You use these herbs to cook—now use them to ease painful problems!
Cook up some healing
When a headache hits, or heartburn sets in, you probably head to the medicine cabinet to pop some pills. But have you ever considered heading to your kitchen for some natural remedies? It's true; the same herbs that make your meals so tasty offer a wide variety of helpful health treatments. Read on for eight herbal fixes for heartburn, headaches, sinus pain, and more!
or heartburn
Put the fire out with tumeric. Bitter herbs such as turmeric (a key curry ingredient) help stimulate the flow of digestive juices, moving food along and preventing acid buildup. If using turmeric as a quick kitchen cure doesn't stop the pain, try two or three turmeric capsules (1/2 to 1 g), available at health food stores, before a meal. (Stop the burn before it starts with these simple
heartburn prevention tips.)
For headaches
When your head is throbbing, brew up some rosemary. Rosemary helps keep blood vessels dilated. Use 1 teaspoon of rosemary per cup of hot water, cover, and steep for 10 minutes. Strain, and sip a cup three times a day.
For headaches
Or you can try ginger for headaches, too. Ginger inhibits a substance called thromboxane A2 that prevents the release of substances that make blood vessels dilate. In other words, it can help keep blood flowing on an even keel, which is essential in migraine prevention. For a quick kitchen cure for pain, grate fresh ginger into juice, nosh on Japanese pickled ginger, use fresh or powdered ginger when you cook, or nibble on a piece or two of crystallized ginger candy daily. (Ginger's also good for detoxifying. Check out
9 Essential Of A Detox Diet.)
For sinus pain or pressure
If your sinus secretions are clear or white, you need a warming, drying herb such as thyme. Thyme is strongly antiseptic and is a traditional remedy for respiratory infections. Drink a cup of fragrant thyme tea—made by steeping 1 to 2 teaspoons of dried thyme in a cup of boiling water for about 10 minutes—three times a day.
For insect bites or stings
Cool bites and stings with peppermint. A drop of peppermint essential oil rubbed into the center of a bite or sting can bring quick, long-lasting relief. Peppermint cools the bite so that you don't feel like scratching and increases bloodflow to the area, which helps to quickly carry off the venom. Result? Less swelling and itching. Wash your hands after applying, and don't use essential oils near your eyes because they can irritate. Don't use on poisonous spider or snake bites, which require immediate medical attention.
For toothache
Stun the pain with cloves. Rub a drop of essential oil of clove directly on an aching tooth. If you don't have oil of clove handy (available at drug and health food stores), just wiggle a whole clove, pointed end down, next to the tooth.
For toothache
Or say "open sesame" for tooth pain. Sesame seeds contain at least seven pain-relieving compounds. Boil one part sesame seeds with three parts water until the liquid is reduced by half. Cool the resulting brew, and apply it directly to the aching tooth.
For cold and flu
To take the chills out of your cold, make a beeline to the kitchen, and fix yourself a traditional herb and spice remedy, suggests David Hoffman, a fellow of Britain's National Institute of Medical Herbalists and assistant professor of integral health studies at the California Institute of Integral Studies in Santa Rosa.
Combine 1 oz (by weight) sliced fresh ginger, 1 broken-up cinnamon stick, 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, 3 whole cloves, 1 lemon slice, and 1 pint water. He recommends simmering for 15 minutes and straining. Then drink a hot cupful every 2 hours.
Link http://www.prevention.com/mind-body/natural-remedies/food-remedies-pain?s=9
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