Call it corya or catarrh of the nose; a common cold is a very irritating condition. It may be caused by a variety of factors, the most common being a sudden chilling because of a change of temperature, coming out of the cozy bed into a blast of cold air or walking form an air-cooled room into a blazing sun. According to allopathy, these are only pre disposing factors, the real culprit being a virus, which incidentally has not yet been separated or counteracted. Traditional remedies fail to cure the cold as a apparent form the old adage that if you take medicines, the cold is cured in a week, otherwise seven days.? But in the case of weak constitutions a cold may lead to more serious diseases like tonsillitis, laryngitis, bronchitis, pneumonia and tuberculosis. What is worse, a catarrh of the respiratory organs may degenerate into a catarrh of the alimentary system.

A cold is an extremely irritating condition: You are not sick enough to get into bed, yet not well enough to lead a normal life. A running nose, feverishness, heaviness of the head, pains and aches in the body, loss of appetite and of smell are the main features of a cold which makes life miserable.

Like other diseases to which human beings are subject, a cold is the result of inappropriate diet. It is nature's way of expelling poisonous humours from the body. We must attack the malady at its source and that is the putrifying mater in the intestines. The patient must fast till the cold is gone'it will not take more than two days-and take a warm water enema followed by a cup of warm water after every two hours.

If he is unable to take the enema, let him try the following method:

Take half a kilogramme of spinach, 250 grammes of turnips (along with their leaves), 250 grammes of tomatoes, 75 grammes of coriander leaves and boil them in about one litre of water. If some of these vegetables are not available, radishes or other greens may be used. Cover the lid of the vessel with a flat dish full of water so that the water does not evaporate and there is sufficient left. When the vegetables are done, strain them through muslin or other fine cloth. Add a little salt, the juice of lime and roasted and ground cumin seed and take it in tumblerfuls after every two to three hours. This will clear the bowels and also open the pores by producing sweat.

Chronic Cold: A cold sometimes becomes chronic. Such patients should also follow the regimen suggested above. It will clear their bowels. Let them also take some exercise so that their pores open. Those who are too weak should soak their feet in warm water for fifteen to twenty minutes the last thing at night. Let the patient wear a blanket while he is doing it; it will help open his pores and the nose will stop running.