what are your home remedies

There's a medication for horses that's called Cut Heal, a topical med for healing up cuts and scrapes. It sure smells like turpentine, and it works great! I also use Ichthamol (a nasty smelling black salve also marketed for animal use) to help draw deep slivers out and occasionally for other small infected boo-boos.
The best dry skin treatment I have found is Udder Balm (the cream type that isn't greasy)- $5 for a 1 lb jar usually lasts me almost 2 winters.

I have one big toenail that is nasty and thickened...been stepped on countless times by large animals...and is ingrown. Probably got a bit of that toenail fungus as well. My aunt suggested that I try putting Vicks Vaporub on the nail to soften it up and help kill the fungus. I've been doing this for about 5 days now and it already seems to be helping.

sambucol/elderberry extract.....colds, flu, bronchitis
elderberry flowers....constipation/diarrhea
Comfrey tea....stubborn open wounds that won't heal
Garlic....bug detterent (eat lots)
cayenne.....blood /artery cleanser
chocolate....mood enhancer

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My father would "draw" out a sliver by using soap. He liked Fels-Naptha best for this. he'd take a tiny bit of the soap and moisten it. Then he'd put it over the sliver and wrap it with a bandage. After a day or two, the sliver would be out of the skin and no infection either!

I don't know how I forgot about elderberries. When we were on the farm I had a German lady who lived down the road. The first year we were there she asked me what I was going to do with my elderberries. Dumb me, what elderberries? She showed me what they were and told me that when they were ready to pick, pick them and bring them down to me and I will make elderberry juice. She made the juice and told me to take 1 T a day (add a little sugar, honey, etc and cut it with a little water). This stuff is a miracle cure. If you do get sick just take this concoction every hour or so and you will be up and about in a couple of hours.

I have bought juice already prepared in bottles but the home grown stuff is better and more effective.

Sideline: I learned later that the reason there were elderberries on the property was that the man that owned the farm before me was a moonshiner. I was told that he made THE BEST elederberry wine ever!

For colds and flu, strong mint tea with honey-lemon jelly. First, you can drink gallons of it without getting sick of it. That takes care of rehydration. Second, the pectin seems to coat the gut and lesson the symptoms. Colds and flu are actually intestinal diseases. The stuffiness and breathing problems are from histamines that develope in the gut. The menthol helps clear the lungs and sinuses. I'm drinking now. I still feel pretty tired but I made it to work.

There are so many where to start.
Wil try to stay away from herbals - other have posted some.
Some are similar. Wil try to relate as they come to mind. Most not all have been used with varying success at one time or another.
1. 8oz glass of water with equal parts of brown apple cider vinegar and honey -
general tonic.
2.Strips of cotton cloth soaked in brn apple cider vinegar - wrap the feet and
put on socks - for common colds - 5th generation austrian origin.
3.Ice cube or flat part of a knife blade pressed against the site of a bee sting for
relief - not for people who are deadly allergic to stings.
4. Vinegar applied directly to sun burn for pain relief.
5. Aleo vera applied directly to minor burns.
6. Frozen bagel half for edible teething ring.
7. Blackberry wine - half wine and half 7up - or straight for abdominal relief of flu.
8. Blackberry root tea for diarreha relief.
9. Kerosene or coal oil for minor cuts to help heal and prevent infection.
10. Yogurt to help for bladder infection as well as fluids - cranberry juice and
water - as well proper personal hygene.
11. Honey for sore throats and various attributes. A drop on a passifier to get
the infant to suck on it to enhance GI peristolsis and move gas bubbles
may result in colic.
12. Putting a warm water bottle - not hot - approx body temp.- in an infant's
crib on a flannel blanket approx 1/2 hr then removing before putting the
infant into bed. Approximates temp of being help by the parent and not a
temp diff and infant usually sleeps well. Dress and cover the infant as usual.
13. Old home remedy of rubbing an infant's gums with various things to sooth
while teething.
14. Rubbing both halves of a raw potato on a wart.
15. Duct tape on warts for removal.
16. Old stand by of vicks on the neck and covered with a cloth for sore throats
and mild congestion from common cold - not for infants.
17. Messaging rubbing an infant front and back with a soothing rub - east indian
remedy at one time.
18. Jewel weed helps some people with poison ivy.
19. Bach beer used to be considered to be a spring time tonic by an old german
neighbor.
20.Vit B1 for misquito repelant - old fisheman's trick
21. Garlic for various - infectious - issues. Ground garlic was used during WWI
when antibiorics were in short supply - results varies.
22. Soaking in epsomb salts to relieve mild muscle soreness.
More to come if interested. Take as ancedotal and informational not
recommendations.

About 8 years ago I started drinking a cup of green tea every morning. It's supposed to be higher in antioxidants than plain (black) tea.

I haven't had a really bad cold or flu in all that time. I can't swear there is a connection, but I'll keep drinking it every day just the same!

Mint teas for headaches.
Sliced onion in a sock on the bottom of each foot for fevers.
I take garlic religiously every night before bed. About 5000 mg. Garlic keeps colds away. I have not had a cold in 3 years and I have never caught the flu. It purifies the blood, increases stamina, cures acne, fungal and yeast infections and improves blood circulation to the brain as well as the rest of the body.
Chamomile for sleeplessness and anxiety. Valarian root for restlessness and mood. Apple cider vinegar mixed with hot water and honey every day to detoxify and remove mucus from the body.
Nettle and tea tree oil for the hair, skin and scalp.
Camphor and eucalyptus for congestion and shortness of breath.

