Garlic: A Natural Antibiotic That's Powerful and Respected

Over three years ago (wow, I've been blogging here a long time!), I wrote about olive leaf extract as a natural antibiotic.  However, I've discovered that as a natural antibiotic, fresh garlic works so much better for me, and I thought I'd share my discovery with you.

Here's the backstory.  Friday morning, I woke up feeling yucky and just didn't have time for it -- and didn't want to go to the doctor where I would either be told: (1) it's a virus, thanks for your office visit; or (2) it's a bacterial infection, here's some antibiotics for you.   What did my ancestors do before Doc in the Boxes?  I went online to find out, and learned about garlic.

Garlic Is a Natural Antibiotic that Has Been Used for Thousands of Years

I learned that Louis Pasteur studied the antibacterial properties of garlic.  I learned that Hippocrates dispensed it. 

Additionally, I learned that modern researchers found garlic to have (go to link for citations)"...the broadest spectrum of any antimicrobial substance that we know of — it is antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, antiprotozoan and antiviral.” I also found out that unlike modern medicine's antibiotics, which are failing to conquer the new "superbugs," garlic remains a powerhouse against them. 

What's in raw garlic?

Two things:  Crushed, raw garlic has (1) allicin, a powerful antibiotic and(2) phytoncide, an antifungal compound. Other stuff, too, if you want to go read those medical studies (click the links).  It has the stuff to get rid of what's ailing me, as well as having all sorts of amazing health benefits, like fighting against heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.  Wow. 

So, garlic sounds like something I'm willing to try before I go see a medical health care provider. 

Garlic in a Tonic - What I Did

Last spring, I wrote about tonics -- which were pretty standard stuff until Modern Medicine introduced us to pills and tablets.  Personally, I think tonics are great.  You know what's going into them, and you really do feel the benefits. 

In that March 2010 post, I shared tonic recipes for Tonic Tea and Apple Cidar Vinegar Tonic as well as lots of links to long lists of tonic recipes.  Today, I'm sharing my new Garlic Tonic recipe - and while it may not make you kissably-sweet, heck: it worked for me.  I'm amazed and thrilled about this!!!!

Here's what I put together that got me back to 100% within three days time:

Reba's Garlic Tonic

In a Magic Bullet-type blender, I put the following:

8 peeled garlic cloves
Equal amount of fresh cubed ginger ( for pain, read about this tip here)
Big squirt of organic, local raw honey
Filled it 1/3 with Bragg's Apple Cidar Vinegar (read about ACV here)
Filled the rest with water

Pulverized the stuff.  Then, I drank 2T in a cup of water or orange juice every 6 hours.  With crackers, to keep that garlic from making me nauseous. 

Friday, I felt bad.  Sore throat, sinus headache, runny nose, swollen glands in my neck, watery eyes, fever, ear popping, grumpy, tired. 

I adhered to this tonic regimen together with drinking Emerg-C four times a day (not at the same time).

Monday morning, popped up feeling FABULOUS.  No symptoms.  None. 

Cost in time and money?  Less than $10 and no lost time at a doctor's office.  Folk remedy?  Sure.  But it worked like a charm for me, and I don't have any antibiotics in my system to worry about, thankyewverymuch. 

Have a great day!!

Anti-Inflammatory Herbs - Natural Relief for Inflammation

Yesterday, I posted about inflammation - acute vs chronic - and ways to fight it.  Herbs, pills, diet.  Stuff I've learned after hurting my foot and having to deal with a painful hurt tendon.  Owee.

Today, thought I'd list the various herbal and natural anti-inflammatories I learned about during my research, as well as sharing links that proved helpful to me. 

Personally, I'm drinking green tea made with fresh ginger, sweetened with stevia, and I really think it's helping on the pain front.  But ginger is far from the only anti-inflammatory that's all natural (read: not a pill) - here's a partial list:

Avoid the NSAIDs: Find a Natural Anti-Inflammatory (Herb, Food, Spice) That Works for You

Herbs and Spices

Arnica
Basil
Boswellia
Bromelain
Cayenne Pepper (Capsaicin)
Chondroitin
Cinnamon
Devils Claw
Garlic
Ginger
Glucosamine sulfate
Glucosamine - chondroitin sulfate combo
Licorice root
SAMe (S-adenosyl methionine)
St. John's Wort
Tea Tree Oil
Turmeric
White Willow Bark

Foods

Green Tea
Apple Cider Vinegar
Acerola (West Indian) Cherries
Apples
Avocados
Bell Peppers
Black Currants
Blueberries
Broccoli
Brussel Sprouts
Cabbage
Collard Greens
Guavas
Kiwifruit
Kumquats
Leeks
Lemons
Limes
Mulberries
Onions
Oranges
Papaya
Raspberries
Rhubarb
Spinach
Strawberries
Tomatoes
Turnip Greens


For more information, check out:

Natural Holistic Health

All 4 Natural Health

Metabolism Advice

Natural News

Apple Cider Vinegar - Folk Remedy That's Been Around for Centuries

Without going into TMI ("too much information"), I have gone to Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar as a tonic for what ails me and I've been really, really happy with the results. 

