Golden Milk with Manuka Honey and Lemon (Dairy-Free, Paleo, AIP)

This Golden Milk beverage is one of my favorite remedies for bronchitis! It’s dairy-free, paleo and AIP-friendly.

A few weeks before Christmas Eve Paris transforms into a magical scenery of decorations, attracting tourists and locals alike. Enchanted, I’ve spent a whole week in Paris running from one scenery to another. The Christmas was in the air, however, there was something else in the air as well… Crowded areas coupled with a colder weather and a lack of sunlight (hence the lack of vitamin D) favor the spread of acute respiratory infections. As a result of these factors, I caught a nasty cold a few days before Christmas, which rapidly progressed into acute bronchitis.

Dry cough that kept me from falling asleep turned into coughing spells with a whooping sound.  The latter rang the bell for me that it might be pertussis. Please note that even though this infection is relatively mild in adults, it can be life-threatening in babies and young children. Shortly speaking, I understood that I had to take drastic measures, so I decided to go to a doctor, just to be safe. The doctor prescribed me expectorant, ibuprofen (a no-no for me!) and asthma inhaler. However, this prescription never ended up in the hands of a pharmacist… I’ve already used a homemade expectorant and I refused to use a cortisone-based asthma inhaler.

Luckily, I know several effective methods to combat cold, for example I do nasal irrigation with a saline solution and I gargle. Salty water helps to sanitize upper respiratory airways and thus shortens the duration of cold. However, once the infection makes its way down to the lungs other remedies should be sought.

Golden Milk as a remedy?

So, I started to use inhalations with eucalyptus oil by means of nebulizer, which helped me a lot. I’ve also developed a ritual of drinking golden milk in the evenings and I really looked forward to my tasty remedy! Besides, this remedy comes with a hefty bonus: turmeric acts as a powerful anti-inflammatory, so there is no need to take ibuprofen. I like to use ground spices in my golden milk, for the convenience sake. To make my drink super healthy I add collagen for its gut-healing properties and a splash of lemon juice for vitamin C. Therefore, thanks to the nutrients-packed golden milk my cough was resolved in a matter of days!

PARIS: Arctic Christmas 2016 at the Galeries Lafayette

*Disclaimer: I am not a practicing medical professional and recommendations in this article are for information only. Please note that sometimes symptoms similar to a common cold can mask more serious diseases that may require urgent medical care.