Health Tips ¬ Building Your Natural Home PharmacyHere are some suggestions for remedies to have on hand at home. At the grocery store you should be able to find the following;
Fresh Ginger - tea from root helps break fever by inducing sweat. To make the tea - chop or grate nickel-sized piece of root, add hot water, let sit for 5 minutes; also to settle nauseous stomach from flu or sea sickness; decreases gas from beansCayenne Pepper - add to ginger tea to help increase sweat, increases circulation to hands and feet when eaten, keeps feet toasty if added to shoes
Garlic - add to food at end of cooking, increase amount eaten to keep immune system strong, antiviral/antibiotic; aids in expelling mucus; for warts- a thin slice on warts over night, avoid surrounding skin as may cause irritation
Onions - same medicinal properties as garlic only weaker; makes excellent poultice for earaches- slowly cook onion in a little water or microwave until soft, put in thin cotton or cheese cloth, place over painful ear, change cloth every time you change onion
Parsley - fresh parsley is great for neutralizing bad breath; a tonic for the bladder
Lemon Juice - fresh is always best, but Minute Maid has a good unsweetened frozen concentrate; drinking the juice of half a lemon with a little water in the morning before breakfast is great for the digestion and cleansing the liver; great to put on pimples to dry them up
Brown Rice - excellent as a source of fiber, use rice water for acute diarrhea- 1 cup rice + 4 cups of water, boil for a 1/2 hour, drink 1/2 cup of the water every 1/2 hour with a pinch of cinnamon until diarrhea is better (1-2 hours), do not eat while using as will encourage diarrhea to continue
Prunes/Dates/Figs/Cornmeal - to soften stool; 1 cup each of prunes, dates and figs plus 1/2 cup cornmeal, cook with enough water to prevent drying out for 1/2 hour, use 1-2 tablespoons a day
Almonds - raw almonds are best to use; high in calcium; 3-4 can be chewed at a time for helping to decrease indigestion instead of Tums
Baking Soda and Salt - for use with congested sinuses or as a gargle, use 1/4 tsp. sea salt, 1/8 tsp. baking soda and 1/2 cup of warm water. For sinuses, sniff 1 tablespoon of the solution up each nostril, once to twice daily, as needed.
Oats - excellent breakfast for winter time and source of fiber; oatmeal bath (Aveeno) or 1 cup oats in a sock soothes itchy and dry skin
Chamomile tea - member of mint family helps expel gas; mild nervine drink for relaxing before bed; mild tea excellent for colic or irritable teething baby
Next are items to pick up at any health food store;
Echinacea - antiviral/antibiotic, take on first sign of illness, for prevention - 20 drops twice a day, ON SIGN of ILLNESS - 20 drops every two hours, if sick - 20 drops four times a day,do not take for over two weeks at a timeVitamin C - if using crystals or chewable rinse mouth after use, increases immune system and decreases inflammation, typical daily dose for prevention 500 mg 1 three times a day, if sick - 2 pills three times a day; use vitamin C with bioflavonoids
Zinc Lozenge - increases immune system, up to 60 mg daily for adult for sore throat
Gentian or Bitters - to be used over 1½ to 2 months to improve digestion, Gentian may be used alone as a tea (1 teaspoon of leaves per cup); either are used before each meal
Eucarbon (charcoal) - used to absorb gas or excessive stomach acid; also a laxative
Acidophilus - friendly bacteria naturally found in intestines, used for gas, constipation or diarrhea, 2 pills twice a day on empty stomach; to be taken while on antibiotics
Feverfew - pain relief (works on same pathway in body as Tylenol), headaches, menstrual cramps,etc...
Children's Multivitamin - useful for children who struggle with vegetable intake
Green Supplement - for example, Symon's Mix or Barley Green, excellent for teens and adults who are lower in energy and/or don't eat enough vegetables; the powder form is best
Natural Black Licorice - expectorant, to expel and loosen mucus
The last remedies can be found at your local pharmacy;
Aloe Gel - excellent to aid in healing and decrease pain from burns; good moisturizer or as a scent- free hair gelEpsom Salt - one cup in a bath for achy muscles and to help detoxify
Hydrogen Peroxide - few drops in ears once a day, a week at a time, every few months to excess wax
Witch Hazel - excellent non-drying astringent and after shave
Finally, here a few books to have for home reference;
Chicken Soup and Other Folk Remedies
by Joan and Lydia Wilen
ISBN 0-449-90190-4Prescription For Nutritional Healing
by James and Phyllis Balch
ISBN 0-89529-429-XEncyclopedia of Natural Medicine
by Michael Murray, N.D./Joseph Pizzorno, N.D.
ISBN 1-55958-091-7
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