Home Remedies
Aside from prescribed medicine, there are many things that one can do at home to help things along. Here is a small collection of instructions for time-honoured home remedies.
Fresh Ginger Tea - A Fire in a Cup
An ancient remedy for weak and windy digestion, and a pervasive feeling of cold. If you’ve moved to Scotland and can’t get warm, this is the thing for you.
Cut two coins from a fresh root, pop them in the bottom of a tea cup and pour a cup of boiling water over them. Cover and steep for 3-5 minutes, depending on how spicy you like your tea. Drink in the morning on an empty stomach, once in the afternoon and once in the evening, but not just before bed. Also handy if you arrive home half frozen through, feel a bit queasy, or have put in a heavy night.
Onion / Garlic Syrup for Coughs & Colds
A well known remedy for coughs and colds, especially in children, who can help make it. Traditionally, onion syrup is made with sugar but honey or molasses are also good choices, the former with its array of phytochemicals and immune stimulating properties, and the latter with its mineral and vitamin content. Do as thou wilt.
Find a clean jar; medium-sized is usually best. Roughly chop enough onions and/or garlic to loosely fill the jar about ¾ of the way. In the bottom of the jar, put a generous layer of your sweet of choice, then a layer of onion. Cover the onion with another layer or sweet, then another onion and so on until you’ve filled your jar. End with a monstrous layer of sweet, making sure that all of the onion has been blanketed. THe sweet will draw aromatic juice from the onions, and inside of a few hours you will have accumulated a fair amount of syrup. Take 1-2 teaspoons every two hours at the first sign of a cold. Keep it in the fridge, where it keeps well. You’ll know if it’s off by smell or the presence of mould.
Opinions vary widely on the palatability of this particular preparation, but most agree that it’s surprisingly un-nasty. This can also be made from turnip.
Desperation Poultice for a Sore Back or Joint
Made from just three ingredients, this poultice magic on a bad lower back, painfully creaky knee, or neck with a serious crick. Use it on anything requiring heat to ease it off; it’s not suitable for fresh injuries needing ice.
Get a strip of cloth, or kitchen roll at need, that will generously cover the area needing it when folded in thirds. Mix 1 tsp each of ground ginger and turmeric powder and make a paste with water or cider vinegar. You want the paste to quickly seep through the fabric without running everywhere. If the area is large, use more of each spice. Once mixed, spread the paste generously over the middle third of the cloth leaving an inch at either edge to prevent it escaping. Fold each side over and place the single ply side onto the bare skin. Top it with a heating pad or hot water bottle for added effect.
This will stain everything - heating pad, sheets, towels, couch, skin - yellow, but it will work.