Home remedies.
 

The idea of this thread is for us to tell about home remedies for all sort of ailments, etc.

I have acid reflux. I never been diagnosed with this, but if you get heart burn more than 3 times a week, you probably have it. I used to get it so often that I ate a full "economy" bottle of Rolaids every week.

Further research has shown me that eating these things like this are bad for the stomach. I wouldn't be surprised if upsetting the acid balance by bombarding my stomach with base had actually made it worse. I decided to stop eating these things.

I first attempted to eat bread, to "soak it up." Half a loaf would work, but only for a few hours at most. After a little thought, I decided to drink some milk. One glass actually made it worse, but after a quart, I was fine for a full day. Every day, I drink about 3 cups of milk in the morning, and that settles down the stomach, as long as I stay away from things that give me the burn.

I know many people will say that drinking this much milk is not good for my health. Zantac and other drugs are not good for the body either. I discussed this with a doctor and she said that I was fine to do this.

So there you go The Lounge, give us something to help us get through that fever, headache, etc, but not medicinal. When I get a headache, I take a double dose of Motrin, but I wouldn't mind learning something different.

Re: Home remedies. *DELETED*
 

Post deleted by MrWookie

Re: Home remedies.
 

second

Re: Home remedies.
 

^ Ugh to both of you.

daveT, I can't help but this reminds me a lot of "The Doctor's Book of Home Remedies" commercial from about 10-15 years ago. Remember that one? I can still hear it now, "rub aspirin on a bee sting!"

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]

I know many people will say that drinking this much milk is not good for my health. Zantac and other drugs are not good for the body either.

[/ QUOTE ]

Solid thread.

One of the most awesomest things about 2007 is that you don't need a home remedy for acid reflux because it can be easily treated with safe medications. If you don't like doctors just check the world wide web and find out that Zantac and Pepcid are sold over the counter.

Irieguy

PS- Get a new doctor.

PPS- Read The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan to decrease the likelihood of embarassing yourself in public like you just did on an internet forum.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Tuq, I do remember that stuff. Ten years ago also brought those sit-up machines, and other odd aerobic stuff.


Erieguy: Some people aren't comfortable dealing with side-effects. Really, it does not matter what I do, as I am sure that the doctor is knowledgeable about these things. I would not suggest milk to someone who is lactose intolerant. I am not a paranoid who doesn't trust the medical industry, but I do believe that some things are equally effective, if not safer.

You obviously never taken these medications: when you have a headache for a few days and start ####ing green, something is not functioning properly (I am allergic to vitamin C).

Now-- I have embarrassed myself on a public forum, are you happy?

PS: If people have nothing functional to say, please go back to BBV4Life.

PSS: Erieguy, this includes those who feel the urge to flame.

Re: Home remedies.
 

daveT,

IMO you did not embarrass yourself. I however do not have anything worthwhile to add to the thread and I'm sorry nobody else has. I considered deleting the two posts above mine but meh, whatever.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Vinegar in your armpits to cure significant stinkiness there. It changes the pH balance the bacteria need. Get a rag or some papertowels, and use them to give your pits a good soaking. Do it every day for two or three days, and not only will any super-stink will be gone, but your pits may hardly smell at all.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Won't your pits smell of vinegar?

Re: Home remedies.
 

That's pretty good to know. Some people really can't get out of the shower for more than 10 minutes without smelling. I knew one person like this and I told him to shave his arm-pits, because that is where the smelly bacteria thrives.

Re: Home remedies.
 

davet,

When i was young my mom used to give us honey mixed with bourbon for coughs. It was very nasty. A very small amount would make us gag and not want any more. I recently read that cough medicines aren't very good for you so maybe my mom was onto something there.


Another home remedy that comes to mind is for poison ivy. My bf always insists that bleach will make poison ivy disappear. I usually roll my eyes at this suggestion but I allow him to put the stinky bleach on anyway because I get desperate. (Actually it seems to help [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img])

Another one of his weird ideas is that vinegar will turn a bad sunburn into a tan. I know I know, it's ridiculous. But it does cool off the skin.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Putting ice chips under your tongue and numbing it will get rid of nausea.

