Old Time Remedies for What Ails You

I just saw a message of somebody having a cold and began to think of some old remedies for colds, flus or anything else that people used instead of prescriptions or counter remedies.

Can anybody think of any folk or old time remedies they heard of?

I have heard of some easy classics like chicken soup or broth, tea, inhaling steam, potatoes on warts, just to name a few.

Then there are some superstitions too like lucky charms, or hanging certain herbs in a certain area of a room. Any old stories?

My Grandmother always said to put the white juice that comes out of a broken dandelion stalk on warts to cure them. Also, walk barefoot because it is a free reflexology treatment.

My Great-aunt used golden seal religiously to help her immunity. She also put urine in her ear to cure swimmer's ear, but I haven't tried that one. Vinegar does work for swimmers ear though. I have tried that.

My mom's very wise friend said to bath in chickweed for arthritis. We drink it as a tea instead.

Cool thread.

I have heard people say that a teaspoon of honey, a day, from your local beekeepers, helps to fight hay fever or allergies of various kinds.

I don't know if this is what you are shooting for, but ginger or mint for nausea.
They really really help. There have been a few occasions when, prior to a migraine especially, I have felt extremely nauseated and nearly "lost it". But chewing on a stick of mint gum really quieted that down fast.

I mean mileage may vary and all that- I find ginger is better for longer stomach upset and mint for acute issues.

I was researching home remedies for an exzema-like skin rash that appeared on my face. In several articles I read that old timers used urine for rashes, including athletes foot, jock itch, ringworm, dandruff! I haven't tried it though.

Was always told to put vicks on your feet if you had the sniffles, apparently your feet absorb it faster than your chest.
Also a cut open onion left beside your bed for a nasty cough is supposed to help.

Rub Vicks Salve on your chest for congestion. Put on a flannel shirt or gown and climb under a lot of blankets. By morning the congestion will be broken. You can also boil onions and make poultices out of them and put them on your chest and repeat with the flannel and blankets as above. You have to be careful though because the onions can burn your skin easily.

Use Vicks Vapor Rub and socks. Even the worst cough can be stopped within 5-15 minutes, and lasts hours. Just apply the vapor rub generously to the bottom of your (or childs) feet, and cover with socks. works 100% of the time, and has been proven to work better than prescription drugs!...

I haven't tried this yet... Am looking forward to trying it...

I make hot lemonade from scratch whenever I have a cold. It is very soothing. If my stomach is achy and queasy, I make ginger tea.

I read a book on folk remedies not too long ago. People used to be really big on using skunk oil and kerosene for just about everything. They also said to tie a live toad by a rag wrapped around your neck and leave it there until it died and started to stink as a cure for strep throat. I can't imagine!

don't know if the toad would cure my strep throat, but it would certainly prevent people from getting it from me. They wouldn't want to be near me lol

Thanks for this.

I have heard that cloves are great for toothache.

Italian mothers apparently used cold espresso coffee in the eyes for pink eye.

I tried the warm teabag on my eye for a stye. it worked!

Frayed Ends, the tannins in the tea bag help the sties. Chamomile is also healing to the eyes. I had some kind on inflammation last week. I put a wet chamomile tea bag on each eye and covered it with a warm eye shield. I left it there until the eye shield got cold. It worked wonders. Now I put them on my eyes every morning and evening just because it feels good.

At the first sign of a cold/ sore throat: (here are two options)

Boil water to make tea. Option One: Make ginger tea (as sweet as you like; ginger is very strong), and wrap yourself in blankets so you feel very warm. Go to bed----and in the morning, your symptoms will be gone.

Option Two: Make a cup of regular black tea (decaf is fine). Take a clove of garlic, smash it all over a piece of bread, roll it up & eat it (w/butter, if that helps), down the tea (as hot as you can stand it), do the blanket thing again and go straight to bed. This is an Armenian cure. You will not have any symptoms the next day.

I have tried both, and they do work.

At the start of a sinus infection (you know how it feels, if you've ever had one) Down lots of vitamin C and D...and take zinc (washing it down with OJ takes the taste away pretty effectively.) I've used this at the first sign of a SI and it reduced it to less than a mild cold, and infection was stopped dead in its tracks. Repeat every day for two or three days.

Better than being laid up in bed feeling horrible.

I love this thread!! I have a lot of allergies and I'm going to get some honey from the farmer's market and try that, it makes sense. also similar to the advice above, I read about a Mexican remedy in which pressed garlic is added to tea before drinking with some lemon added. I think that makes a lot of sense too, but haven't tried it yet.

I just heard from a friend that his mother swore by soaking ginger root in rum and then rubbing it over the joints, it was great for joint pain. Then she would drink the rum. I am not sure which part resolved the joint pain better lol. ;0

I've heard of putting Maalox on a cold sore. That did help me when I tried it.