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Sunday, November 03, 2002

Before we get to your home remedies, here's just one more note of caution from Dr. Ed Krenzelok, director of the Pittsburgh Poison Center at Children's Hospital, home of Mr. Yuk: "Look at it as window dressing vs. whole house cleaning. You can put up nice window treatments and from the outside, the house looks great. But if you go inside, you'll see it needs a lot of work. ..."

"You also need to make sure that what you're doing is safe. ... Do a little investigating. If you want to put baking soda on a bee sting, that's fine. But decide to ingest a large quantity of baking soda, and that can cause problems with too much sodium, too much alkali. "

Thus, an addendum to the motto "consult your doctor." Motto No. 2: "Safety first."

Home remedies for warding off illness or relieving the symptoms.

	(Anita Dufalla illustration, Post-Gazette)

Colds have always been a major illness in our home. Aspirin, bed rest and hot tea work for most sniffles, but when a major cold sets in, it's time for -- the sock. This is not just any ordinary sock. It's my husband Ron's old wool Army sock that spent much time stationed in Alabama during the '60s.

First, the afflicted person spreads Vicks VapoRub over his/her throat, wraps the sock carefully around the neck and secures the sock with a safety pin.

If someone knocks at the door, the sick person should try to be nonchalant while greeting friends, as the heel and toe are wrapped around the neck. Remember -- stares from others aid in the healing process.

Kathleen A. Stromple, Wilkins

When I get a cold or flu, or even feel one coming on, I just let some ginger ale or 7Up go flat, then mix it and orange juice in a 50/50 mix. I don't know why this works, but it does. I've been able to go to work or school on days when I should have been in bed all day.

Robert Igoe, Altoona Mirror political reporter

To relieve sinus pain and congestion, I add 1 cup of white vinegar and 1/2 cup of salt to 4 quarts of boiling water, then breathe the vapors.

Lou Peightal, Shadyside

We asked Dr. Krenzelok to weigh in on the above remedy. He sees two potential problems. First is the potential for burns or irritations (if the vinegar and salt are concentrated and don't boil down). No. 2 is one he'd like the folks who make large concoctions like this to think about: "When you're done, what do you do with that? If you put it out on the porch to cool, what if your big black Lab comes along and laps it up? It could cause serious salt poisoning."

My home remedy, as usual, has a story. Mine starts when I was in business in 1967, and I was installing a kitchen in Dormont close to Christmas time. In past years, I would get very sick with a very bad cold, and many times it would include a strep throat, and I'd be in bed for a week. I could feel this coming on, and I told the owner that I might not able to finish her kitchen for Christmas, as it was only about a week away. Well, this little old Italian lady said to me, "Young man [I was 37], I want my kitchen finished, and I am going to tell you what to do to prevent you from getting sick. Before you go to bed, take a very large glass of unsweetened pineapple juice and two aspirin, and when you get up in the morning, take another very large glass of unsweetened pineapple juice and two aspirin, and you will not get sick!"

Well, let me tell you, she was right, and I have been following her directions with one exception; I do not take the pineapple juice at night. But I still take the aspirins and the juice every morning, and I have been doing it for 35 years. I have lowered the juice from 12 ounces to 8 ounces.

This may not work for everyone, but I have had only three or four colds in the past 35 years.

Norman Clark, Aliquippa

Cure bladder infection by drinking 4 ounces of milk with a tip of a teaspoon of baking soda mixed in the milk -- repeat four times a day.

Ann Todd, McKeesport

Baking soda, when used topically, as on an insect sting, is probably fine, but it can be a problem when ingested in large amounts. And if you think you have a bladder infection, consult your doctor.

When I have a cold, after I brush my teeth, I soak my toothbrush in a bit of Listerine for about a minute, but I do not rinse it off.

I think of it this way: With all those germs in your mouth, you don't want to leave germs to multiply in a moist, warm environment like your toothbrush and then re-contaminate your mouth. Yeccch!

I like to think that it works and helps to shorten a cold, but hey, who knows for sure?

