In North America, cold & flu season typically runs from October to May. Cases usually start to increase in October and peak between December and February.

Regardless of how healthy you are, most of us experience these common illnesses on occasion. As we enter into this season, let's look at the best Homeopathic Remedies to survive and thrive. Let's start by looking at the differences in symptoms so you know which remedies to use.

The Difference Between A Cold & The Flu

The main difference between the 2 is FEVER! With a flu, you often have a fever, and  symptoms are usually more severe and last longer. 

Efficacy Of Homeopathic Treatment For Cold & Flu

While traditional, over the counter medications can mask symptoms, treating a cold or the flu with Homeopathic remedies can support healing by allowing your body to move through the symptoms more quickly and with less intensity. Moving through common illnesses quickly reduces the risk of a simple cold or flu developing into something more complicated.

If you want to explore more research on the effectiveness of Homeopathy, you can find that HERE.

Let's look at the best remedies for each illness.

Top 15 Homeopathic Remedies To Treat A Cold

1. Aconite  - #1 remedy to take at first sign of cold as it works best if given immediately and frequently. You know that little “tell” we all have? For some it’s a tickle in the throat, for others it’s tightness in the chest or a headache. Aconite is excellent for sore throats that come on suddenly after exposure to cold and are accompanied by thirst.
   
   
2. Allium Cepa  - This remedy made from the onion will alleviate symptoms that would normally occur when cutting an onion. Think spasmodic sneezing and runny nose with an irritating, watery discharge. Symptoms are often improved by fresh air. 
   
   
3. Arsenicum Album -  Excellent for those who have frequent colds, sore throats, and chest problems often with burning pain and feelings of weakness, restlessness, and anxiety. The person’s head may feel hot while the rest of the body is cold, and problems can be worse near midnight. The nose often feels stopped up, the conjunctiva is inflamed and runny and there is a great sensitivity to light. The person may sneeze repeatedly, without relief. White, thick, burning mucus may be produced. Burning pains are better by heat (warm water helps a burning sore throat) and the person is thirsty but they take small sips.
   
   
4. Baryta Carbonica - This remedy is indicated for people who frequently catch colds from getting chilled. There could be a runny nose and swollen upper lip, and swollen lymph nodes, tonsils and adenoids are typical symptoms
   
   
5. Belladonna - Always think sudden onset with Belladonna. Excellent for a sore throat with intense pain on the right side along with redness, swelling, and a feeling of constriction. There may be pain when swallowing that is often described as a hot sensation in the throat. This remedy works best if used during the first 24 hours of throat soreness.
   
   
6. Dulcamara - Think of this remedy when a person comes down with a cold after getting wet and chilled, or if colds come on with a change in weather. Often there is a stuffed-up nose with pain in the sinuses. A person who needs this remedy also tends to have allergies. 
   
   
7. Euphrasia - Think eyes with this remedy. Red, watery, irritated eyes, frequent sneezing, and a mild, clear nasal discharge suggests a need for this remedy. The person may cough from irritation and from phlegm collecting in the throat. Symptoms can be worse at night, and the person tends to feel better from eating and lying down. 
   
   
8. Hepar Sulph - This remedy will help with stinging throat pain that may be described as a stick in the throat. The throat pain is usually accompanied by enlarged tonsils and pain may extend to the ears. A person requiring this remedy will generally be better from warm drinks and be very irritable and sensitive to cold, touch, motion, noise, and light.
   
   
9. Kali-Bich - This helps relieve thick, greenish, irritating nasal discharge. The discharge will be long and stringy - almost rope like.
   
   
10. Mercurius Solubilis - A person who needs this remedy is extremely sensitive to temperatures (both heat and cold), and experiences night sweats and drooling during sleep. Swollen lymph nodes and bad breath are other indications. The person’s nose may feel raw, and the tonsils or ears often become infected. Excellent for throat pain accompanied by weakness, red spots and/or pus on the tonsils, as well and very bad breath. There may be a white coating on the tongue. Those needing Mercurius tend to salivate, drool, or perspire, particularly at night.
    
    
11. Nat-Mur - Colds with clear nasal discharge like egg-whites, sneezing, headache, and a diminished sense of taste or smell. The person may develop cold sores around the mouth during a cold, and the lips can be chapped and cracked.
     
12. Phosphorus - A person whose colds go easily to the chest often responds to this remedy. One nostril may be blocked while the other runs. Hoarseness, laryngitis, and nosebleeds are other likely symptoms. The person often is thirsty for cold drinks and feels better from pressure on painful part. There may be a white coating on the tongue. People who need this remedy often feel weak and tired and may be anxious or fearful when ill.  
    
    
13. Phytolacca - For a dark red, purple, or bluish swollen throat accompanied by excessive aching, fever, and pain with swallowing. There may be a shooting pain that extends to the ears and pain at the base of the tongue when protruded. Symptoms are worse with warm drinks and motion.
    
    
14. Pulsatilla - This remedy relieves a cold that has yellowish or green nasal discharge with a dry nose at night that becomes runny during the day with loss of smell and taste. 
    
    
15. Rhus Tox -  Consider this remedy if a cold begins with stiffness and body aches that are made better by warmth and movement, especially symptoms that are brought on during cool damp weather or changes in the weather. Nasal congestion, sore throat that is worse initial swallowing, but relieved by subsequent swallowing and drinking warm liquids. as well as warm liquids.