Re: Home remedies.
 

DO NOT put vinegar on a burn. My parents did that to me when I was a kid, and it was one of the few times I cried for two days straight.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Supposedly chewing gum or walking after a meal help with acid reflux.

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
Vinegar in your armpits to cure significant stinkiness there. It changes the pH balance the bacteria need. Get a rag or some papertowels, and use them to give your pits a good soaking. Do it every day for two or three days, and not only will any super-stink will be gone, but your pits may hardly smell at all.

[/ QUOTE ]

Will this work on my sack?

Re: Home remedies.
 

Are there any for carpal/tunnel syndrome?

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
DO NOT put vinegar on a burn. My parents did that to me when I was a kid, and it was one of the few times I cried for two days straight.

[/ QUOTE ]

Weird. So what were the other times you cried for 2 days straight?

Re: Home remedies.
 

Take some cigarette tobacco and mix with a little water to make a poultice. Put that mixture on a bee sting and the pain will go away almost instantly. The swelling will be gone within 10 minutes.

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Vinegar in your armpits to cure significant stinkiness there. It changes the pH balance the bacteria need. Get a rag or some papertowels, and use them to give your pits a good soaking. Do it every day for two or three days, and not only will any super-stink will be gone, but your pits may hardly smell at all.

[/ QUOTE ]

Will this work on my sack?

[/ QUOTE ]

You obviously don't lurk on the other forums enough, otherwise you would already know that one of those puffy body scrubbers along with some body wash will cure you of your smelly sack ailments. [img]/images/graemlins/blush.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Vinegar in your armpits to cure significant stinkiness there. It changes the pH balance the bacteria need. Get a rag or some papertowels, and use them to give your pits a good soaking. Do it every day for two or three days, and not only will any super-stink will be gone, but your pits may hardly smell at all.

[/ QUOTE ]

Will this work on my sack?

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm guessing it will sting. Some things that hurt nowhere else hurt like crazy on the sac. And vinegar is an acid after all. A little dab'll do ya, if you want to find out.

Re: Home remedies.
 

I want to know why your not scrubbing yourself with soap and water.

EDIT: Deleted this paragraph.

EDIT to add: There's stuff sold in the store called underwear. You should buy several of these, wear them, and change them every day. If you don't know how to use them, look at the pretty pictures.

Re: Home remedies.
 

my grandmother used to boil tea and have me inhale the fumes in the steam to clear up bad sinus congestion.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Almost forgot to make a real contribution...

A spoonful of sugar really does make the hiccups go away.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Okay, the reason for the flame is because I was surprised to see this type of thing in this forum (or really any forum on a site like 2+2). But there actually is a very good reason why instead of talking about home remedies, the members of a community that have learned about scientific method should help the other members of a community understand the role of science in public health.

It is unfortunate that in 2007 you will still read stories in the community newspaper about a child or young adult who perishes due to untimely medical attention. There is a long list of common ailments that can be easily treated if medical attention is sought promptly, but can be fatal if symptoms are ignored for too long. This list affects both children and adults:

meningitis
encephalopathy
myocardial infarction
stroke
pericarditis
pyelonephritis (kidney infection)
streptococcal pharyngitis (leading to potential cardiac and kidney complications in children if untreated)

Any emergency room physician will see patients every day who are seriously ill because they have been trying a home remedy for serious health condition.

It doesn't matter whether or not you want to eat a loaf of bread and drink a gallon of milk everyday for your heart burn. The problem is when your uncle describes a similar symptom to you and you excitedly tell him about your milk cure... when in actuality he's having an early heart attack and could have his heart muscles spared if he gets to a doctor in time, but could die if he drinks milk for 2 days.

Or the mother of the child with a fever you advise to try a home remedy when the infant actually has meningitis and needs prompt treatment with antibiotics.

My point isn't to be melodramatic here, these things happen everyday.

Our social responsibility is to comment intelligently and utilize science when discussing the physiologic signs of disease.

In Dave's particular case, if his doctor has diagnosed him with reflux esophagitis, there is almost no chance that he will do better with a home remedy than he would with one of the dozens of available treatments. And if H-2 blockers cause side effects, he can try a proton-pump inhibitor... one of the best-tolerated classes of medicines on the market.

