Monday, April 18, 2011

Old Fashion Remedies

 I was thumbing through an old Mary Janes Farm magazine this weekend. I know I've said this before that I love this magazine. It is so different from all the other magazines out there.
In it I found an article entitled Fact or Folklore. It told about the 1918 flu pandemic that killed 50-100 million people between 1918-1920. The short article told about a doctor who had visited many farmers who were battling the flu.Then he came upon a household where everyone was very healthy, and he was stumped as to why. The article went on to tell how the doctor asked the family what they were doing different from all of the other families. The wife replied that she had placed a dish of unpeeled onions in each room of the home.Curiously the doctor asked if he could take one of the onions with him to observe under a microscope.Later when the doctor examined the onion he discovered traces of the flu virus in the onion. The onion had absorbed the infection,which kept the family healthy.


There were more stories of families who still to this day use onions as a way to ward off illness in the families.One mother in fact said she has always placed an onion with both ends cut off in a dish at night while the ill person slept. More often that not that same person would awake feeling much better.


The story tells how the onion actually begins to change color as it absorbs the germs.
I love stories like this. I love simple old fashioned grandma remedies.I know that I am definitely going to put this to the test in our house should one of us get sick.
As a matter of fact I think my daughter in law could go through a bag of onions a week when school starts in the fall.
What an incredible idea to test in a class room.To try it and see if perhaps there would be less illness spread. This would also be a clever science project for a school student.

I'm glad we are finally realizing that food plays a vital part of our wellness,even if it's in a dish on our night table. When did we veer off the path. I can remember my grandmother saying eat this you will feel better ( usually soup).Or telling me when I wanted junk food "you are what you eat". Then one day I guess fast food and package food products entered our world and we decided food couldn't effect our health,or so the commercials said.
Dr Andrew Weil  I think has lead the charge.He has been instrumental in guiding medical science toward the realization that food is the most important thing we an do for ourselves,and to ourselves.

I believe we have let convenience lead us right into many harmful illnesses and conditions. I've always believed that God has placed all we need to lead healthy lives, right under our noses. And he has created zillion of foods that can heal as well.But the sad fact is it may never become a popular belief if there is no money to be made,like there is in pharmaceuticals.
But I still believe what Dr Weil said recently, that some day our medicine may well be on our dinner plates.
Oh great now I'm hungry.........now where did I hide those ding dongs.....just kiddin...;)

9 comments:

  1. I agree with you, lots of "home remedies" worked and probably would still work if used! "We are what we eat"...so true, once you put it in your mouth, chew and swallow it...it's part of you for several hours. Since Don passed away, I've made more effort to eat healthily...I figure I need a grocery store that sells about 5% (or less) of the edible items that grocery stores sell today. Fresh fruit and vegetables, some frozen fruit and vegetables, some cheese, some yogurt, some dried fruit, some nuts (unsalted), some red wine, occasionally some whole grain bread, some fish, sounds very limited but I haven't gotten bored yet! Loved your post, thanks for sharing! I think I saw you on Facebook, commenting of Lauren's soaps (Sunbasilgarden)?

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  2. Wow, thats really interesting! I may have to try that. I am almost willing to try anything in order not to get sick :)
    Thanks for the info!

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  3. That is so fascinating! I hate getting sick, but since I (still) live with my mom who teaches kindergarten and I teach violin lessons, it seems like one or the other of us is always ill! In fact, she has a cold right now and I'm going to try this out! I have heard some of Dr. Weil's work and I thought it was great! Now I want to investigate his findings further.

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  4. Love posts like these. Everyone around me finds me and my family so difficult to feed. Why? Because we eat only real foods. No packaged or preservative laden "foods", just real fruits, vegetables and the like. Yes, it means more time in the kitchen, but our health is an indication of the difference it makes. Have to give that onion tip a try. We eat tons of onions, wonder if it will do the same thing...;)

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  5. That's too cool about the onions!! We have so many in our house (they're in like every dish my mom makes!), no wonder we never get sick ;)

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  6. That was a fascinating story Rebecca! In the old days when no medicine was available for averybody, people used wahtever mother nature offered them to protecte themselves!

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  7. Awesome! I love MJFarms magazine:) I am a subscriber too! Great tip-It really does work!--Melissa with Honey Bee Holistics~~ Have you entered my giveaway? Giveaway chances MUST be submitted on the blog to count!
    http://www.honeybeeholistics.blogspot.com/2011/04/we-have-almost-reached-325-fans-on.html

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  8. How cool is that?! Nature's awesome like that. :) Thanks for sharing, that was really interesting!

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  9. And isn't that the truth? If there's no money in it, no biz with resources will pick it up. The ZONE guy (the book) discovered a natural enzyme that makes the body dump fat - but nobody would manufacture the stuff because they couldn't patent it. We're learning that saturated fat - the natural stuff you get from animals - actually is good for you. We've dumped a mess of weight and done some interior cleansing eating a diet that would frighten a pyramid onto its head - and feel great. EVERY THING we put into our mouths or breathe in through our noses - and probably even hear through our ears - it all counts as a drug, because it all causes chemical changes - either starting in the stomach or the brain - changes that can make us stronger, or really hurt us. We just don't take these things as chemical truths - which is crazy, really.

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