Monthly Archives: January 2017
Peppermint For Colds and Flu
If you have a dry cold, drink peppermint tea and it will almost immediately ease your symptoms. And if your friends are scared of catching it from you, or you wish to keep your family free from infection, tell them to rub a little peppermint oil under the nose and round the throat, and to take a small dose as well, it is an antiseptic and a strong preventative of disease.
From: Gypsy Cures for Coughs and Colds
Garlic and Milk for a Cough
Try drinking a glass of hot milk at night with a crushed clove of garlic in it. This is very good for both coughs and colds, and will give some relief asthma sufferers.
Romany Elderflower Cure for Colds
If you have access to an elderberry tree, its berries and flowers will quickly help to dispel your discomfort. Store elderflowers after drying them out in the sun, and you can make a healing beverage at any time by pouring boiling water over them and adding a little sugar. The Romanies claim that it puts paid to a head cold if taken immediately the first signs are noticed. This infusion is also soothing and will help to give a good night`s sleep. It will also calm the nerves.
Barberries For The Flu
If you stew barberry berries with a little water until they are soft, then squeeze them through a strainer, pressing out all the juice with a wooden spoon and add three pints of water to one of juice, you will have an excellent drink which, if taken hot at night, will induce the perspiration that drives out a cold
Balm for the Flu
If you are not sure whether it`s a cold or flu coming on, don`t hesitate, infuse 1 oz of fresh or dried balm with a pint of boiling water and take it very hot, last thing at night. It will drive out a cold and arrest an attack of influenza – but you should take it in good time when you feel the first symptoms coming.
From: Gypsy Cures for Coughs and Colds
Note: as to exactly which balm plant this refers to is unclear to me, so I am sharing this definition of balm from Britannica.com. Be sure to research any herb before you use it.
Balm, any of several aromatic herbs of the mint family, grown for their fragrant leaves. The best-known balm plant is Melissa officinalis, also called balm gentle or lemon balm, which is cultivated in temperate climates and used as a scent in perfumery, as a flavouring in such foods as salads, soups, sauces, and stuffings, and as a flavouring in liqueurs, wine, and fruit drinks. Other common mint balms include bastard balm (Melittis melissophyllum); bee balm, or bergamot (Monarda didyma); richweed, or horse balm (Collinsonia canadensis); field balm, or creeping Charlie (Glechoma hederacea); lesser calamint, or field balm (Clinopodium nepeta); and Molucca balm, or bells of Ireland (Moluccella laevis). The use of balm in wine drinks and as a diaphoretic (induces heavy sweating) in medicinal teas can be traced back to ancient Greek and Asian cultures.
Egg White Cough Cure
If you have a hard cough, beat the white of an egg to a froth, then add a tablespoonful each of vinegar and sugar. Drink this at bedtime, and the cough will not trouble you during the night.
Licorice and Lemon for Coughs
Another old Romany recipe to soothe any cough is made with licorice root, coltsfoot and lemon. Simmer 1 oz of licorice root in 3 pints of water till it is reduced to 1 pint. Put 1 oz of coltsfoot and a sliced lemon into a jug and add the decoction. Stir well, sweeten with honey, allow to get cold, then drink as required.
Sunflower Seed and Ginger For Coughs
If you have the hacking cough of a heavy smoker this remedy will disguise your weakness. Put two ounces of sunflower seeds into a saucepan with a quart of water, and an inch or so of whole ginger. Simmer until reduced to a pint and a half. Add sugar or honey to taste. When cold, strain. A tablespoon of whisky will help the drink to stay fresh; if it is not added, it should be made fresh every two or three days. This is an excellent decoction to relieve bronchitis or a hacking cough.
Pickled Walnut Gargle
Vinegar from a jar of pickled walnuts is a very good gargle for sore throats? Do not throw it away, keep it in an airtight jar until it is needed. Here’s a recipe for pickled walnuts: Pickled Walnuts
Elderberry Cold Preventative
Put stalked elderberries into an earthenware jar, cover with a well-fitting lid and place in a slow oven. Leave till the juice flows, then pour it off into a pan and return the covered jar to the oven. Continue doing this until you have obtained all the juice from the fruit. Extract amount remaining by squeezing the fruit through muslin.
Measure the juice, and to every pint add half a pound of loaf sugar, about half a dozen cloves and a piece of bruised root ginger.
Place the pan over heat and bring to the boil. Simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, then strain into bottles or jars with a secure lid. Drink diluted with hot water to taste.
Saida: Salves To Heal Up Wounds
Brenda-Lee: Egg White Cough Cure
Pat Scott: Marsh Mallow Ointment
Sharon from Cleveland, Ohio: Egg White Cough Cure
Vagabond Witch: Soapwort Shampoo
I think it's time to go shopping... maybe even buy some really cool stuff at my online shops!!