If you have been diagnosed with bronchitis—the kind that lasts a week or two and generally is caused by a viral infection (which may have begun with a cold or sore throat)—consider the following natural, soothing treatment for your inflamed bronchial tubes…

Put one quart of filtered or spring water in a pot, then add three tablespoons of dried oregano and three average-size garlic cloves that have been coarsely chopped with the skins on. Let this mixture boil for 10 minutes, then take the pot off the fire and let it steep for five minutes. Next, put a towel over your head and neck, and bend over the steaming pot. Breathe deeply for five minutes. Caution: Be extremely careful not to get too close to the hot pot—you could get a steam burn.

Reheat the same batch of oregano-garlic water, and repeat the steam treatment every few hours, especially just before bedtime. It should help you sleep through the night. Make a new batch the next day.

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