Am I wrong here?

This is not Nam. There are rules.

Irieguy

Re: Home remedies.
 

Little did I know that you were a doctor. And yes, we all need to use common sense as well.

You see, that we are talking about things like nausea, headaches, etc, not threatening illnesses like diabetes, malaria, and trichinosis. That was the sole intention of this thread. Perhaps my symptoms are more severe, but any doctor would probably prefer to hear that I am using milk rather than a bottle that explicitly tells you to take no more that 4 pills a day for two weeks.

Yes, I read these stories as well. I also have read about people dying of voodoo treatments because they were afraid of seeing a doctor.

I knew one person who used to work for 1800 dentist. His job was to refer people to dentists, but he usually had to here the effects of people's home remedies. This part of the job was so stressful, that the the office perk was two free message sessions per week.

Story:

One woman was afraid of the dentist and had braces. It was time to take them off, and she decided to take them off herself. She ended up twisting the screw the wrong way, and shattered all of her teeth.

Another guy had a string in his mouth that was bothering him. He took a pair of scissors and cut the string. The pain was so severe that he instantly passed out. It turns out that he cut a nerve. How you let your mouth get like this is beyond my comprehension.

So, yes, your caveat is appreciated, to use common sense with this stuff.

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
DO NOT put vinegar on a burn. My parents did that to me when I was a kid, and it was one of the few times I cried for two days straight.

[/ QUOTE ]

Weird. So what were the other times you cried for 2 days straight?

[/ QUOTE ]When they wouldn't just leave Britney alone.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Please no more dental horror stories, those made me cringe.

My girlfriend just told me last night that zinc is supposed to help offset the coming of the common cold.

My favorite home remedy is applying glass cleaner to fire ant bites. You have to do this pretty quickly after you get bit, but the basic glass cleaner solution neutralizes the acidity of the bite, which means no itching.

Re: Home remedies.
 

daveT:

My grandfather swore by a shot of vinegar and a clove of garlic for acid reflux. He claims that he was able to go off of medication.

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
davet,

When i was young my mom used to give us honey mixed with bourbon for coughs. It was very nasty.

[/ QUOTE ]

Does your mom have a clinic?

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
Please no more dental horror stories, those made me cringe.

My girlfriend just told me last night that zinc is supposed to help offset the coming of the common cold.

My favorite home remedy is applying glass cleaner to fire ant bites. You have to do this pretty quickly after you get bit, but the basic glass cleaner solution neutralizes the acidity of the bite, which means no itching.

[/ QUOTE ]

Isn't the glass cleaner itself an acid?

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Please no more dental horror stories, those made me cringe.

My girlfriend just told me last night that zinc is supposed to help offset the coming of the common cold.

My favorite home remedy is applying glass cleaner to fire ant bites. You have to do this pretty quickly after you get bit, but the basic glass cleaner solution neutralizes the acidity of the bite, which means no itching.

[/ QUOTE ]

Isn't the glass cleaner itself an acid?

[/ QUOTE ]

I could be wrong but I was thinking it was actually ammonia that had the neutralizing properties and glass cleaner usually has ammonia in it? It was also not just with fire ant bites but with stuff like bee stings as well.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Maybe you're right then. I was thinking of the home version -- vinegar and water.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Vinegar and water...reminds me of a joke.

Anyway, remember Doc Hollywood, where Michael J. Fox was treating a kid and was treating a kid and thought he needed to crack open his chest, and then Barnard Hughes shows up, opens up can of coke, and the kid gets better because he was nauseous from swallowing his dad's chewing tobacco? Home remedies FTW baby.

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
Vinegar and water...reminds me of a joke.


[/ QUOTE ]

Easy now! [img]/images/graemlins/shocked.gif[/img]

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
My girlfriend just told me last night that zinc is supposed to help offset the coming of the common cold.

[/ QUOTE ]

Zinc has actually been well studied. Unfortunately, the studies have been inconclusive. Some show benefit, some don't. So far, my opinion is that a cold takes a week to get better if you treat it and 7 days if you don't.

