Get Rid of Colds thanks to Strong Immunity

A popular saying goes that having an untreated runny nose lasts seven days, a treated one a week. Common cold can be a nice annoyance. A stuffy nose and cough are not important enough for us to be lying in bed and drinking tea. So, we leave common cold untreated, and this is why it sometimes turns into a flu. The best advice, therefore, is to never catch common cold, and it might be easier than you think :-).

Strong Immunity is the Key

We hear it today and every day from all sides – you need to have a strong immunity. And with immunity, it is just like with sports, if you want to stay in good shape, you have to work on it continuously all year round and in smaller doses. In the same way, it will be beneficial for your immunity if you think about it even when it is not a flu season. It probably won't surprise anyone that such care will arm your body against diseases incomparably better than sudden effort to stock up on vitamins as soon as the sleet season begins. So, how to implement the right habits enhancing good immunity as easily as possible into everyday life?

• Sleep so that you are truly rested

Sleeping 12 hours a day is superfluous indeed, but 6 hours is too little. In order for the body to function properly, it needs to be rested and given time to regenerate. Especially in colder weather, allowing the body to get overtired really does not do any good. If you feel like you simply cannot afford to sleep 8 hours a day, consider whether it is possible to limit or eliminate any activity from the remaining 16 hours.

Eight hours of sleep is definitely not a luxury, but rather a necessity for each one of us. Thanks to longer sleep, you will be less emotionally unstable, more focused, rested, and at the same time less prone to diseases of all kinds. The latest scientific discoveries in the world of sleep, confirming just how important it is to get 8 hours of regular sleep a day, are beautifully written up in a book called Why We Sleep by scientist and professor Matthew Walker.

• Get plenty of exercise

The second crucial aspect of a well-functioning immune system is to move enough. I am sure we are all familiar with the well-established phrase, "By motion to health", but are we following it? Okay, so maybe you have already found out that running or going to the gym is not for you. But these are little things that add up in the end.

How about getting off one stop earlier on your way home from work and walking? Take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalators. Every morning, find 5 - 10 minutes to stretch. Instead of going by car, take public transport to work (and walk to the station :-). You can also make walks with your dog longer, or simply take a stroll; an intensive stroll three times a week is enough. You may even find a regular new weekly activity such as practicing yoga or swimming, physically active rest in the garden or in the park also counts. It is important that you enjoy the chosen activity, then you will look forward to it and its benefits will also extend to your psyche.

• Drink water, eat when you are hungry – mostly vegetables

TAll of us probably know that we should drink enough water. But how to do that? There are some tricks. Start your day by drinking a glass of water. It is the easiest way, because the body is dehydrated in the morning, it is thirsty, so it receiver water readily, and in addition, this way you can easily create a ritual that you will do over time without thinking. Another factor is, as the first thing in the morning, prepare water where you spend time during the day. Not just a glass of water that you drink quickly, but a whole bottle or carafe.

Food is also related to water. Fruits and vegetables also contain water, some less and some more. Make an effort to eat so that your plate is colourful and not just a pasta with sauce or dumplings with meat. We agree that in autumn and especially in winter, it is increasingly difficult to eat fresh vegetables. If you just do not feel like it, cook it. The more different ways, the better.

You can prepare root vegetables (beetroot, parsley root, carrot, celery...) baked in the oven as a side dish. You can also try celery or pumpkin puree instead of mashed potatoes or dumplings. Also try steamed beans or broccoli. If you eat vegetables alone, be sure to add yoghurt dip and roasted seeds or nuts to supplement proteins and fat. Vegetables alone do not provide your body with all the nutrients it needs. After all, we are omnivores, and we need a wide variety of foods in our life. And do not forget, eat when you are hungry! Listen to your body :-)

• Don't forget bee products

As a beekeeper who hardly suffers from colds and illnesses, even though I walk barefoot most of the year, I of course have to recommend bee products to you. I know that a common recommendation is to add honey to one´s tea when one has a cold. Of course, this does not do any harm, but to save your body from the flu when you get sick, no, it is not that simple, of course. In the body, everything is interconnected, and building a strong immunity is a long-term process.

Honey is rich in enzymes (substances that play an important role in restoring the immune system) and vitamins (primarily provitamin A, vitamins of group B, C, D, H, K, P), minerals and trace elements. Antibacterial activity is also characteristic of honey. Our bodies are very good at digesting and utilizing all the substances in honey.^[1] A teaspoon of honey a day is administered to strengthen the immune system, preferably in the morning about 20-30 minutes before a meal or in the evening before bed.^[2] You can learn more about honey and its use in the article What actually is honey?

