a quick and natural relief from these aches and pain.
4. Immune-boosting Activity: This is one of the most powerful benefits of eucalyptus. It improves your immune system by prompting your body to release white blood cells that mop up foreign particles in your body. These white blood cells also stand at alert waiting to take down any microorganism that may want to invade your body. This way you not only get rid of cold, cough and flu infections, you equally stay protected from another attack. With early use of the oil, you may not even get infected at all as the chemical constituents in the oil make sure no flu or cold virus thrives in your body.
5. Mood-enhancing Activity: When cold or flu hits you, it's common for you to feel dour and moody. This feeling can sap your energy and keep you unproductive. The strong and soothing aroma of eucalyptus essential oil will reinvigorate you and uplift your mood. Exactly what you need to pick you up before the chicken soup arrives.
How to Treat Cold, Cough and Flu With Eucalyptus Essential Oil in New Zealand
Who wouldn't want to breeze through the flu season without red eyes and drippy nose. Here's how you can treat cold, cough, flu and other respiratory tract diseases with eucalyptus essential oil in your NZ home.
Obviously, the best time to start using eucalyptus essential oil to ward off cold and flu is right from the start of winter. You know what they say - prevention is better than cure. Research has shown that exposure to the active components of eucalyptus essential oil effectively destroys the viruses and stops them from getting into your body. The next best time to treat cold, cough or flu with essential oil is at the very onset of the infection. Once you begin to notice the first signs that you've caught the bug, run and grab your eucalyptus oil. Nevertheless, you can use eucalyptus essential oil to treat yourself at any stage of the illness.
How you use eucalyptus essential oil to treat these ailments would depend on the particular ailment and the symptoms you're manifesting. For instance, whereas inhalation of the oil will work wonders to unclog blocked nostrils and decongest a chesty cough, rubbing it topically on your joints would work better for easing joint aches and pain.
Inhaling Eucalyptus Essential Oil
Inhaling with a Diffuser
A diffuser is a device that is used to release breathable particles of essential oils into the atmosphere. Diffusers break the essential oil down into tiny molecules and then disperse them into the air for easy inhalation. Using a diffuser to inhale your eucalyptus essential oil is very beneficial as it delivers the oil particles straight to your airways in just the right concentration, thus providing a continuous stream of precious eucalyptus particles for you to breathe in as you want.
A diffuser is also less cumbersome and more convenient to inhale essential oil with, and can be used whether at home, work or in your car. Most diffusers are simple and easy to use.
Check out our array of durable, portable and sleek diffusers to make life easy and stress-free. Just push a button and you'll be enveloped in a soothing armour of protective eucalyptus vapour.
To use eucalyptus essential oil to prevent cold, cough and flu, add about 4-6 drops of the essential oil to 100 ml of water or 6-8 drops to 200 ml of water, depending on the capacity of your diffuser. Relax and inhale the oil for at least 30 minutes. During the cold and flu season you can do this daily as a preventive measure to protect yourself and family members from catching the viruses.
Similarly, if you were exposed to someone who's ill or maybe you're already feeling the early signs of the infection, diffuse the oil as prescribed above and inhale for about an hour. This will help to alleviate the symptoms as well as weaken and clear out the viruses off your body.
Inhalation is best done at bedtime. Though you can inhale eucalyptus essential oil at any time of the day.
Direct Steam Inhalation
Also, you can add 2-3 drops of eucalyptus essential oil into a bowl of steaming hot water. Throw a large towel over your head, inhale the steam coming off the bowl for 5-8 minutes. Repeat every morning and night, until the infection lifts. Be careful not to add more than 2 or 3 drops so that you don't irritate your eyes, nostrils or throat.
Take a Warm Bath
Adding eucalyptus essential oil to your bath provides you with the same benefits just as in the inhalation methods described above. It allows you to get a deep relief from the cold or flu symptoms by inhaling the oil, in addition to the soothing caress of a warm bath. Mix about 3-5 drops of eucalyptus oil with a tablespoon (15ml) of carrier oil first and add to your bath. Soak yourself in it for about 15 to 30 minutes.
Using a Handkerchief
If you're away from home or on transit, you can use a handkerchief or tissue paper to inhale your eucalyptus essential oil. Place a drop or two of the oil on your handkerchief or tissue paper and sniff from time to time. You can even tuck the kerchief around the collar or neckline of your shirt/blouse for easy inhalation.
Applying Eucalyptus Essential Oil for Cold, Coughs and Flu Topically
Furthermore, to enhance the benefits of eucalyptus oil and get fast relief from cold and flu distressful symptoms you may want to rub the oil directly to your skin. This is particularly good for unclogging blocked nose and decongested chest, getting a dry cough to melt, soothing aches and pain, and for reducing fever.
This method is just like applying a vapour rub on your skin. However, keep in mind that essential oils are highly concentrated and need to be diluted in a carrier oil before directly applying them to your skin. Mix 3-5 drops of eucalyptus essential oil in a tablespoon (15ml) of carrier oil like coconut, sweet almond or jojoba oil. Apply to your chest and back, ridge of your nose, and your neck. You can also apply the oil to your forehead or temples to ease a headache, or to your joints to alleviate aches and pain.
Apply as a Compress
A hot or cold compress of eucalyptus essential oil can help to alleviate symptoms of cold and flu. Add 2 to 3 drops of eucalyptus essential oil to a bowl of warm water, and use a small towel or a washcloth to mop your face, chest, neck and back. This is perfect for decongesting your nose and chest, and relieving aches.
Use lukewarm water instead of warm water for a cold compress which can be used to soothe pain and reduce fevers.
Eucalyptus Essential Oil Disinfectant for Cold, Coughs and Flu
Since these ailments are airborne and it's impossible to avoid them totally, the best you can do is to make sure that your home, office space, etc is properly disinfected. Cold, cough and flu viruses don't survive when they come in contact with eucalyptus essential oil, as the oil has properties that kill the viruses. A DIY eucalyptus spray of 15-20 drops of eucalyptus essential oil in about 500 ml of clean water is a potent disinfectant against cold and flu. Spray around your home or work space to prevent these ailments.
Best Essential Oil Blends for Cold, Coughs and Flu
Better still, mix some essential oils good for cold, cough and flu for a powerful blend that enhances your speedy bounce-back from a cold, cough or flu attack.
We recommend our favourite blend - a tested and trusted fast-acting remedy for common cold, coughs and flu. It's a simple blend, but very powerful for relieving symptoms of cold, coughs, flu and other respiratory conditions.
Here's the recipe to make you breathe easy, sleep easy and feel on top of the world during those dreary winter months.
2 drops eucalyptus
2 drops tea tree
2 drops sweet orange
Mix together in a bottle, and use as recommended above.
Another potent essential oils blend we confidently recommend for cold, cough and flu is a simple mix of eucalyptus and peppermint essential oils. Just combine:
5 drops eucalyptus
5 drops peppermint
Inhale with a diffuser preferably, or use any of the other inhalation methods mentioned above.
Your medicine cabinet is incomplete without eucalyptus essential oil, especially during the winter months in New Zealand. Why go through winter worrying about cold and flu when your relief is just a whiff away. Grab a bottle of this essential home remedy for cold, coughs and flu here.
It's important to note that though eucalyptus essential oil is generally considered safe for use, it's important to use it as recommended. Always dilute in a carrier oil before applying topically to avoid skin irritation. Also, eucalyptus essential oil is not to be ingested, and should be kept out of reach for children.