Kathryn Kulakowski, Industry

Ask for remedies in general, and people will specifically have a lot to say about hiccups:

Here's a cure for the hiccups that works every time. All you need to do is suck on a lemon wedge for about 10 seconds, and they should be gone. Who knows, maybe it's the acid in the lemon that does it. I learned this from my Spanish husband, who learned it from a bartender here in the Canary Islands in Spain, where we live now.

Mary Anne Harrar (formerly of Wheeling and a lifelong Pittsburgh lover)

A spoonful of peanut butter makes your hiccups go away -- every time!

Bill Monti, Bellevue

Take a paper towel (or even a clean dish towel) and cover the top of a glass filled with water. Suck water through the towel and drink a good amount of it this way, sealing your mouth with the towel so no air gets in. If you use a paper towel, you have to move it around after a few swallows or it will tear. This has never failed to work for me!

Vanessa Cox, Brentwood

To cure hiccups: Drink a capful of vinegar, and none of that raspberry [stuff], the nastier the better.

Christina M. Szejk, Bloomfield

Some folks follow the formula used by the father in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding": One product or plan to cure everything.

	(Anita Dufall illustration, Post-Gazette

My husband and I saw the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," and we could relate to it as soon as it began. When the father uses the Windex, we laughed so hard that I was crying. The reason is that my husband uses Windex for everything. When he was a trucker, he set up a potty in his truck so that he didn't have to use dirty bathrooms, and used the Windex as a cleaning agent. As the years went on, he found it a little harsh, so he switched to baby wipes.

Josephine Moore, McKeesport

The folks at Windex warn that it is not intended for human contact, a good rule to follow regarding all household cleaners and disinfectants.

Mom always used Vicks VapoRub for everything.

I have even surprised doctors by telling them how great it works, and then they tell their patients.

If you have a hangnail ... VICKS.

If your baby gets a shot in the arm or butt ... VICKS (on the injection site).

If you have a stuffy nose ... VICKS (rubbed under the nose).

If you have a paper cut ... VICKS.

If you have a headache ... VICKS (on the temple).

MOM always knows BEST!

Jean (Webb) Moore, Phoenix (formerly of Monroeville)

Dr. Krenzelok advises using Vicks VapoRub as suggested on its label, but he understands that people have grown up using it other ways. "If you look at Vicks, it never tells you to put it in your nose. Do people do it? Did I do it?" he says, leaving the "yes" implied. He does, however, caution about keeping it away from children. VapoRub contains camphor, which if ingested in large amounts can cause seizures and other problems for children.

Lysol cures just about any skin rash, including athlete's foot and various other fungi.

Elizabeth Schooley, North Side

Lysol spray and other disinfectants also come with warnings such as this: Hazardous to humans and domestic animals. That includes using it topically, ingestion and overexposure to vapors and mixing with other chemicals.

I live in Bermuda and am married to a Bermudan who was raised in Mexico. He uses lemon or lime juice as a cure for everything -- right down to something in your eye. Cuts -- you got it. Over all his food. He uses it as a cure for a spider or bug bite, to wipe down a glass. ... I don't think I've ever named something that he hasn't recommended lime or lemon juice for.

I saw on the[Internet] that it is being said that lemon/lime juice is an effective contraceptive when squeezed on a sponge and that it also kills the HIV virus. Hmmmm. Maybe he's right.

Susan V. Attride-Stirling, Bermuda

Australian reproductive physiologist Roger Short, from the University of Melbourne's obstetrics department, has said a few drops of lemon juice can protect women from both HIV and pregnancy. We say: Don't take a chance on this one. Consult your own doctor.

I have found that a nap is the perfect cure-all for whatever ails you. The longer the nap, the better.

About three years ago, I had a root canal. As gentle as my dentist was and as wonderful as the pain medication was, the nap is what really helped.

After that experience, I discovered that napping is underrated. If I get a hint of a cold, I take a nap. Knocks the cold right out. Aches and pains, a nap.

