School is starting again in many places… Whether we are sending our children to a traditional school or beginning school in our own schoolrooms, this time of year tends to bring with it more time inside and more exposure to illness.
It seems hard to believe as we enjoy these last weeks of summer, but cold and flu season isn’t far away as the days get shorter, we get less Vitamin D from the sun and we are exposed to more illness while spending time indoors.
Natural Remedies for Back to School
I always begin preparing many of my natural remedies for Fall and Winter when we begin school again and this almost always ends up as the perfect time to start.
We don’t typically need these remedies for a few months (and hopefully not at all because we are ill), but making them now is helpful because some traditional remedies, like tinctures, take months to make.
My favorite remedy for warding off illness or helping kick a cold or flu once it hits is elderberry syrup. This one can be made in a couple of days, but the dried elderberries needed for the recipe are often out of stock once cold and flu season hits. Since this recipe stores easily in the fridge for a long time, I prefer to make it ahead and keep it ready for when we need it. (Here’s the recipe)
Unlike elderberry syrup and some simpler remedies, tinctures take at least six weeks to make and are really important to have on hand before you need them. Certainly, you can use herbal teas to get the benefits of many herbs if you don’t have tinctures pre-made, but tinctures are more concentrated and often more effective. This is the perfect time of year to make tinctures to have on hand.
Herb infused oils are similar to tinctures in that they are most effective when they have 6-8 weeks to infuse before being used.
Resources I Mention

How to Make Herbal Tinctures (basic tutorial)
Multivitamin Tincture Recipe
Herbal Digestion Tincture Recipe
Homemade Chamomile Tincture
How to Make Solar Infused Oils
Elderberry Syrup Recipe
Where to order elderberries
Herbs: Nettle, Chamomile, Alfalfa,