By enriching honey with propolis (e.g., adding a few drops of propolis tincture), its antibacterial activity is further enhanced.^[3] Propolis is a natural, harmoniously balanced substance that is characterized by antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, and antiparasitic effects. It is also distinguished by significant antibiotic and immunostimulatory effects.^[4] It is used, among other things, to strengthen the immune system.^[5] To learn more about propolis and its use, read the article What is propolis?. We summarized the scientifically proven effects of propolis on the immune system in this article.

I mainly use honey and propolis for my immunity (this is the absolute basis for me), but other bee products also positively affect immunity. I will use the words of the Spanish apitherapist Dr. Perez Gomez, who says that honey is the energy we need, bee pollen basic building blocks of our health, royal jelly a source of vitality, and propolis a regulator of immunity, which it can bring to the right level. Propolis has anti-infectious properties for bees, humans, and other animals (which are also immune to infection because of the presence of propolis in nature).^[6]

You have certainly already come across many excellent herbs pickled in honey or other similarly preventively beneficial substances. Such sea buckthorn, ginger or ginseng in honey are very good combinations, which will provide your body with much that it needs to successfully cope with the period from autumn to spring in good health. In addition, they are ideal as a snack for work, which you can keep in your desk drawer for times when you have no energy or to flavour yoghurts.

• Harden yourselves

A bonus activity for the immune connoisseurs is hardening. It seems to me that in our country its importance has recently been emphasized again and it is not only talked about in connection with New Year's swimming in the freezing Vltava. The most important thing is day-to-day regularity, the effects will show in about a month. Hardening is a continuous activity – if you interrupt hardening because of a business trip, illness or laziness, you need to go back to the very beginning, or at least take a step back. Start slowly, gently and increase the intensity over time.

Goodies from Natural Pharmacy Boosting Immunity

If, like us, you are more in favour of prevention than cure and of tiny little steps towards health than two fever-reducing drugs in the palm of your hand, test our favourite recipes. I believe that you will find your own favourites among them which will become an irreplaceable part of your "menu" from autumn to spring and maybe even from spring to autumn :-). In the yellow box next to each recipe, you will find an indicative period ideal for its preparation, which may be linked to the time of collection of ingredients.

Ginger Syrup with Lemon and Honey

An exceptionally delicious syrup made from the very superfoods that will help you overcome the autumn cold, the winter flu, warm your body beautifully and caress your soul. It is our most favourite recipe; we try to always have honey and ginger syrup in the fridge.

The preparation of the syrup is very easy, its flavour is excellent and its effects on health are priceless. We recommend using small doses throughout autumn and winter.
The recipe for ginger syrup with honey ca be found here

Spruce Shoots in Honey

The beneficial effects of conifers on the human body have been known for centuries. Spruce shoots, thanks to their composition rich in vitamin C, essential oils, resins, and flavonoids, have antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties. They enhance the immune system, have a beneficial effect on the respiratory tract and help alleviate the symptoms of colds and flu. In addition, they can enrich the menu with their pleasantly refreshing taste.

There's nothing easier than taking a nice walk in the spring, pickling the shoots, and in the autumn, you will have your honey-sweetened syrup from spruce shoots you can use for colds and for prevention during the winter months.

The right time to pick them up may vary depending on the amount of sunshine and spring temperatures. Always pick up only young shoots that are beautifully green and still have fine needles, the shoots should not be longer than about 5 cm. For harvesting, ideally choose a sunny day and pick up only in places where you can be sure that the trees have not been chemically treated. Also avoid trees along roads. Take only a few shoots from each branch so that the spruce can continue to grow and store the collected shoots in something breathable so that they do not become steamy.

Rinse the spruce shoots and let them dry. Prepare honey and an empty jar in which you will prepare the syrup. Fill the jar about half to three-quarters full with spruce shoots and carefully cover them with honey. You can choose the number of spruce shoots in honey as you like, but in this case the rule "the more, the better" usually applies. The more shoots, the stronger the resulting syrup will be. Store at room temperature and let it rest for 3 months. For more convenient use, you can strain the syrup afterwards, but it is not necessary.

Elderflower Syrup with Honey

Elderflower syrup is certainly one of the most well-beknown. And the effects of elder flowers are also widely known, for which they have been used since ancient times to strengthen immunity, but also in the treatment of colds, flu and other respiratory diseases. In addition to all these benefits, elderflower syrup also tastes wonderful. And especially our proven healthier variant, in which we have replaced sugar with honey and prepare the syrup without cooking, so that it retains the maximum of beneficial substances.

