What’s your Home Remedy?

There have been so many instances when certain first aid/ medicines or a medical expert are unavailable, we resort to home remedies. Home remedies are such that are passed down from generations and can be life saving at times! Home remedies are not only natural, but safe and are tried and tested over years. Each time, you can better it with some combination or the other.

My aunt had taught me a homemade cough syrup which is known to clear a bad throat, congestion and a runny nose in a jiffy. This is ideal when you don’t want to have too much of medicines/ cough syrups and certain home made concoctions are known to provide fast and better relief, such as this one.

[scg_html_choclate] Home Made Cough Syrup
Boil a glass of water with crushed tulsi leaves, 1 inch crushed ginger, 1 cinnamon stick, 2 -3 pods of crushed cardamom, 2-3 nos. crushed cloves, 1 bay leaf and 1-2 tablespoon of honey (or according to taste).

Boil it until one full glass of water becomes half and pour it back into the glass. Cool it and place it in the refrigerator (during summers or keep it outside during winters). You need to keep sipping the concoction every half an hour and by the end of the day, you will feel fitter and better.

When kids get cold and cough, it spreads like wildfire among siblings or friends. On my last visit to Dubai, I made this concoction for my nephew Arnav (11) and nieces Mahi (8) and Mysha (2), when they were down with cold, cough and fever. To my surprise, they loved this concoction and kept sipping it throughout the day. I was happy to see that the kids slept well at night without a blocked nose and of course, got up fresh the next morning. You need to make a fresh concoction everyday as the colour turns dark and the water rancid if kept for too long.

[scg_html_choclate] Runny Nose and Nausea

Gurgaon based Campaigns Operations Manager, Mimi Munshi, shares a home remedy for babies when they have cough or a runny nose. Warm some mustard oil with 2-3 garlic cloves and a pinch of onion seeds (kalaunji) and then apply it generously on the feet and palm of the baby. Faster relief is attained if the baby is then made to wear mittens and booties to keep the hand and feet warm and to prevent oil from spreading to the linen.

Mimi also shares a home remedy to get over nausea, passed down to her from her mother-in-law. Take 4 cloves and powder it. Mix this clove powder in 1 cup of water and boil it till the water becomes half cup. Add 2 spoons of sugar and stir it well. Then you have to strain it through a sieve. Cool this liquid. When you sip this liquid for some time, your nausea goes off.

[scg_html_choclate] Bee Bite
Bangalore based Chartered Accountant, Gargi Ray, shares a home remedy that she learnt from her mother-in-law, “If you get bitten by a honey bee, keep twisting an onion in a circular manner over the affected area, which helps in pulling out the venom.”

[scg_html_choclate] Top 8 Home Remedies
Kolkata based Professor Naina Dey, shares a list of home remedies:

1. A mixture of lime and turmeric paste helps sooth sprained ankles and wrists.

2. Pure sandalwood paste when applied to acne reduces pimples. It is effective on rashes and boils as well.

3. Karela and neem leaves are not only good for diabetics but also keep your stomach healthy. It can even be taken by patients who have lost their taste due to prolonged intake of antibiotics.

4. Cucumber ought to be every diva’s favourite. It not only fills your tummy between meals but never lets you get fat.

5. Kulekhara leaves are rich in iron. Boil some in water and drink the liquid.

6. Sipping plain warm water can ease menstrual pain.

7. Insert tiny thin twigs of tulsi into newly-pierced ear holes to make them heal faster.

8. For sudden fall in blood pressure stir a spoonful of sugar and a pinch of salt in a glass of water and consume immediately.

So whatever it is, be it elderly, kids, or even pets, you can try a home remedy of two. Before I sign off, I would like to add, that if your pet dog/ cat gets wounded, never clean the wound with Dettol as it burns the sensitive and tender skin of the wounded animal. The safer option is to use Betadine (Iodine tincture), which has a soothing effect while cleaning an open wound and the same applies for humans as well.

What’s your Home Remedy? If you’d like to share your Home Remedies with us, you can send it to  tanya@tanyamunshi.com. We plan to come out with a second series on Home Remedies, and your contribution will be valuable.

‘What’s your Home Remedy?’ has been featured in Suhaag.com, one of Canada’s leading event, publishing and digital company.