On Monday, February 5th, 2018, The Center for Disease Control released the latest flu statistics and said “the peak is still to come.” At that time the influenza activity was widespread in 48 states and “was increasing overall.” I know all of my friends have been sick and each one has had second attacks and even third attacks of the virus. I don’t know how I’ve escaped it, but I am not letting up with my preventive measures. Today let’s talk elderberries.
The dried berries of the Sambucis Nigra plant (elderberries) are naturally high in immune-boosting compounds that are specifically shown to help beat the cold and flu more quickly. It is packed with antioxidants, fights bacteria and virus, and even helps with allergies and sinus problems. It has also been used for arthritis. Several studies have indicated that this centuries-old folk remedy did in fact relieve flu symptoms. One study concluded, “Elderberry extract seems to offer an efficient, safe and cost-effective treatment for influenza. These findings need to be confirmed in a larger study.”
The most commonly used remedy is the simple elderberry syrup. You can find the commercial products in the drug store, online such as Amazon and many other stores. I urge you to purchase a good elderberry syrup or to make your own with the dried berries and begin taking it daily for the rest of the flu season.
If you are a gardener, try growing elderberries and make all kinds of wonderful home remedies with the berries. Use twice the amount of fresh berries for the syrup. Garden.org has a wonderful post on growing elderberries . Wellness Mama has a great post on How To Use Elderberry Herb as a Natural Remedy.
Today’s recipe includes dried elderberries, fresh ginger, cinnamon and raw local honey. Each adds to the potency of the syrup as well as its good taste. Why make your own? 1. How much elderberry is put in a commercial product? Be sure and read the labels and compare. 2. At $48 for 16 oz. of syrup it’s not cheap. You can buy 1 lb. of Frontier organic dried elderberries for about $42.00. That makes 4 batches.
Please note that I’ve included raw honey in the recipe as it has its own benefits for the body and tastes great. If you have children under the age of 2, do not give them this syrup with honey. Make a syrup with organic sugar for young children. Raw honey should not be given to children under 2.
If you catch the flu, see your doctor as soon as possible. There have been too many deaths from this nasty bug this winter. See your physician, tell him your symptoms and the home remedies you’re using.
Elderberry Syrup
Ingredients
- 4 slices fresh ginger (or 2 tablespoons dried ginger root)
- 1 cup dried organic elderberries or 2 cups fresh elderberries
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1/2 fresh organic lemon and its juice
- 6 whole cloves
- 4 cups filtered water
- 1 cup raw local honey
Directions
- Put all ingredients except honey in saucepan
- Bring to a boil
- Lower heat to simmer for 45 minutes to an hour
- Fluid should reduce by 1/2
- Remove from heat
- Let cool to warm to less than 110°F (43°C)
- Mash berries with a fork to get all juice out
- Strain and throw away berries and seeds
- Add honey and stir well
- Pour into glass bottle with lid and store in fridge
- Should be good for 2 to 3 weeks if refrigerated
- Take daily during flu season
- 1/2 to 1 teaspoon daily for children over 2 during flu season
- 1/2 to 1 tablespoon daily for adults during flu season
- When sick, adults take 1 tablespoon every 4 hours
- Sick children over 2 take 1 teaspoon every 4 hours
Thanks for coming by. Wishing you good health and happiness!
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This looks good, Carol — flu or not. But my best takeaway was the thing about raw honey and kids under two. I had no idea and since there is a kid under two in my life who is now eating ‘real people food’, this is good to know. I never would have thought.
It’s deceptive that thing about honey. You know it’s good for you but then if you read up on it, bad for young children. They are just developing their immune systems and here is a quote:
“Honey can contain spores of a bacterium called Clostridium botulinum, which can germinate in a baby’s immature digestive system and cause infant botulism, a rare but potentially fatal illness. These spores are usually harmless to adults and children over 1 year old”
I’ve read other sources that say wait until 2 and I go with the extra caution of a year.
Elderberry is delicious!
Great idea.
Hi Carol, anything is worth a try in a bid to stay healthy and flu free and the more natural the better. I grew up with a huge elderberyy tree at the bottom of the garden, but I never once tasted them. A friend of my parents used to make wine from the berries though (he never got sick either!)… I hope you continue to enjoy a flu free winter!
xx
thanks Deb. Having sinus trouble right now but we have an extrememly high pollen count. I think it’s my allergies.
A great recipe to try. I know Influenza is crazy, scary spreading.
I’ve never grown elderberries, but I have grown June Berries AKA Service Berries. They too have nutritional properties.
You just sent me off on a hunt for information on serviceberry trees. I was not familiar with them. If I lived further north, I’d plant one. Beautiful flowers in the spring, berries to eat, and lovely fall foliage sounds perfect to add to a landscape. Like many wonderful plants, zone 8 is the hottest it can stand and I’m zone 9B. Oh well. Thanks for the information!
What a great recipe! We made elderberry syrup for the first time last fall and I’m so glad we did! It has come in so handy this winter.
This looks and sounds amazing. I have pinned and shared on twitter x
I have seen this floating around my news feed. I will have to try it. I have friends who swear by it. The dried berries seem less scary for me to make on my first time out.
Give it a try. It makes a read difference for me.
This is a terrible flu season. Thank you for sharing this valuable information with us. Hopefully readers will take note and follow your instructions! Thank you for sharing it with us at Party in Your PJ’s.
Great post! I use the syrup when I’m sick and it gets expensive – pinning this. Thanks for sharing at the What’s for Dinner party.
I’m so excited to make elderberry syrup! We are planting elderberry this year to get going on our supply and I’d like to sell berries and syrup at our farmers market! Thanks for sharing on Encouraging Hearts and Home. You are featured on http://www.daytodayadventures.com this week. Hope you come join up again today!
Thank you so much for the feature. I’ll come by a little later I promise.
Where and when do you find elderberries? Thanks for sharing at the What’s for Dinner party. Have a wonderful, safe and healthy week!
Elderberries are a late summer crop, but you can find dried elderberries on Amazon and other sites. Then make syrup for flu season. Dried elderberries are a staple to keep to make your own syrup for much less than the commercial syrup. If you are a gardener, it’s a great bush to have in your yard for flowers and berries. You can harvest berries and make syrup and even dry berries to make syrup later.