It is easy to prepare, and you will enjoy a beautiful spring day when you pick the elder flowers, since they need to be picked on a sunny day. Finished elderflower syrup is sure to taste good even to children, it is perfect as a base for fabulous refreshing lemonade on summer days, in winter you just need to pour it with warm water and enjoy a quick, healthy and delicious tea. You can also use it in various desserts, to flavour drinks, porridges, smoothies, quark, yoghurt, or maybe an ice cream sundae.

For elderflower syrup with honey, you need:

• about 30 elderflowers (you can improve the syrup with a few blossoms of rosehip, deadnettle, daisy, linden, dandelion, or lemon balm or mint leaves)
• 2-3 lemons chemically untreated
• 2 litres of boiled and cooled water
• 1,5 kg of honey from your favourite beekeeper
• syrup bottles, rinsed with boiling water (including lids)
• cloth for straining

To pick up elderflowers, equip yourself with scissors and handle the flowers gently, choose the fully developed, healthy ones (and not inhabited by insects) and carefully store them preferably in a basket or sufficiently large canvas bags. Along the way, you can also collect blossoms of other plants mentioned above that you encounter or have in your garden. Process the flowers immediately after collection. Of rosehip, only use petals, of daisy, just blossoms; dandelions you can use whole, just remove any beetles. If possible, do not rinse elderflowers or shake them out unnecessarily, so that you do not lose the aromatic pollen, which gives the syrup an unmistakable flavour and beneficial substances. Just carefully remove the stems, which are bitter and could spoil your product. If you have the ingredients ready, you can start preparing the syrup:

Place elderflowers in a large pot or bowl (we recommend a wider and lower one, the flowers float and spread better in water) and cover with completely cooled boiled water. Add blossoms of other plants and thinly sliced lemons. Leave everything covered for 24-48 hours to infuse in the dark and cold.

Then strain the mixture (squeeze thoroughly) and start to heat the resulting infusion slightly, while mixing in honey. Water should never be boiled, rather it should only be warmed up a little - its temperature should be no more than 40 °C. Stir until the honey is completely dissolved.

Pour the still warm syrup into prepared bottles, which have been rinsed with boiling water, seal well and leave them upside down to cool. We filled exactly 12 0.25-litre bottles with this batch. This healthy and fragrant delicacy will last up to 6 months in a cool cellar or refrigerator.

Golden Milk - a Healthy Drink Made from Turmeric (Curcuma)

If you want to indulge your body with something healthy indeed, try golden turmeric milk. The preparation of Golden Milk is easy, and the result is a wonderful delicacy that even children will enjoy.

The main ingredient of Golden Milk is deep yellow turmeric, thanks to whose golden colour the drink got its beautiful name. Turmeric (curcuma) contains a powerful antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and anti-cancer curcumin, which has dozens of medicinal effects.

The most important ones include boosting the immune system, regulating cholesterol levels, improving digestion, detoxifying the liver, or regulating digestion. In Asian countries, curcumin has been known for centuries and ranked among the "medicines" they have used for various ailments.
The recipe for Golden Milk can be found here

Rosehip in Honey

Rosehip tea is a well-known and indispensable helper for everyone who wants to protect themselves from colds. Rosehip also has a beneficial effect on the health of the kidneys and urinary tract, so it is ideal if you are more prone to these types of problems. Rosehips contain a high proportion of vitamin C, A and B vitamins. In addition to tea, there is another way to use the power of rosehips - to put them in honey and thus have a delicious strengthening aid for the winter months at hand.

Go out on a sunny day to pick up rosehips with a basket or a paper or cloth bag to prevent them from getting steamy. At home, rinse the rosehips and let them dry. Weigh out the same amount of honey according to the weight of the picked rosehips. Now, you have two options:

• A gentler and less labour-intensive option, also suitable for softer rosehips: blend the rosehips (if necessary, you can add a little water), strain through a fine sieve and stir the resulting puree into honey.
• A "biting" and more laborious option, suitable for firm rosehips: clean the rosehips, cut them open and remove the seeds and hairs; then you can (but don't have to) cut them into smaller pieces and mix them with honey. This option requires a little patience, but it is definitely worth a try.