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
You see, that we are talking about things like nausea, headaches, etc, not threatening illnesses like diabetes, malaria, and trichinosis. That was the sole intention of this thread. Perhaps my symptoms are more severe, but any doctor would probably prefer to hear that I am using milk rather than a bottle that explicitly tells you to take no more that 4 pills a day for two weeks.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm a doctor. I am not pleased that you guzzle milk to soothe your stomach. Based on your symptoms, you may very well have a stomach ulcer. Yes, milk soothes the discomfort, but it comes back multiple times through the day, so obviously the problem is not being addressed. These ulcers, if not treated properly, can erode into arteries and cause massive bleeding (and sometimes death). Milk will not prevent any of these problems, but it may make you feel a little better in the interim.

So, as I doctor, you need to go see a doctor. You may need tests, possibly an endoscopy, and you should be treated for the specific problem that you have.

Plus, did you know that nausea and abdominal discomfort are a frequent symptom of heart attacks, especially in women?

There's nothing wrong with home remedies for things that go away quickly, but it is a potentially disastrous mistake to keep being your own doctor. You know the saying that the man who is his own lawyer has a fool for a client - well it is much worse to be your own doctor, especially when you have no training.

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
Take some cigarette tobacco and mix with a little water to make a poultice. Put that mixture on a bee sting and the pain will go away almost instantly. The swelling will be gone within 10 minutes.

[/ QUOTE ]

Here is another for those who do not smoke. [img]/images/graemlins/crazy.gif[/img]

This is for any type of minor insect bite-bees, spiders etc.
Make a paste out of meat tenderizer and water, apply it to the sting for 15-20 minutes with a cotton ball.
It will neutralize the venom and reduces pain and swelling.
Baking soda is fair substitution for tenderizer.

For persistent pain and or itch massage with an ice cube.

(and for our resident MDs, if there is any sign of allergic reaction or infection seek professional help. [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img] )

Re: Home remedies.
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
You see, that we are talking about things like nausea, headaches, etc, not threatening illnesses like diabetes, malaria, and trichinosis. That was the sole intention of this thread. Perhaps my symptoms are more severe, but any doctor would probably prefer to hear that I am using milk rather than a bottle that explicitly tells you to take no more that 4 pills a day for two weeks.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm a doctor. I am not pleased that you guzzle milk to soothe your stomach. Based on your symptoms, you may very well have a stomach ulcer. Yes, milk soothes the discomfort, but it comes back multiple times through the day, so obviously the problem is not being addressed. These ulcers, if not treated properly, can erode into arteries and cause massive bleeding (and sometimes death). Milk will not prevent any of these problems, but it may make you feel a little better in the interim.


[/ QUOTE ]

This is fascinating. I went to the hospital about one year ago for stomach flu/ food poison. I told the doctor about my acid problem because I thought this would be important to tell about because I was spouting pure acid. (sorry guys) And yes, it is called acid for a reason, believe me.

I am not trying to be a smart-ass. I am being serious. I told the doctor about my heartburn and what I do to prevent it, and I also told the doctor that I was highly concerned about this because before my "explosion," I had serious heartburn.

So, was I not properly diagnosed/ treated? I would hate to lay another law-suit on Hollywood Pres, but screw 'em for charging me 5k.

What is the proper procedure for diagnosing this problem? And why would a responsible doctor allow someone to check out after my condition if there should be further concerns?

Re: Home remedies.
 

The truth is, I'm a lung doctor, and its been a while since I dealt with primary care for acid problems.

As I remember, there is a blood test for H. pylori (a bacteria that causes ulcers). The test only indicates exposure (which is very common, but then again, so are ulcers). A check for anemia would also be standard.

Triple therapy (two weeks of a proton pump inhibitor and two antibiotics - I think Biaxin was one) was extremely effective in curing the ulcers. If symptoms persisted after treatment, or if the patient was high risk before treatment (anemic, complaining of bloody or tarry stool) then an endoscopy (camera in the stomach) is the next step.

Again, I'm not a GI expert, but this was the standard about 5 years ago when I last dealt with this stuff.

Re: Home remedies.
 

Hmmm....

Well this is starting to concern me. I will go for a second opinion soon. Thank you.