The Healing Power of Elderberry!

Hey loves!  I hope everyone is having a great week. Over the past decade there has been a real push towards living a more natural life.  Companies have embraced this trend and have been providing customers with more natural ingredients. Almost anything you buy today is GMO free, organic, or all natural. Parents are always asking me about home remedies and ways to treat their child’s symptoms using a more natural approach. I have dedicated quite a bit of time to discussing the flu and thought this would be a great opportunity to discuss an amazing all natural immune booster that can significantly help you and your child overcome the symptoms of the flu.

What is elderberry? Let’s start with the basics. Black elderberry is a dark blue/purple berry that comes from the native North American and European elderberry shrub. The berries from this tree have been used as a folk remedy for centuries in North America, Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa. In the Middle Ages, it was considered a Holy Tree due to its ability to improve health and longevity. These berries are full of powerful nutrition and have incredible health benefits. Elderberry also contains trace minerals and has more vitamin C than oranges.

Elderberries and the flu- Elderberries have several different health benefits. It been shown to help with brain development, immune coordinations, digestion, and blood flow. Today we are going to focus on its protection against the flu as well as its ability to help alleviate the flu’s symptoms. Elderberries are rich with Anthocyanins. These cytokines have been shown to boost the production of immune cytokines, which allows the body to defend against disease and illness. Elderberry also contains a potent antiviral agent called antivirin. The antivirin not only helps to prevent the viruses from invading the cells but also prevents the virus from replicating, therefore shortening the time one will suffer from the symptoms of the flu. There was a study published in 2004 that examined 60 people with the flu. The group that received elderberry extract for five days had their symptoms subside four days earlier than the placebo group.

How to use elderberry to help protect my family from the flu– There are contradictions and limitations to elderberry syrup so it is imperative that you discuss with your doctor whether it is appropriate for your child to start taking this supplementation. Children under the age of one should not take this syrup. Please make sure your doctor goes over the appropriate dosing. This can be used similar to a daily vitamin. A lot of parents struggle with illness when their child first goes to school and this may help to promote immune coordination and help to overcome flu season.  There are many ways to incorporate this natural supplementation into your and your child’s diet. I love this article on how to make pancakes and waffle syrup using these immune boosting berries- http://wellnessmama.com/1888/elderberry-syrup.

Where do I buy it? Nature’s way makes an organic elderberry syrup for children. I love Amazon but any local wellness store will most likely carry it.

It is important to understand that although this supplementation can help to protect and alleviate the symptoms of congestion, cough, and other flu-like symptoms, it should never take the place of receiving appropriate medical help. If your child is suffering from the symptoms of the flu, it is important that you have him or her evaluated by their pediatrician. I hope this helps you with you journey. See you next Wednesday!