I’M JUST CURIOUS: Strange home remedies

by Debbie Walker

My newsletter from Farmer’s Almanac dated 2/22/22 is titled , 20 Strange Remedies That Work looked like something to share and maybe a few extra comments. As with any other column dealing with health issues, please don’t take my word for it. Questions? Discuss with your doctor or nurse.

Let’s start:

1. Cuticle infection: White vinegar treat torn up and infected cuticles – glass of equal parts distilled white vinegar and warm water. Soak for 15 minutes once a day until infection heals.

2. Hiccups: Wasn’t there a song about ‘a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down’? In this case the sugar stops the spasm that cause hiccups.

3. Removing warts: Yet another use for duct tape. Apply a strip of duct tape over the wart. Keep it on for three days; remove, rub, rub the wart area with a pumice stone and then reapply with new tape. It suffocates the virus. Another cure I have tried is to cover wart with nail polish. After a day pull off the polish then cover again. Been there, done it and it did work.

4. Beets for constipation: This one was new to me. Eat fresh steamed beets, then drink the water.

5. Potatoes for bug bites: Create a poultice by grating a peeled potato and put into a piece of cloth. Secure with a rubber band. Apply to cleaned bite until the potato is dry.

6. “Drunkin” raisin for joint pain relief: I know my Mom tried this but I don’t know what her opinion was. Soak golden raisins in gin over night and eat ten daily. Don’t drive until you know the effect on you!

7. Banana peels for poison ivy relief: Rub the inside of a banana peel against the poison ivy rash. It’s supposed to relieve itching. You can also shine your shoes.

These next ones are from an article called The Very Best Old-Time Remedies.

I don’t know where they came from originally.

• If you carry three potatoes with you at all times and pain will not settle in your bones when you are old.
• Never leave the clippings from your hair on the floor because doing so will cause the achy kind of arthritis to settle in your bones when you are old.
• Eat an onion a day to keep your blood flowing smoothly. You will be less likely to have a heart attack or stroke. (Won’t have many people hanging around you either.)
• Include at least one clove of garlic in your diet each day and you may never need to worry about having too much cholesterol in your blood.
• Each morning and evening, pat orange juice onto the skin around the eyes. You will be rewarded with wrinkle-free skin for all of your life.
• Sip warm onion soup at bedtime and you will be able to sleep in a short time.
• Never allow hate to live in your body. It will stir up the mind, corrode the spirit and lead to an early death and sleepless nights.

Enough for now.

I’m just curious what old cures you have heard over the years. Contact me please with questions and comments at DebbieWalker@townline.org. Have a great week and thanks for reading!