Tomato Tea for Sinus Congestion

5 star (4) 
  100%

Holly (Fresno, Ca) on 04/15/2012:
5 out of 5 stars

I honestly can't believe this WORKED! I have had a terrible cold with a sore throat and the worst sinus congestion for four days straight. Fearing a sinus infection, I was preparing to head to the Dr. in another day. I had tried everything I could think of, Sudafed, Dayquil, and even Nasal Spray (which only worked for a couple of hours, not 12 like the label promised). Desperate, I went online to try a "natural" remedy. I was willing to try just about anything. And what do you know? It WORKED. Within 20 minutes my congestion felt less "throbbing" and one more cup and 2 hours later - my sinuses are TOTALLY CLEAR! My throat is starting to feel better too! I am definately going to use this remedy again if I ever feel a cold coming on. One thing, I added a little honey and I crushed my garlic with a garlic press. It seems to have helped get the garlic to juice out a bit more. THANK YOU so much for this amazing recipe!
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Jennifer (Sunrise, Fl, Usa) on 03/15/2012:
5 out of 5 stars

I can't believe how well this works. I'm still in shock!

2 days ago, I started to become sick with the flu when I was on a 18-hour flight. On came the chills and fever, and then my nose kept running non-stop. To make it worse, the changing cabin pressure on the descent gave me excruciating sinus pain and made my ears clogged to the point where I couldn't hear out of both ears anymore. I can't take cold medicine because I have thyroid disease, and I am slow to recover because my metabolism is very slow.

Yesterday my sinuses and fever got worse. I remembered reading about this remedy on Earth Clinic and I was eager to try it. Luckily I had all the ingredients on hand. I used V8 Spicy Hot juice, lemon juice (bottled), minced garlic, a lot of tabasco sauce (as much as I could stand) and a dash of celery salt for taste. I heated it in the microwave for about 1 1/2 minutes and then sipped and inhaled the fumes as directed. About 10 minutes after I started to sip it I noticed an increase of nasal discharge. I had to keep blowing my nose over and over again, but this time when I blew my nose I actually felt like I was clearing it out, instead of the feeling of blowing your nose and feeling like it gets clogged up again 5 minutes later. The pressure in my ears released about 60% and I regained most of my hearing. My fever increased and for a few hours I felt pretty rotten, even though my nasal passages had cleared. But in a few hours I felt at least 60% better, which is amazing considering that it usually takes me 3 weeks to recover from a cold! I slept all through the night with no problem.

This morning I made another tomato tea. While drinking it, I felt my left ear "pop" and the pressure released. I now have full hearing in my left ear and a 70% improvement in my right ear. I then took a hot shower afterwards (the steam helps to open the sinus passages) and kept blowing my nose. My nasal congestion is about 85% gone, I don't have a fever or chills anymore, I got most of my hearing back and I don't feel groggy anymore!

It doesn't seem so crazy why this works when you do some research on capsaicin. Capsaicin is also the active ingredient of pepper spray. Capsaicin is an irritant, and when you inhale pepper spray, your body pushes it out by forcing your sinuses to clear themselves and making your nose run uncontrollably. Have you ever eaten a really spicy dish and had your nose start to run?That's the capsaicin at work.

I have Vietnamese friends who swear by a similar remedy that works in the same way as the tomato tea. They swear by eating pho (a hot fish/noodle soup) when you are sick. They put a lot of Sriracha (Vietnamese hot pepper sauce) in the soup and breathe in the hot fumes. The steam and pepper helps open and clear the sinuses.

I have also been drinking echinacea tea with a tbs of coconut oil and I've also been drinking some ACV throughout the day. (I don't take the ACV too close to the tomato tea though, because ACV is alkaline while the tomato tea is very acidic).

Thank you, thank you, thank you Earth Clinic for this wonderful remedy! I can celebrate my 30th birthday this weekend without feeling miserable :)

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Julz (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) on 01/25/2012:
5 out of 5 stars

The tomato tea is not only delicious, but it honest to goodness is the only things that's worked thus far for my sinus infection. Finally I can breathe!
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Kaelyn (Rockport, Tx) on 12/19/2011:
5 out of 5 stars

I did not have any V8 on hand, but I used a can of Amy's organic tomato bisque soup, I added 5-6 cloves of finely chopped garlic, fresh squeezed lemon. I only had taco bell hot sauce packets so I used those and added extra cayenne pepper. I did add a little worcestershire sauce for added flavor. I heated it on the stove as to not kill any of the nutrients by using the microwave. IT WAS DELICIOUS. Really spice but sooo good. I could breathe freely through my sinuses within the first five bites!!! I have been eating garlic for days to help my immune system but this cold has finally caught up to me. Thank you earth clinic! I love you!
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