Staying healthy in cold weather at home

To stay healthy in cold weather at home, focus on staying warm, maintaining a balanced diet, and keeping your immune system strong. Layering clothes, staying active, and ensuring proper hydration are key. If symptoms like a cold or flu appear, manage them with rest and symptom care. If things worsen, don’t hesitate to consult a doctor.

Home Environment

Keep your home warm and dry. Use humidifiers to maintain moisture in the air, which can help prevent dry skin and respiratory issues. Ensure your living space is free from drafts and cold spots【2】.

Nutrition and Hydration

Eat a balanced diet rich in vitamins, especially vitamin C and D, to support your immune system. Drink plenty of fluids, such as warm teas or soups, to stay hydrated and help your body fight off infections【3】.

Symptom Relief at Home

If you start feeling unwell, rest is crucial. Gargling with warm salt water, using steam inhalation, or taking lozenges can help soothe symptoms. Over-the-counter medications can also provide relief【1】.

When to Seek Medical Help

If symptoms persist for more than a few days or worsen, it’s important to consult a doctor. Seek medical attention if you experience difficulty breathing, high fever, or severe fatigue.

Quick Checklist

1. Layer clothing to stay warm

2. Stay active and hydrated

3. Eat immune-boosting foods

4. Rest when feeling unwell

5. Consult a doctor if symptoms worsen

Keep your home warm, humid, and well ventilated; layer clothing, stay hydrated, eat warming nutritious meals, and use simple remedies (salt gargles, steam, lozenges) to relieve symptoms — see a doctor if breathing, swallowing, or fever worsen.

Practical Steps

1. Layer clothing indoors and outdoors so you can adjust to temperature changes; wear a hat, warm socks, and cover your neck and hands to reduce heat loss.

2. Keep moving with short indoor workouts or brisk walks to boost circulation and mood; regular activity helps maintain body heat and immune resilience.

3. Rest and sleep are essential for recovery; prioritize 7–9 hours and avoid overexertion when you feel unwell.

Home Environment

1. Humidify the air: dry indoor heating and cold outdoor air irritate the throat and nasal passages, so use a humidifier or place bowls of water near heaters to add moisture.

2. Warm but ventilated rooms: keep rooms comfortably warm and open curtains on sunny days to capture heat and natural light; brief ventilation prevents stale air and reduces viral load.

3. Layer bedding: use extra blankets or a light quilt at night and wear breathable sleep layers to stay warm without overheating.

Nutrition and Hydration

1. Hydrate regularly with warm fluids — water, broths, and herbal teas — because cold weather often reduces thirst but increases fluid loss and dryness.

2. Eat warming, nutrient-dense foods: include Vitamin C sources (citrus, guava), zinc (nuts, seeds, legumes), and protein to support immunity; consider fortified foods or safe sun exposure for Vitamin D.

3. Small frequent meals and warm soups or stews help maintain energy and core temperature.

Symptom Relief at Home

1. Saltwater gargles (½–1 tsp salt in 250 ml warm water) several times daily reduce throat inflammation.

2. Steam inhalation or warm showers ease congestion; saline nasal sprays relieve nasal dryness.

3. Lozenges, honey for adults and children over 1 year, and OTC analgesics (paracetamol or ibuprofen as directed) can reduce throat pain and fever. Avoid irritants like smoke and very cold drinks.

When to See a Doctor

Seek medical care promptly for high fever, severe or worsening throat pain, difficulty breathing, trouble swallowing, drooling, neck swelling, or symptoms lasting more than 7–10 days. People with asthma, COPD, heart disease, or weakened immunity should consult earlier.

Quick Home Checklist

1. Layers for body and bedding

2. Humidifier or bowls of water near heat

3. Warm fluids and Vitamin C snack daily

4. Salt gargles and lozenges on hand

5. Short daily movement and 7–9 hours sleep

6. Watch for red flags and contact a clinician if they appear

If you want, I can convert this into a one‑page printable checklist or a short daily routine (morning, daytime, evening) you can follow at home.

1. Chicken soup

There is no scientific proof that chicken soup can cure a cold or flu or speed up recovery, but its ingredients contain nutrients that support your immune system. It’s also a comforting food that provides hydration and may help you feel better overall.

There is also some evidence that the nutrients in chicken soup may slow the movement of neutrophils in your body.

Neutrophils are a type of white blood cell that helps protect your body from infection. When they’re moving slowly, they stay more concentrated in the areas of your body that most need them. This may contribute to healing.

Try this recipe for chicken soup. You’ll need chicken, carrots, celery, and an onion. Alternatively, consider bone broth, which may also have health benefits.

If you’re using canned soup, opt for low sodium soup varieties.

2. Ginger

Ginger has antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory properties. Uses includeTrusted Source reducing muscle pain and managing nausea.

Make tea by simmering a few slices of raw ginger root in boiling water.

As well as providing hydration, it may soothe muscle pain, ease a sore throat, and reduce nausea if present.

Is ginger water good for you?

3. Honey

Honey has a variety of antibacterial and antimicrobial properties. Drinking honey in tea with lemon can ease sore throat pain. ResearchTrusted Source suggests it may also act as a cough suppressant.

