woman covering face with scarf
on January 18, 2026

Covid & Flu Herbal Treatment & Prevention

Every winter our clinic is flooded with concerns about COVID and the latest flu strain. What herbs help prevent these infections, and if I get sick, what is the best herbal treatment for COVID and flu recovery?

Since many of our patients are immune compromised, these concerns are very real.

Herbs are multi-faceted healers of viral infections, and in the right formulation they can powerfully help your body recover.  We can look to past similar epidemics, such as the SARS outbreak of 2002 in China, to form a basis for treatment of newer strains.  

At that time Dr. Deng Tietao demonstrated that Chinese medicine treatment was more effective than standard hospital procedures by saving the lives of all patients in his care at the Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of TCM.

From the Chinese medicine perspective, we understand Coronavirus as a “damp” type of epidemic. This means that the pathogen can linger and be difficult to dissipate completely. Similar to Lyme disease in this way, damp toxicity lingers and clings to the sick person like “oil mixed into flour.”

Therefore, when treating COVID, the focus is on resolving turbidity with aromatic herbs to push out the virus and regulate the immune and energy dynamics of the body.

Influenza tends to behave differently than Coronavirus. While COVID is often damp and lingering - heavy, sticky, and difficult to fully clear - the flu is more likely to be a “wind” epidemic.

Wind pathogens move quickly. They come on suddenly. And they often create a more acute, surface-level pattern early on: chills, fever, body aches, headache, sore throat, nasal congestion, fatigue, and that unmistakable “I got hit by a truck” feeling.

Where COVID may settle deep and cling, flu tends to strike fast and burn hot. 

When flus and other viral infections such as COVID are encouraged to resolve through aromatic and spicy herbs, stagnant heat and inflammation disperses and toxins are encourage to dissipate. This facilitates the gradual and complete resolution of symptoms.

The recommendations that follow address concerns of prevention, exposure, and treatment for both COVID and flu. They are based in the past several years of observing what works well in our health conscious community to support prevention and full resolution.

COVID & FLU PREVENTION

1) Reduce sugar intake.
Processed and synthetic sugars cause our bodies to become more acidic, which benefits the growth of bacteria, viruses, and other disease-causing microbes. Use maple syrup, local honey, fruit-based sweeteners, or coconut sugar for sweetening.

2) Stay well hydrated and well-rested.
Drink high-quality spring water. Get plenty of sleep, move your body at least a little every day, and get outdoors to soak in fresh air and sunshine (even 15 minutes is beneficial!).

3) Foundational immune nutrients.

  • Take 1,000 mg Vitamin C up to 3x/day

  • Take 2 droperfuls of Echinacea Tincture up to 3x/day

  • Take at least 3,000 IU liquid Vitamin D3/day

4) Herbal prevention support.
Licorice & Ginger Decoction is recommended to strengthen the Qi and support resilience against seasonal infections. It may be taken as a tea or granules twice per day.

Flu-season note: In Chinese medicine, strong lung Qi and strong protective Qi reduce vulnerability to wind-type infections like influenza. Warm foods and soups support this deeply.

PRO-ACTIVE MANAGEMENT OF EXPOSURE TO COVID & FLU

If you live, work, go to school, or need to go to a public place where you feel concerned about heightened exposure to the flu and coronavirus, here are some things you can do to increase your body’s ability to prevent infection.

1) Apply essential oils at the base of the nose

And perhaps also on the neck, chest, and wrists, or inside your mask if you choose to wear one. They may be applied neat or diluted in a small amount of carrier oil.

Essential oils that have broad-spectrum antiviral effects include:

  • Eucalyptus

  • Tea Tree

  • Clove

  • Thyme

  • Oregano

2) Use herbal medicine preventatively

Herbal medicine has proven effective in the prevention and treatment of flu and both the COVID-19 and SARS strains during the coronavirus epidemics in mainland China.

3) Continue herbs for at least one week after exposure

These formulas should be taken prior to exposure, during, and for at least 1 week following exposure. They may be taken for weeks or months at a time if exposure is persistent.

This strategy was used to protect hospital workers caring for infected patients, with success.

These recommendations include everything listed under the “Prevention” category, plus:

Timing matters: For the flu especially, the first 24–48 hours make a huge difference. Early herbal intervention can often reduce intensity and shorten duration significantly.

TREATMENT (COVID OR FLU)

If you have or suspect you have COVID or the flu (any strain) we recommend following this level of protocol:

Remember to wash your hands and body frequently, and stay warm and well-nourished with spicy soups and herbal teas.

I hope these additional suggestions keep you feeling safe and empowered to take care of yourself and your family throughout this and other infectious disease scares with natural, health-generating tools and resources.

If you are sick or uncertain about what is best for you, we recommend scheduling a telephone consultation with one of our practitioners (by calling 845-687-6211 or emailing info@noulifehealth.com.

Sources:

  1. Astani A, Navid MH, and Schnitzler P. Attachment and penetration of acyclovir-resistant herpes simplex virus are inhibited by Melissa officinalis extract. Phytother Res. England; 2014;28(10):1547-52.
  2. Choi HJ. Chemical Constituents of Essential Oils Possessing Anti-Influenza A/WS/33 Virus Activity. Osong Public Health Res Perspect. 2018;9(6):348–353.doi:10.24171/j.phrp.2018.9.6.09.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6296812/
  3. Freuhauf, Heiner.    https://classicalchinesemedicine.org/initial-thoughts-on-coronavirus-prevention-and-treatment-with-chinese-medicine/
  4. Lelešius, Raimundas & Karpovaitė, Agneta & Mickienė, Rūta & Drevinskas, Tomas & Tiso, Nicola & Ragazinskiene, Ona & Kubilienė, Loreta & Maruska, Audrius & Salomskas, Algirdas. (2019). In vitro antiviral activity of fifteen plant extracts against avian infectious bronchitis virus. BMC Veterinary Research. 15. 10.1186/s12917-019-1925-6.
  5. Wińska K, Mączka W, Łyczko J, Grabarczyk M, Czubaszek A, Szumny A. Essential Oils as Antimicrobial Agents-Myth or Real Alternative?. Molecules. 2019;24(11):2130. Published 2019 Jun 5. doi:10.3390/molecules24112130
  6. Wu, S., Patel KB, Booth LJ, et al.  Protective essential oil attenuates influenza virus infection: an in vitro study in MDCK cells.  BMC Complementary & Alternative Med.  2010 Nov 15;10:69. doi: 10.1186/1472-6882-10-69.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21078173
  7. Ying, Tang.  Specific Applications of TCM in the Prevention and Treatment of COVID-19 & Integration of TCM into Educational Curriculum.  汤英 2/10/2020.  https://www.elotus.org/sites/default/files/covid-19_2.pdf

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