Leave the finished mixture in a closed jar to rest in the refrigerator for at least 2 weeks. Rosehips will soften and fuse wonderfully with honey. The resulting rosehip syrup is useful not only for the first symptoms of a cold, but also as prevention.

Sea Buckthorn Marmalade with Honey

Sea buckthorn in combination with honey creates an excellent sweet and sour delicacy, which will guide you through autumn and winter days. Sea Buckthorn Marmalade with Honey can be enjoyed on baked goods, in yoghurt, muesli, or simply on a spoon whenever you need a boost.

In determining the right time to harvest sea buckthorn, you will be at an advantage if you know its variety, as the ripening time can vary among them. Harvest fully ripe fruits having the characteristic orange colour.

For sea buckthorn marmalade with honey, you will need 350 g of honey per 1 kg of fruit, 50 - 100 ml of water, gelling agent preferably 3:1 and a spoonful of vanilla sugar.

Cover the cleaned sea buckthorn fruits with water (start with a small amount, add as needed) and bring to a boil in a larger pot. When the fruits start to crack, you can pass them through a strainer with larger meshes, but we recommend leaving the skins alone, as they are rich in vitamins. Mix sugar with the gelling agent and pour the mixture into the hot fruit, cook for 5 minutes. Test for the right consistency by placing one teaspoon of the marmalade on a plate and letting it cool completely. Pour over the hot mixture and mix it with honey, and pour into boiled jars. When you drip the neck of a jar, always clean it thoroughly so that the marmalade does not start to spoil. Close the jars, turn them upside down and let them cool.
More recipes with sea buckthorn can be found here

Try Betaglucan

You have probably already heard of beta-glucans, natural substances that are increasingly being talked about in connection with strengthening the immune system. These polysaccharides, which are found in cereals, mushrooms, and some plants, have the ability to stimulate immune cells and support the body's defences, thus contributing to a better response of the body to infections and inflammation. Thanks to their positive effects on the immune system, beta-glucans rank among the greatest natural immunostimulants. By including foods rich in beta-glucans to your diet, you can support the body's natural defences and thus strengthen your health, especially during the period when we are more prone to colds and viroses.

Beta-glucan from oyster mushrooms of the highest quality in Czech honey can be found in our offer under the name Apiglucan. The combination of honey and beta-glucan is a great nutritional supplement for enhancing the immune system. Apiglucan is suitable for everyone who struggles with weakened immunity and bacterial or viral inflammation in the winter. It helps cope with angina, flu, and colds. In winter months, we tackle with general fatigue and a greater burden on the body, which Apiglucan can also cope well with.

In the treatment during influenza epidemics, we recommend its use in combination with vitamin C to achieve preventive protection of the body and increased activity of the immune system. What´s more, tea with honey and lemon tastes really good.

Listen to Your Body

And finally, it is important not to forget that illness should be a signal for us to stop and listen to our body, which tells us that it is missing something. You may have been giving more priority to your work recently, or you may have been overwhelmed by other responsibilities and forgotten about yourself - and that may happen. But it is important to realize this and to correct this imbalance with a kind attitude towards your body. As you recover, take some time to think about what you can improve and give yourself the care you deserve.

Autumn Boost - Natural Support for the Autumn Season

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Buckthorn in honey

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Propolis in honey

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Ginger in honey

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[1] Czech publication: Štefan Demeter, Ing., CSc.: Apiterapie: Léčení včelími produkty; Published by Jaroslav Čadra, Olomouc, 2021, pp. 16, 17.

[2] Czech publication: Štefan Demeter, Ing., CSc.: Apiterapie: Léčení včelími produkty; Published by Jaroslav Čadra, Olomouc, 2021, p. 24.

[3] Zdeněk Klíma, MVDr.: Terapeutické využití potencovaného medu při léčbě ran (Therapeutic Use of Potentiated Honey in Wound Treatment). Lecture; Kdyně: International Apitherapeutic Conference, October 29, 2017

[4] Czech publication: Štefan Demeter, Ing., CSc.: Apiterapie: Léčení včelími produkty; Published by Jaroslav Čadra, Olomouc, 2021, p. 84

[5] Czech publication: Štefan Demeter, Ing., CSc.: Apiterapie: Léčení včelími produkty; Published by Jaroslav Čadra, Olomouc, 2021, p. 87

[6] Pedro Pérez Gómez, apiterapeut: Vztah mezi akupunturou a včelími žihadly (The Relationship Between Acupuncture and Bee Stings). Lecture; Kdyně: International Apitherapeutic Conference, October 28, 2017