BROOKE’S TRAVEL TIPS: Don’t Forget the Grapefruit Seed Extract

There’s nothing worse than getting sick when you’re out of town! Away from home, an upset stomach becomes a ball and chain; the aches and pains of a common cold feel more like the flu. We all know germs lurk in crowded places. But even if you stay off the beaten path, travels expose you to new strains of illness. Do you just take extra Vitamin C and hope for the best?

I once heard a packing expert suggest, “Lay out everything you will need for your trip… then put half back away.” It’s a darn good formula. But there are a few items I simply won’t leave home without. And one of those is GSE.

TRAVEL TIP #2: Take GSE (Grapefruit Seed Extract) at the first sign of a cold.

About 10 years ago a visiting friend gave me a dose of GSE for a tickly nose and throat. By evening the symptoms were gone. Since, it has saved Kevin and me from dozens upon dozens of colds. And we’re not the only ones. Touring in Norway, I supplied this natural remedy  to travel companions who complained of looming colds—four or five people in total. Nobody got sick.

Grapefruit seed extract has anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal properties. It works best at the very first sign of illness. Take some at that moment when you think, “Hmmm, I hope I’m not getting sick,” and you probably won’t.

You can find GSE at almost any heath food or vitamin store, or on Amazon. It comes in two forms: tablets and liquid drops. Each tablet delivers a single dose. Doses can be taken up to three times a day for several days.

The liquid is extremely bitter and must be diluted with water, but it has more uses. I recently talked with a woman whose intestines hate to travel. She takes just a few drops (a mini dose) several times a day when she’s in foreign countries and no longer worries about dining out.

The label also gives directions for using liquid GSE as an oral rinse, throat gargle, facial cleanser, nail treatment, cutting board cleaner and meat/vegetable wash. Talk about an all-in-one product!

GSE may not be a panacea, but it definitely earns its space in my suitcase.

Tomorrow I’ll help you streamline your packing.

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