Will add more as I remember them. We don't get sick often and thanks to the most high we hardly ever have an illness that requires us to seek the help of a western medicine practitioner. I don't think I have seen a doctor in almost 5 yrs.

Oluwafunmilayo

Just remembered a couple of good books. Prescription for Nutritional Healing by James Balch M.D. and Phyllis Balch CNC. The other is Back to Eden by Jethro Kloss.

My Uncle, Ray Pike, wrote and published a small book on the healing properties of vinegar. I have a copy somewhere, and when I run across it I'll post some of his ideas. (By then this thread my be archived off somewhere! :haha: )

Not sure where I read it but some magazine a reader said he took cinnamon for his high blood pressure and it had worked as proven by b/p measurements. He warned that he put it into capsules, as the amount- (1 tablespoon 1-3 x daily) can be likedned to eating dirt. After that, I kept cinnamon and individual containers of applesauce in my office at my old Hospice. Whenever one of our staff had a blood pressure that was significantly elevated (and I was impressed by how many people could recognize that their b/p was elevated) we'de pour a heaping tablespoon of cinnamon into the applesauce, stir it up and tell em to eat it! It seems to have a diuretic effect within 20 minutes- after the ladies would get out of the rest room we would find b/p fallen from 8 to 14 points on systolic (the upper number) Only one lady was resistant to the cinnamon and she wound up being hospitalized for her malignant blood pressure.

I also found cornsilk to be a potent diuretic, and I used it a few times before I could convince my doctor to adjust my blood pressure regimen. Unfortunately, the b/p meds I can tolerate leave me VERY heat sensitive. Plus, for some reason, the manufacturers of cornsilk capsules have stopped making them so last year I saved all my corn silk from sweet cron season, dried it in the oven and stored it in ziplock baggies. I can powder it into hot water and add honey if I need to.

I will put activated charcoal on bee stings and poison ivy. Make a poutice and put wet papertowel on top to keep it moist. Replace after 10 minutes.

Cayenne for diarhea ????

?? Heck its always given me the runs, not cure them...LOL

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I use a hand lotion with NaPCA in the ingredients. It moisturizes, which is especially great in the winter, but it's also supposed to kill many cold viruses. I read that after you use it, there's a protective effect that lasts about two hours. I keep some at work where I'm exposed to a lot of germs from other people. A friend who is a teacher keeps some at school and swears it helps. I know I've had fewer colds since I started using it, only one in two years.

all right ,i am gonna make this brief ..bacuase frankly as an herbalist ,and a strong proponant of home remidiesi could write a book, and perhaps some day i should ......

in brief, dealing with some of the most common things

mint tea for colds,
mint tea for stomach upset
garlic inserted like a suppository for severe yeast infections, otherwise,
yogurt eat about 2 cups a day for 3 days will usually restore the balance
Believe it or not, home made chicken soup does help cure a cold !but so do zinc gluconate lozenges
chamomile tea with warm milk for sleeplessness
a few drops of vanilla extract on your tongue if you burn it on something too hot will help immensely
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar and 2 cups boiled water, makes a great mouthwash !
powdered milk packed in an aching cavity will help stop some of the pain till you get to a dentist,so will garlic and horseradish,and cloves your choice
stop itching from chigger and mosquito bites apply cheap roll on deoderant directly to the bites (WORKS!!!)
earaches , hot compresses and a cotton ball intop the ear with garlic juice on it will generally clear it up in a couple of days
sinus infection or severe conjestion, break out the jalapenjos, and horseradish,actually simply inhaling the vapors will work , if you dont want to eat it, but who could say no to pastrami with horseradish
also 1 clove of garlic eaten will help clear up the infection
saline drops into the nose, 2-3 drops per nostril will help with congestion, onlyuse 2x a day otherwise will lead to more congestion!
frizzy hair , use about 1 T conditioner, in a spray bottle with 1/4 cup water, spray brush or comb as usual, forget the 5-10.00 frizzy serum!

ok, thats a short short list...

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Good timber does not grow with ease,
the stronger the wind the stronger the trees.

Epsom salts to draw out an infection -- handful in a pan of water as hot as you can stand, soak until the water's cold. I'd been doing this for years as I'm nastily allergic to most antiobiotics (neosporin in a deep cut for me is a prescription for an asthma attack).

Leva

I always have a bottle of charcoal. Great for belly aches. Good for slappinng on any infected cut and great for spider, mosquito bites. Mint, chamomile, valerian root are all good for helping you to get to sleep (most of the time). Garlic, cut side down, applied to a wart will make it disappear after a few days. Change the garlic a couple times a day and hold it in place with a bandaid. Chickweed is supposed to be good for cholestral. Soak your feet in apple cidar vinegar and water for toe fungus. Pour olive oil heated with garlic (or warm garlic oil) into an ear for earache.

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Just feed me chocolate.

I also take a teaspoon of sugar...cures hiccups every time for me.

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Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship.

This is strange but it works. When you pass a dead skunk on the road, lick you fingers and rub the edges of your nose (on the outside between the nostril and cheek) and you will not smell the skunk.

I use Goldenseal tea for a gargle for sore throats. Blackberry leaf tea for diarrhea (sp). I save some Raspberry leaves for a female friend, she makes tea for cramps from that. Chopped fresh Ginseng in my morning coffee, altho some herby people are now saying ginseng and caffeine are not good together.