A Winter Survival Guide, home remedy style!
I wanted to go a bit deeper into herbal home remedies. So I went asking family and friends what is their family’s favorite home remedies.
From the very practical, flannel sheets warm socks to the rather unusual, cigarette tobacco for ringworm? my family did not disappoint.
First, we will start with my Maternal side of the family… My Great Grandmother Borba’s go-to was a Hot Toddy. Which is basically whisky tea with honey and lemon. Click the yellow link for the full recipe. My Nana (Grandmother) also gave all of us Hot Toddies.
Another remedy that all my Aunts spoke of was a mustard plaster. I have my Aunt doing research on what was in it from her mother. They all spoke of a smelly plaster that was put on their chest and neck and covered with towels while warm. It was used for bronchitis and chest ailments. I’m dying to know what they used!
My Uncle walked on a floor heater grate as a small child and burned his feet. My mother spoke of them putting egg whites on the bottom of his feet and covering with socks to heal.
Orange Spiced Teas to soothe an episode of asthma is also a favorite. You can also grate orange peel for tea.
An Aunt that is a nurse spoke of putting a sliced potato on a cut, the starch kills infection.
And Blackberry Brandy for a cough.
Peppermint candy as a tea for cramps or nausea.
Flannel sheets and warm socks were mentioned by more than one person, and deserves a shout-out!
My Grandma Reehl, ever the practical woman always said chicken soup. Which has now been scientifically proven to work! Go, Grandma!
My Paternal side of the family spoke of two remedies. The first was of course the Hot Toddy!
The other was a plant that my Aunts and Uncles would go out to the field and harvest. My Aunt could only sort of remember the name in Portuguese. Malvish, she thought. So while on the phone with another family member who speaks the language, I asked. Yes! Malvish or marbleweed someone thought. I called my Aunt Nancy back and was talking about the plant and what it looked like. It wasn’t what I thought it was…She was describing it as a stalky plant with round leaves. So I started thinking, what would it sound like in another language? Most plants names are Latin, so I tried Malva and behold! Like Grandma was guiding me, there it was Malva Neglecta! better known as Malloweed. My Grandmother made a smoothie every day for my Grandfather who used it for his bladder and kidney. I looked it up, and sure enough, Grandma was right! I think I have already found it locally, just waiting for the flowers to confirm. This whole experience is so much fun! Ask your family members what they remember, you won’t be disappointed!
My Grandma Amorin always said the Ocean will heal anything. Rash, sadness, anything that ails you. Swim in the Sea. Which was the original inspiration for The Butterfly Hill Seaweed Oil and our families ezcema.
My Aunt also spoke of my Grandma taking apart a cigarette and making a paste of the tobacco and putting it on a large ringworm. It was gone in the morning. Ew!
Also mentioned was that my Grandmother would boil mushrooms with a dime, (dimes were silver then) if the dime turned black, the mushrooms were poisonous. Clever Grandma!
Now on to the Hawaiian Ohana or family…
Chicken and Rice Porridge with ALOT of Ginger. Like as big as a man’s hand of ginger!
Honeybush Tea with honey was mentioned for lungs and immunity. I’m getting some!
Gargling with Saltwater got lots of attention. And it also is good for your gums to help keep bacteria levels low.
Switching to Red Rice has benefits for diabetes levels
Bittermelon reduces cholesterol, its an aquired taste, but worth it! So I hear!
For sore joints, heat a wool cloth in the microwave with castor oil on it. Wrap around pained joint, then cover with saran wrap. I may try this with our St. John’s Wort Oil!
One of my favorites comes from my Hula Uncle Richard, who lives on the big island now. He speaks of Lantana that was boiled and used to bathe in for sore muscle pain.
And Guava leaves were boiled and used for a steam bath.
The Kiliko plant was brewed as a tea to purge the system. He speaks of many other remedies that they were not allowed to know about them. So interesting!
A friend that is an MD swears by Bone Broth Soup. He drinks a small jar every day for lunch, always has, always will. You can find an easy DIY to make bone broth here on The Butterfly Hill with no ads or pop-ups! (as always)
Another MD friend says at the first sign of cold or flu take Bone Broth Soup every day till better, Vitamin C 2000-3000mg a day. Advil 400-600 mg a day for pain. And Gan Mao Ling (a Chinese herb) 6 tablets every 4-6 hours and Bi Yan Pian 4 tablets 3 times a day. And Thieves oil on tip of tongue frequently while symptomatic.
Some of my favorite remedies are White Flower Oil. A Chinese Oil for muscle pain. It’s great to massage on to sore muscles. I’ve been using it for years after being turned on to it in Kung Fu.
Fresh Eucalyptus in the shower clears the sinus beautifully.
Get lots of greens in a daily smoothie, it’s also easy to add in powders for added nutrition.
I also love The Butterfly Hill’s The Ancient One. Which has all the same ingredients as Thieves Oil. And is a preventive health tonic in Vodka.
And of course hydrate, hydrate and hydrate!
I look forward to learning more about the beautiful plants that heal us, and the ways that we have figured out how to use them as home remedies.
What are your family remedies? What do you remember?
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