By Faith Christensen, ND
Homeopathic remedies have been used for hundreds of years to treat colds and the flu. Since the Spanish Flu epidemic of the early 1900s — also a Type A influenza virus — homeopathy has a track record of shortening both the duration of an illness and how sick a person actually gets.
Today, I use gelsemium, bryonia, nux vomica, and mucococcinum with good success for both seasonal flu and H1N1. With most homeopathic remedies, the key is matching your specific symptoms to the specific symptom picture of the remedy — that’s what gets you the best results. Mucococcinum and oscillococcinum are combination remedies, made up of several homeopathics together, and can be used as directed below. If you start an acute remedy and don’t see any improvement after two doses (roughly 1 to 2 hours), it’s time to switch to the next likely remedy.
Alongside any remedy, help your body do its job: rest, drink plenty of water or herbal tea, and skip sugar and refined carbohydrates while you’re sick. Warming sock treatments and constitutional or contrast hydrotherapy can also support your body in clearing the virus by shifting temperature and blood flow.
For Prevention or First Symptoms
Ferrum phosphoricum (12C or 30C) — For the very first sign of flu, within the first few hours: fatigue, a slight fever, a scratchy throat, but nothing more specific yet. Take 2 pellets, 30 minutes away from food, dissolved under the tongue, every few hours until symptoms resolve or become clear enough to match one of the remedies below.
Oscillococcinum — For prevention or at the very first sign of getting sick. Take 2 pellets every 2 hours until symptoms resolve or develop into a clearer picture that calls for a more targeted remedy.
Influenzinum — For prevention, take 2 pellets once a week.
Aconite (30C) — For sudden onset with no clear symptoms yet (general fatigue, slight fever, scratchy throat). Take 2 pellets every 1 to 2 hours if symptoms are severe, or every 3 to 4 hours if milder. Aconite has a fuller symptom picture beyond this, which I’m happy to go over with you.
Mucococcinum — For preventing cold and flu symptoms; very effective when taken once a week. For prevention, take 2 pellets once a week. For active treatment, take 3 pellets, three times a day.
Matching the Remedy to Your Symptoms
Homeopathy works best when the remedy matches your specific symptom picture, so it’s worth taking a little time to notice exactly how you feel before choosing one. My general guide for cold and flu remedy selection is adapted from Miranda Castro’s article, “Oh, Fluey.”
As a general rule, use a 30X or 30C strength, dosed every 1 to 2 hours if symptoms are severe or every 3 to 4 hours if they’re milder. Once you start feeling better, back off — only repeat the dose if the same symptoms start to return. If a completely new set of symptoms shows up that matches a different remedy, switch to that one instead.
Download my full Homeopathy Guide for Remedy Selection for Colds and Flu (PDF)
Recovering After the Flu
Sometimes the flu passes, but you don’t quite bounce back. These remedies can help with that lingering, run-down feeling:
China — For feeling wiped out after the flu, especially from fluid loss through heavy sweating or vomiting. You may feel chilled, pale, with dark circles under the eyes, and touchy or irritable. Suggested strength: 6X, 6C, or 12X, 2 to 4 times a day for up to a week.
Kali phosphoricum — For general exhaustion and an unusual low mood after the flu, along with being oversensitive and nervous — noise, touch, and other stimulation feel like too much. Suggested strength: 6C or 12X, once or twice a day until symptoms resolve, anywhere from a day to a week.
Gelsemium — For ongoing dullness, apathy, heaviness, and trembling, sometimes with a mild lingering temperature. Left untreated, this pattern can turn into chronic exhaustion. Suggested strength and dose: 12C or 30C, twice a day for three days.
Influenzinum — For those who haven’t felt fully well since having the flu or getting a flu shot. Suggested strength: 30C, once a day for 1 to 2 days.
If you’re in the thick of a cold or flu, or just can’t seem to bounce back from one, I’m happy to help you find the right remedy for where you’re at.
— Dr. Faith Christensen