Home Remedies For Health Problems

Stomach Troubles:

• Dry roast one teaspoon each of Cummins seeds and caraway seeds (ajwain) in a pan. Add one cup water and boil till it is reduced to half. Strain and add sugar to taste. Drink one teaspoon for relief from acidity and indigestion.

• Curd is an excellent antacid. Few spoons will do the trick.

• Drink cold milk to fight acidity and avoid coffee.

• Mix caraway seeds (ajwain) and salt in equal proportions. Have a little bit of this mixture whenever the acidity pain starts.

• For acidity, after meals, drink a glass of water with a piece of jaggery dissolved in it.

• For relief from stomachache accompanied by diarrhea, swallow ¼ tsp. fenugreek seeds with a glass of warm water three times a day.

• Colic

For immediate relief in a spoon cook a little asafoetida (hing) in water till the mixture becomes slightly transparent. When cool apply the hing paste on and around the navel of the baby, gently massaging the area. Heat a little asafoetida (hing) in a spoon till it is warm to the touch. Take off the fire and mix with a little milk. Give this mixture to the baby. A drink of saunf (aniseed) water for the breast-feeding mother helps reduce colic in the baby. Make this drink by mixing 1 ½ tsp aniseed in 1 kg of water. Simmer for 10 minutes. Cool and strain. Drink this instead of water throughout your breastfeeding period.

First Aid:

• To stop bleeding from a cut, apply honey to it and bandage it.

• Give the child a drink made of hot milk and turmeric soon after an injury. This speeds up the recovery process.

• To dislodge a fish bone stuck in your throat, suck the juice of half a lemon.

Cough and Cold Home Remedies:

• To cure a cough quickly, make a paste of basil leaves and honey. Have a teaspoon of this. Or alternatively boil basil leaves in some water. Strain and add a little honey. Give this mixture to the child.

• To keep throat infection and cough at bay, drink basil water daily.

• Mixture of honey and ginger juice is good for sore throat. Drink one teaspoon of ginger juice mixed with an equal quantity of honey. Follow it up with a glass of warm milk.

• Mix 1 tsp of Honey with ½ tsp of grated ginger. Give this mixture to the child to get rid of a sore throat.

• For a wet cough heat ½ tsp honey and a pinch of turmeric. Let cool and then give it to the child.

• To cure a cough boil ajwain leaf for 20 minutes in some water (just enough to last for 20 minutes). Strain and give the thickish liquid to the child.

• Roast besan (gram flour) and ghee. Add this to glass of milk. This is an ideal drink to fight cough and cold.

• Apply ‘throat paint’ to get rid of a stubborn cough. On a thin stick wrap cotton wool. Dip this in glycerine. Ask the child to keep his mouth open and now use this ‘brush’ to paint the child’s throat from inside.

• Soak 5 almonds overnight. To the soaked and peeled almonds add 1 peppercorn (preferably the white variety), 1 green cardamom (choti elaichi) and 1 tsp sugar. Grind to a paste and give to the child to eat.

• Steam is excellent for opening blocked nasal passages. Use plain water. Do not add anything to it as Vicks and other such additives just block up the passages more.

• To give steam to a very small child you can use one of these methods.

Hold the child in your lap and cover both of you with a towel to retain the steam inside. Be careful of the hot utensil and the boiling water especially for active toddlers! Close all windows and doors of the bathroom. Turn on the hot water tap. Keep the child inside the bathroom for some time. You could play with the child to keep him occupied!

Mouth Care:

• Gargling with the juice of methi leaves can cure mouth ulcers.

• For mouth ulcers apply glycerin and let it run off.

• Gargling with lukewarm saline water before going to bed helps a great deal in reducing gum problems and keeps your breath fresh.

• For toothache rinse the month vigorously with salt water. Hold a clove on that tooth or apply clove oil.

• An excellent way to get rid of hiccups is to drink water from a glass but from the opposite rim.