Eat south of the border. Break up congestion with a bowl of chili or other spicy foods containing horseradish , hot pepper sauce, hot mustard or curry, suggests Irwin Ziment, M.D., chief of medicine at Olive View Medical Center in Los Angeles. Hot Mexican or Indian foods are good congestion busters. A daily 45-minute walk can help speed recovery from colds, according to studies conducted by David Nieman, Ph.D., a health researcher at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. But don't push yourself.
Exhaustive exercise can actually impair the immune system.
If you pace yourself so that you can comfortably talk while you walk, you're going at the right speed, according to Dr. Nieman. Don't bother with antihistamines. For headache, be selective. If your child has a headache along with a cold, ask your doctor about child-size doses of ibuprofen. Snort salt water.