HEALTHY EATING IN MAY WEEK 82 QUOTE 82

THIS POST - WEEK 82  QUOTE 82, COMES AFTER WEEK 79  QUOTE 79. POSTS NUMBER 80 AND 81 DON'T EXIST. IN THE PAST I GOT OUT OF SINC WITH MY NUMBERS - SO TODAY I'M FIXING IT UP. HOPE THIS MAKES SENSE.
"Very high vitamin C - One lemon can provide 50% of the day's requirements ... the cultivation of the lemon goes back  at least 2,500 years. It originated in the Indus valley of Northern India .... valuable in its vitamin C concentration as a drink to ease the symptoms of the common cold."
Jack Forsyth's : Scrumptious Tucker

In New Zealand, May is the last month of Autumn - winter is close now. The other morning when I walked our dog there was frost along the roadside at the bottom of our hill. In winter it will get even better with paddocks and fence posts covered with white frost. Each of our kids have loved the early morning walk on such mornings. They take off a mitten and run their finger along the fence tops to scoop up a finger full of frost. Then into the mouth it goes and to their surprise their warm mouth instantly feels hot in contrast to the frozen water temperature.
Winter is notorious for colds, coughs and flu.
Although it has been believed that people with low immunity, high stress levels, who are sleep deprived or have a sudden change in body temperature, are more likely to catch cold, they in fact are not. Conclusive research from various sources all agree that the two primary ways of catching a cold is by ~
                 * hand to hand contact with people who already have a cold or touching hard surfaces recently touched by people with colds.
                 * from people who cough or sneeze on us, sending their bugs to us through the air particles.
So washing and drying your hands before touching food or your face seems to be a sensible practice.
But if you do catch the cold, you need help.
If you like home-made cures then you will love this month's drink recipe.

>>JULES JUICE<<
My sister, Jules, made up this recipe and I think it's a prize winner!!
It has cured many a cold, cough and flu in our family, and even on one occasion cured a terribly ill chicken who continually coughed and sneezed.
The drink has ~
LEMONS which are known for their high vitamin C content
GARLIC which contains allicin, which is a natural antibiotic. Allicin is produced when garlic is bruised, chopped or chewn. 
ROOT GINGER is an immune system and energy booster. It has good amounts of iron which protects against viral infection and is a de-congestor.
HONEY is a natural energy booster and immune system builder. It has anti-bacterial properties which fight disease, helping particularly with sore throats. Manuka honey is the most beneficial health wise. 
MINT is rich in vitamin A and C and can inhibit the growth of some bacterias. It assists to unblock the airways, helps with breathing, relieves heads congestion and head aches and has calming properties.

Juice of 1 Lemon
1 Garlic clove
2cm slice of Ginger root
1 teaspoon Honey - Manuka honey if you can.
6 leaves of fresh Mint
1/3 cup of boiling Water
Boil the kettle with a small amount of Water.
Put a clove of Garlic into a mortar and pestle and crush once so you can easily remove the outside skin. Add Ginger root and washed Mint leaves to the mortar and pestle.Crush and pulverize with the mortar. Dissolve honey into a cup by pouring in 1/3 of a cup of boiling Water. Add Garlic, Ginger and Mint and stir. Finally cut and squeeze the juice from a lemon into the cup.
Rather than drink the drink it is best to gulp it as it is pulpy. One drink may be enough, but for severe cases I recommend to drink one near the start and finish of each day for the first week, then one a day for the second week. You will feel an improvement within two days. 
If treating an animal, use a medicine dropper to get it into their mouth - quantity depends on the animal weight. For our chook we dropped a few drops every few hours.
An alternative to Lemon is Pineapple juice which has great amounts of vitamin C, but also has Bromelain which helps suppress coughs and assists in loosening mucus.
Another alternative to Lemon is Guava, which loosens and reduces mucus and disinfects the respiratory tract, throat and lungs. It's also rich in vitamin C and iron which helps prevent viral infections.

THISWEEKWITHTHEKIDS~ make sure you have these ingredients handy for the next few months. Your kids will love crushing up the garlic, ginger and mint in the mortar and pestle - even tiny kids get great satisfaction bashing food. 
So sorry about the terrible photos - I had to use my phone as the camera is in India.
Cathy