Quick & Handy Home Remedies: Find practical, affordable ways to deal with some of life's most common ailments, proving that getting back to the basics has its reward. Only $16.95 +s/h
Was this information helpful? Average rating: 5/5 (4 votes)
What do you think? Click the stars to vote!
If you have more to say, post a comment below!
Q. When I was two, I was very ill and was hospitalized in a sanitarium. There the children were fed goat’s milk. The goats roamed the hills around the hospital and foraged on poison oak.
I have been immune to this plant all my life. I could even rub it on me and nothing would happen. I have pulled up a lot bare-handed. I’ve always assumed that drinking that goat’s milk was responsible. What do you think?
A. Goats will eat poison ivy and poison oak without problems and can be used to control these noxious weeds. American folklore holds that drinking the milk of goats that have eaten these toxic leaves will make a person less susceptible to the rash.
Scientists say, however, that the goat’s milk contains no urushiol. This is the compound that causes the rash. So drinking goat’s milk shouldn’t protect people. We found your story fascinating, though. Some people are more resistant to this contact dermatitis, and you may to be one of the lucky ones regardless of drinking goat’s milk.
Q. My husband has had restless legs for a long time. I kept reading about the soap remedy in your column, and I finally decided to put the soap in our bed without his knowledge. It worked! It's really unbelievable.
One day last month my son was home doing his laundry. He always folds his clothes on our bed, and he came to me saying, "Mom, do I want to know why there's a bar of soap in your bed?"
A. We wish we knew why a bar of soap under the bottom sheet often helps ease restless legs. This condition, a persistent irresistible urge to move the legs, can interfere with sleep. Not only the sufferer but the bed partner as well may end up sleep-deprived.
We have discussed this home remedy in our Guide to Leg Pain, which also discusses many other treatments for nighttime leg cramps. Anyone who would like a copy, please send $2 in check or money order with a long (no. 10) stamped (63 cents), self-addressed envelope: Graedons' People's Pharmacy, No. RLS-5, P. O. Box 52027, Durham, NC 27717-2027. It can also be downloaded for $2 from the Website: www.peoplespharmacy.com.
Q. Lately my favorite hiccup cure, peanut butter, has come under fire as a choking hazard. I found a substitute that works just as well, but without the risk. Peanuts!
If you're allergic to peanuts I wouldn't suggest this, but if you've used the peanut-butter hiccup cure before, this works too. I gave up peanut butter as part of my weight loss plan, so I don't keep any in the house. I do like to snack sometimes on dry-roasted unsalted peanuts.
I got the hiccups one night and I ate a handful of peanuts and drank a little water. My hiccups were gone! A friend had the same result, so I expect this will help others.
A. Swallowing a spoonful of dry sugar or sucking on a section of lemon are time-honored hiccup cures. Thanks for suggesting a new one.
Q. I have had toenail fungus problems for years and years. Recently a friend sent me a magic formula that cleared my nails in less than a month. I just spray a half-and-half mixture of hydrogen peroxide and water on my toes once or twice a day.
A. Diluting the hydrogen peroxide solution you can buy at the drugstore should give you a safe way to treat fungus. The antiseptic properties of hydrogen peroxide probably discourage the fungus and keep it from spreading.
Was this information helpful? Average rating: 5/5 (4 votes)
What do you think? Click the stars to vote!
If you have more to say, post a comment below!
I grew up with goats and exclusively on goat milk. Our goats had acres of land to roam on and ate lots of poison ivy. I can say that neither I nor my brother have EVER had poison ivy, and we can roll in without getting it.
On top of that, my mother and father, who have both gotten it before the goats, have never had it since.
It may be coincidence, but I personally buy it.
My husband and I used to get severe poison ivy, UNTIL we got goats to eat the poison ivy and started drinking their milk. We still have lots of poison ivy about the place, but our cases are now very mild. I did a blog post on this and was surprised at the number of comments from folks who confirmed they had the same experience, even with cows milk. They common factor seemed to be that all were drinking raw milk. Perhaps it is something other than urushiol in the milk that imparts the boost to the immune system. Science has many mysteries to unravel yet.