Kashayam is the term used in Tamilnadu often by our ancestors to treat cold, cough, fever, head ache etc. It is easily prepared at home with some herbs. The combination of herbs depends on the ailment. Kashayam is prepared by boiling thewater with certain herbs and the liquid is boiled until it reduces in its content to a certain level.

1. Herbal Kashayam with Pepper and cumin

Common cold and cough can be treated at home with kashayam prepared at home. Below is the ingredients required for the kashayam and the method of preparing it.
Take equal amounts of
Pepper
Jeeragam
Dhaniya
Omum (ajwain)
Kandathippili
Sathakuppai
Dry neem flowers
Dry ginger

Fry each till golden brown & grind everything together.(Do not grind it too smoothly)
To 2 tsp powder add 2 cups of water & boil.
Reduce to 1 cup, strain, add honey & drink this kashayam.
Drink the kashayam twice a day to treat common cold.

2. Kashayam for nagging cough and chest congestion

Boil 3 cups of water with 2 fresh betel leaves and 4 crushed peppercorns, till the water is reduced to half. Strain and drink the kashayam every morning and night with a teaspoon of honey. This willcure cough and cold.

3. Drumstick leaves Kashayam

Boil few Drumstick leaves, karpooravalli leaves, thoothuvalai leaves, dry ginger, pepper, garlic, beetle leaves in two cups of water. When the water reduces to less than one cup, strain and drink the kashayam twice when affected with cold.This kashayam is a good remedy for cold.

4. Thulasi Karpooravalli Kashayam

Ingredients:
Thulasi 10-15 leaves
Karpooravalli leaves - 2
Cumin seeds - tsp
Omam (ajwain seeds) - 1 tsp
Sombu (fennel) -1 tsp
Black Pepper - 4
Method of preparation of Kashayam :

1. Take 4 cups of water in a vessel and add all the ingredients in it.
2. Boil the water for 10 to 15 minutes.
3. Let the water cool.
4. Add honey to the filtered water and drink it.

This kashayam is mild and can be drinked 5 times a day. Children can also be given this to get relieved from cold and cough.

5. Thoothuvalai and AAdathodai Kashayam

Take 1/2 an inch of ginger piece and boil it in 1 cup of water. Boil the water till the water reduces to half. Then cool the water and add honey and give it to child. This type of kashayam can be taken 3 to 4 times a day. This will help ingetting faster relief from cold and cough.
The following herbs are used in our ancient medical system for cold and cough, Dry cough, Sinus, Asthma, Throat Pain , Phlegm :
Thoothuvalai - as Chutney or rasam
AAdathodai - Kashayam
Thulasi - in Coffee or Tea
Karpooravalli - Chutney
Milagaranai - Kashyam
Sitharathai - Kashyam

6. Inji Kashayam

Ginger itself is a medicine in ayurveda. Ginger has medicinal properties and so it is also in the case of cough and cold. Inji kashayam is a very famous kashayam in many houses of Tamilnadu. This not cures cold and cough but also can betaken for indigestion, gastric problems, head ache, running nose , nose block. Those who are normally affected with phlegm in throat can take this kashayam on a regular basis twice a week to get complete cure without any alternate medicine.Children can be given this kashayam once a week to develop better immune.
Ingredients for inji kashayam:
Ginger - 1 inch piece
Pepper - 1/2 a teaspoon
Omam - 1 teaspoon
Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Jaggery powder - 2 teaspoons
Water - 2 cup
Preparation Method:
Grind all the ingredients given above except jaggery with little water. Grind it coarsely.
Add 2 cups of water to the above mixture and add the jaggery.
Let the solution boil until the water reduces to 1 cup.
Then put off the fire and filter the content.
The liquid can be taken once a week to develop better immune.
If affected with cold and cough, take it twice daily in the morning and evening.

7. Jeeragam Omam Kashyam

Even though pepper is one of the ingredient in fighting out cold, some may be getting dry cough when taking pepper. In that case, this kashyam will be useful without pepper.
Ingredients for jeeraga omam kashyam
Water - 1 cup
Cumin(jeeragam) seeds - 3 tbsp
Ajwain(Omam) - 1 tsp
Tulasi - 4 leaves
Honey - 1 tsp
How to make jeeraga omam kashayam
Boil water with the cumin seeds, ajwain . Let the water reduce to half of its content. Switch off the stove and add the tulasi when the water is still hot. Let the water come to little warm tolerable temperature. Strain it and add honey.Drinking this kashyam once a day, gives better relief from cold and cough.
Tips:
A few tulsi leaves boiled in water for the first cup of tea in the morning, taken regularly, is good for the heart and prevents frequent colds.
Lemon juice, honey and ground pepper with hot water instead of bed tea also works most of the time.