Top 10 Homeopathic Remedies To Treat The Flu

1. Aconite - This remedy relieves high fevers that come on suddenly and/or violently, especially ones that come on after exposure to intense cold or wind. With Aconite think HOT, DRY FEVER. VIOLENT SUDDEN ONSET. Aconite flus will be restless with a violent, croupy, racking cough with or without oppression, with stitches in chest. Generally, this remedy is most useful if taken within the first 24-48 hours of a cold or flu. Symptoms start suddenly with sneezing, red cheeks (although not as red as Belladonna), burning headache and a dry cough. There will be marked fear (will I ever recover?).  Someone needing this remedy will have a dry mouth, be thirsty for cold drinks, have a dry cough, a dry, hot fever, be intolerant of pain but be mentally alert. They may toss in their sleep and symptoms will often be worse after midnight.
   
   
2. Arsenicum Album - Sudden onset with burning, dryness and copious, watery, excoriating discharge from the nose that burns the upper lip. Often the conjunctiva is inflamed and runny and there is a great sensitivity to light. There may be a burning sensation in the throat accompanied by thirst, chills and restlessness. Violent sneezing with blood-tinged discharge, spasmodic cough with desire to vomit or with vomiting, vomiting with or without diarrhea, vomiting worse after eating or drinking and the patient looks as though they have been sick a week. Patient is weak, exhausted, restless and anxious. Burning pains are better by heat, there is a burning thirst but the patient takes small sips. Worse 12am – 4am.
   
   
3. Baptisia - Rapid onset. Sore all over the body and worse lying as the bed feels too hard. Symptoms are intense with mental confusion (will feel scattered) and dullness of mind. Faces appear puffy and swollen with heavy eyes and a congested look rather than the drooping eyelids of Gelsenium. FOUL smelling breath and mouth.
   
   
4. Belladonna - Sudden onset & hot dry fever (see also aconite), burning heat, dilated pupils, fever worse at 3PM, hallucinations, may want to hit, bite or strike (children may kick or scream), very red strawberry tongue/throat, dry fever, perspiration is absent, upper body is hot – lower body is cool, typically not thirsty-but may ask for lemonade or lemons. Throbbing headache with shooting pains that move upwards. Complaints may come on after a haircut (getting hair wet). Symptoms are worse on the right side, with jarring, noise, heat, sun, after 3pm, drafts on head, light, touch. Symptoms are better in the darkness, silence, bending backwards.
   
   
5. Bryonia - SLOW onset. DRYNESS. Person feels like something has been coming on for a few days. Flushed face, heavy sleep. Bursting/splitting headache always on coughing, on stooping as if all the contents of head would come out through the forehead. There is an aversion to light, particularly sunlight. Mouth and lips are very dry with extreme thirst (they will drink large amounts of cold water) and there may be a dry, hacking cough in which they will hold their chest when they cough. Frequent sneezing, often between coughs and fluent coryza that is watery or greenish. The cough may come on when coming from open air into a warm room and there may be constriction in the chest. They feel better lying in a dark room with eyes closed, lying on the painful part (from pressure) and from cold applications, and they are worse with slightest motion (pain in toenail and it hurts to blink) and noise. They are grumpy and averse to being disturbed and they may feel chilly to touch but with internal heat.
   
   
6. Dulcamara - One of our best remedies in the acute form. Eyes are suffused. Sore throat and cough is painful because of muscular soreness. Flu may have been brought on by damp or cold changes in the weather.
   
   
7. Eupatorium Perfolatium - Main remedy when flu feels like it’s deep in the bones. There is a great soreness and aching of the entire body, hoarseness with roughness of the voice and a hacking cough with great soreness of the chest, larynx and upper respiratory tract. The dry cough shakes the whole body and hurts the head and chest, and as in Bryonia, the patient holds the chest with the hands when they cough. There is a runny nose, sneezing and red eyes, lots of restlessness with constant change of position. There is a great thirst for cold drinks, and drinking may cause vomiting. They are better for sweating.
   
   
8. Gelsenium - Think dull, drowsy and droopy with this remedy. SLOW ONSET. THIRSTLESS. DROOPY APPEARANCE TO FACE. Lethargy (may sleep for 18 hours) and muscular aching, with occipital headache and droopy eyes that feel heavy, often indicate this remedy. Much chilliness, with fever and chills that run up and down the spine, and heat or pressure may be felt in the face and nose. A person who needs Gelsemium often trembles and is shaky or feels extremely dull. This remedy is often helpful for colds that come on in hot weather. They are dull and drowsy and want to be left alone. Soreness of throat, felt at the upper part of left tonsil, that extends across the soft palate, along the left nostril, with a sensation that with every inspiration a stream of scalding water rushed along the nasal passage of that side, the other nostril at the same time being stopped up. There is continuous accumulation of irritating mucus in the throat, a hard, painful cough and shooting pain in the ear. 
   
   
9. Influenzinum - This remedy can be taken once a week or once a month to strengthen the body and increase its resistance to the flu virus. The homeopath J. Clarke suggested “When colds or flus appear in a family, let all those unaffected take Arsenicum 30C 3x a day and let the patients take Influenzinum 30C every hour or 2”.
   
   
10. Oscillococcinum - This is an excellent all round influenza remedy that will often relieve symptoms if taken within the first 48 hrs. Take every 2-3 hours.

Where To Order Remedies

1. Hahnemann Labs
2. Boiron
3. Helios
4. Homeocan
   
   

How To Take Remedies

If you're not sure how to take remedies at home, you can read all the basic guidelines here - How To Take A Homeopathic Remedy

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This is for information only and is not medical advice. For any life threatening condition please see a doctor.