Food as Medicine - 3: Folk Remedies

Folk remedies are still around, and they work - surprisingly. For example, did you know that beets lower blood pressure? Slice a raw beet, then throughly cover with freshly squeezed lemon juice. After the slices have been cooled overnight in the fridge, you can begin eating one slice per day. Dramatic drops in blood pressure result.

Chicken soup really does help with colds. It helps un-stuff your nasal passages and prevents congestion in the lungs according to two well-respected university studies.

Dandruff is cured by using apple cider vinegar, diluted with water in a ratio of 1/2 vinegar, 1/2 water, as a rinse after shampooing. For severe cases, soak your hair in apple cider vinegar for one hour before shampooing.

There's lots more information at the sources listed below.

Sources: health911.com, UAB Health System, tenlinks.com.

Homemade Cat Treats

Cats may be more interested in a yarn ball than a rawhide bone, but they deserve their treats, too. There are several sites with recipes for homemade cat goodies: the crispy liver treats at petplace.com is just one of several easy offerings; cdkitchen.com includes a treat for older cats, as does Minnie; and divine recipes has one recipe that looks easy and a cat's version of ice cream, and Rebecca's Soap Deli has a nice one, too.

Homemade Dog Treats

Rather than buying your dog those rawhide bones or multi-colored dog biscuits, you can make dog treats at home - better for your pet, better for your budget.

A big carrot serves the purpose of a rawhide bone, for example. Big enough to carry around, and sturdy enough for some good chewing time. Peanut butter - wiped onto the carrot, the dog bowl, your finger ... another great treat that's nutritious and inexpensive. Bits of cheese can be dog nirvana.

For recipes to make actual cookies, hard biscuits, and things, there are several sites with nice collections: stretcher.com has a few, bullwrinkle.com has a long list, and gwi.com promises all of their recipes to have already been kitchen-tested and dog-approved.