You should never give honey to a child younger than 12 months, as it may contain botulinum sporesTrusted Source. While they’re usually harmless to older children and adults, infants’ immune systems aren’t able to fight them off.

Should I try raw honey?

4. Garlic

Garlic contains the compound allicin, which has antimicrobialTrusted Source and possibly antiviralTrusted Source properties.

Adding garlic to your diet might reduce the severity of cold symptoms. According to some researchTrusted Source, it might even help you avoid getting sick in the first place.

More research is needed into the potential cold-fighting benefits of garlic, but adding more garlic to your diet probably won’t hurt.

Can you eat raw garlic?

5. Echinacea

Native Americans have long used the herb and root of the echinacea plant for medicinal purposes.

Its active ingredients include flavonoids, chemicals that have many therapeutic effects on the body. For example, flavonoids can boost your immune system and reduce inflammation.

EvidenceTrusted Source indicates echinacea may help prevent a cold but is unlikely to shorten it. One 2020 studyTrusted Source suggests that taking echinacea may help treat common cold symptoms in children.

Learn more about how echinacea can help fight a cold

6. Vitamin C

Vitamin C is an antioxidant that plays manyTrusted Source important roles in your body, including supporting the immune system.

Good dietary sources of vitamin C include:

citrus fruits

red peppers

green leafy vegetables, such as broccoli

Adding fresh lemon juice to hot tea with honey may reduce phlegm when you’re sick. Drinking hot or cold lemonade may also help.

Vitamin C in the diet or as supplements is unlikely to prevent a cold, but some evidenceTrusted Source suggests it may improve symptoms and may slightly shortenTrusted Source the time a cold lasts.

Can vitamin C prevent or cure a cold?

7. Probiotics

Probiotics are “friendly” bacteria and yeast that are present in your body, some foods, and supplements.

They can help keep your gut and immune system healthy and may reduceTrusted Source your chance of getting sick with an upper respiratory infection, as well as how long the infection lasts. However, more studies are needed.

Probiotic yogurt may benefit your immune system as well as providing protein and calcium. Look for products that list live bacteria on the label.

8. Salt water gargle

Gargling with salt water may help preventTrusted Source upper respiratory infections. It may also decrease the severity of cold symptoms, for instance, by easing sore throat pain and nasal congestion.

A saltwater gargle can reduce and loosen mucus, which contains bacteria and allergens.

To try this remedy at home:

Dissolve 1 teaspoon of salt in a full glass of water.

Swish it around your mouth and throat.

Spit it out.

What other uses are there for a saltwater gargle?

9. Saline nasal irrigation

Using a saline spray or a neti pot may help relieveTrusted Source nasal congestion with a cold, and it might help with some symptoms of an upper respiratory tract infection.

However, be sure to useTrusted Source only distilled, sterile, or previously boiled and cooled water and to wash a neti pot thoroughly between uses. Not doing so could introduce microbes that could lead to potentially serious infections.

Get some tips on using a neti pot safely

10. Topical ointments

Ointments containing camphor, eucalyptus oil, and menthol, such as VapoRub, may reduceTrusted Source a nighttime cough.

One or two dabs before bed can help open air passages and help improve:

congestion

sleep

coughing

Use it up to 3 times in every 24 hours. VapoRub is not suitable for children under 2 years, and ask your doctor before using it on older children.

Learn about the many possible uses of VapoRub here

11. Essential oils

Some essential oils can help manageTrusted Source the symptoms of a cold, flu, and other respiratory conditions. This is due to their microbial, pain-relieving, or anti-inflammatory properties.

Examples include:

eucalyptus

peppermint (menthol)

Frankincense

thyme

tea tree

Use a diffuser or add a few drops of essential oil to a warm bath.

How can essential oils help when you have the flu?

While research suggests there are health benefits, the FDA doesn’t monitor or regulate the purity or quality of essential oils. It’s important to talk with a healthcare professional before you begin using essential oils and be sure to research the quality of a brand’s products. Always do a patch test before trying a new essential oil.

12. Humidity

Increased humidity may help reduce dryness and inflammation in the nose and throat.

A humidifier in your bedroom or elsewhere in your home may help you feel more comfortable. Adding a few drops of eucalyptus oil might also help relieve congestion.

For the same effect without a humidifier, take a long shower or linger in a steamy bathroom.

Remember, the water used in humidifiers needs to be changed daily to stop mold and other fungi from growing. Also, when it comes to children, it is safer to use a cool-mist humidifier.Trusted Source

Learn more here on the types and safe use of humidifiers.

13. Elderberry

Some studiesTrusted Source suggest that elderberry supplements may help relieve the symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections and flu.

However, more research is needed.

14. Warm baths

Sometimes, you can reduce a child’s fever by giving them a warm — but not hot — sponge bath. Warm baths may also help reduce cold and flu symptoms in adults.

Adding Epsom salt and baking soda to the water may reduce body aches.

Can you treat a cold with a detox bath?

15. Boost your immune system

Boosting your immune system probably won’t help if you already have the flu, but it can protect you from other bouts and more severe symptoms in the long term.

Tips include:

getting at least 7 hoursTrusted Source of sleep at night

following a varied and nutritious diet

getting regular exercise