Sure, there are those that scoff at drinking some cloudy vinegar in some water and having it heal what ails ya.  Fine, then they don't have to drink the stuff. Me?  I'm keeping a bottle in my cabinet from here on out. 

And rather than go on and on about how apple cider vinegar has been used literally for centuries to heal various ailments -- digestive troubles (ahem), migranes, sinus infections, arthritis, high blood pressure, the list just goes on and on and on -- I'm going to share with you, Dear Reader, some of the sites that I found to have helpful info.  If you want to find scoffer sites, you're on your own.  Apple Cider Vinegar worked for me and I'm sold. 

EarthClinic

Alternative Medicine - About.com

HomeRemediesWeb

Natural News


Image: Bragg's Organic Apple Cidar Vinegar, sold in your local health food stores as well as the Bragg's own website, http://bragg.com/products/bragg-organic-apple-cider-vinegar.html. 

Using Your Dishwasher? TANG and More

Okay, using a dishwasher may not be the simplest of things. You're using electricity and water that washing by hand avoids.

However, simplicity is a continuum -- we are all on different points on the line. And, for those still using their dishwasher, here are some handy hints:

1. Don't pre-rinse the dishes with a running tap. Take a bowl; fill it with hot, soapy water; use a sponge and wipe the dishes using this water. Tell yourself you're being European if this helps. Studies show that running a tap to pre-rinse the dishes uses 25 gallons per meal. Appliance manufacturers suggest that you just scrape and load: as we all know, this doesn't work well - which is why pre-rinsing continues.

2. If the dishes come out spotted, or worse yet, with a soap film - try Tang. There are those vinegar stories out there, but a half-container of Tang run thru a full cycle in an empty dishwasher gives a better result. (It's the citric acid in the Tang that helps to clean the dishwasher itself.) For a really good cleaning, after the Tang run, try a run of vinegar and baking-soda combo -- the dishwasher will run as good as new.

3. Run the hot water in the tap till it's hot, before you turn on the dishwasher. Hot water is essential for a good dishwasher result. Hey, and use the water you ran for something: make tea, water a plant, refill the dog bowl.

4. Always run the dishwasher when the load is full.

5. Don't use the dishwasher's "dry" function. Once the rinse is done, let the machine's work be done. Crack the door open, and air dry.

Uses for Vinegar

Vinegar - there are entire sites devoted to its miriad of uses. I posted about some of its household uses last year -- but that didn't begin to cover everything that is great about basic, common vinegar ....

Medicinally, apple cidar vinegar is a folk remedy that garners thousands of testimonials, and has been used for centuries for everything from arthritis to depression.

Helping pets: from fleas to hot spots, vinegar has lots of testimonials to being a Godsend.

In gardening: spray it, undiluted, between the bricks on the patio to get rid of the weeds popping thru (yep, no more toxic stuff). I could go on and on and on.

Here's some sites to check out if you'd like to learn more:

Vinegar uses in the garden

1001 Uses for White Distilled Vinegar

131 Uses for Vinegar

Uses for Vinegar - Pet Care

Apple Cider Vinegar Cures

And the cost? Amazon.com sells a huge bottle (128 oz.) of Heinz White Vinegar for $3.99.

Homemade Dishwasher Soap Recipes

There are several recipes for homemade dishwasher soap. Why bother? It's much more economical than buying the stuff, even if you're at DollarTree -- plus you know what you're using here, chemically.

For each load:
1 Tablespoon Borax
1 Tablespoon Baking soda
or
2 Tablespoons of the following - 1 cup baking soda combined with 1 cup borax, and 2-3 tablespoons Fruit Fresh

For the rinse:
1 cup white vinegar, either poured into the JetDry vessel or placed into a cup securely placed into the top rack.

What's borax? It's a salt, naturally occurring in some parts of the USA as well as China, and it's used not only as a cleansing agent but also as a water softener and a preservative. Remember Twenty Mule Team Borax? It sponsored quite a few TV Westerns in the 1960s.


Sources: thriftyfun.com, naturalhomemadecleaners.com, answers.com.

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.

Vinegar's Unbelievable Variety of Uses

That plain, white, cheap vinegar you can pick up at the grocery has an unbelievable amount of uses around the home. Why? Vinegar is a natural germ-killer. The Heinz Company has produced research studies showing that white vinegar will kill 99% of the bacteria, 82% of the mold, and 80% of the germs it contacts. And, it's natural, biodegradeable, and safe for kids and pets.

How to use it? Use it straight to clean toilet bowls as well as kitchen cutting boards and countertops (let all set for 30 minutes, then rinse). Put a bottle into the washer and let a cycle run. Clean windows with a spray bottle filled with a dollop of vinegar to a bunch of water (10% vinegar, 90% water).

In gardening, vinegar is amazing. Put it out in a jar top, and the bugs run. Put a teaspoon in the vase water, cut flowers last longer.

There's lots more at about.com, 131 Uses for Vinegar.