Image courtesy of DeconstructingYourself.com

Flu fighters, engage! Flu season is upon us Chef’neers. The flu is a highly contagious respiratory infection caused by viruses. Having the flu is not the same as having a cold, though they have a lot of the same symptoms.   The flu comes on very abruptly and lasts 3-4 days with severe aches, chills, fatigue, sore throat and headache ravaging the body. If you want to avoid that fate this year, try these two tricks of the trade.

Strong smelling foods like garlic can beat sickness thanks to the phytochemical allicin.  Fresh garlic consumption is key to making this natural cure work. Garlic tea will also soothe a sore throat and cough.

Tea contains catechins, little molecules that run around cleaning up free radicals all day. Researchers at Harvard University found that drinking 5 cups of black tea a day quadrupled the body’s immune system after two weeks!