Karen Bates, Marietta, Ohio

If a home remedy works, and then works a second time, it can gain a shelf life of generations.

For an upset stomach:

The age-old Slovak cure is to boil 3 cups of water with 3 to 4 tablespoons of caraway seed. Strain and add sugar and sip very slowly. This sort of sweetens the stomach and intestines and brings fresh taste to a sour situation.

Stephen Zehala, Galena, Ohio

In southern India, the area I come from, there is a drink that is prescribed for all ailments. It is tea made from cumin seeds and crushed ginger. It helps to settle the stomach either due to indigestion or overeating. It is excellent to sip during a cold or flu because it opens up your sinuses. Cumin and ginger is good for all kinds of problems with the stomach.

Boil 3 cups of water and when it comes to a boil, add a teaspoon of cumin seeds (cumin powder will make it hard to drink) and a small piece of crushed ginger.

Strain and drink as hot as you can.

Hope this is useful.

Prema Venkataramn, Murrysville

For external use only.

For an itchy, annoying insect bite, try a dab of Crest toothpaste.

Martha B. Perego, Pittsburgh

My Mom, Peggy Kaufman, always used vinegar and baking soda to stop a bee sting from hurting. Mix the two together to make a paste and rub it on the sting. It really works!!

Maggie Craig, Chicora, Butler County

For diaper rash, the cheapest and best cure is simply cornstarch. Wipe the baby's bottom after each change and liberally dust the baby's bottom and upper legs. It works much better than the fancy creams and potions costing much more.

Ed Blotzer, Penn Township

Apparently, companies that produce baby powder products agree and have for years been selling "pure cornstarch "for babies' bottoms.

When I was younger, I occasionally got a boil on my leg. My mother would take white bread and dip it in hot milk, and it would draw whatever was in the boil out. Recently, I got a boil under my eye that was really annoying and was swelling. I tried lemon juice to dry it; Neosporin to try to eliminate it, but nothing worked. I remembered my mom's remedy and tried it last Friday. It worked beautifully. Who would have thought?

Judy Ratajczak, Arnold

When it comes to even the possibility of getting something irritating in your eye (such as lemon juice), exercise extreme caution. Or better yet, don't do it.

I will share two DEFINITE home remedies.

1. Garlic kills fungus: Cut the clove of garlic open and rub on the fungus (toenail, fingernail, etc.). Do this for a few days, several times a day. Someone told me this years ago, and it has worked for me.

2. Castor oil will cure plantar warts. Just put the oil on the wart and cover with a bandage. I did this twice a day, and the wart was gone in less than one month.

Joyce Styperk, Upper St. Clair

Raw garlic can kill some fungus and bacteria, but Dr. Krenzelok notes that many home remedies become folk remedies because they worked once, and tales of their curative qualities gain a life of their own. He says to ask yourself, what if you had done nothing? Might the results be the same?

When I saw the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," it immediately brought to mind a home remedy that my mother used. Not knowing years ago what to call it, my children always called it "Grandma's Gook," so that is the name it has.

Grandma's Gook:

• 1 large (pint) bottle of rubbing alcohol
  
• 1 cake (1 ounce) camphor and 250 aspirins.

Break up or shave the camphor cake and dissolve the camphor and aspirins in the alcohol. Shake up and it is ready to use.

This is good for relieving aches and muscle pains, and it is especially good for relief of mosquito bites and bee stings. Just rub on affected areas and DO NOT USE INTERNALLY.

Billy Sue Sandusky, Connellsville

Camphor and aspirin in large quantities can be dangerous and should be treated as such.

Despite all the products for removing stains, many people swear by their own tried and true methods. Here are a few:

I found this stain remover about 20 years ago when my children were babies and their clothes were filled with formula stain, which at that time was almost impossible to remove.

Through the years, I've salvaged lots of items with this recipe. Recently, my husband's dress shirts came out of the washer looking as if someone had washed the floor with them. My best guess is that the water lines were being worked on and muddy water flooded the machine. It took two soakings (one over night) and two washings, but I only lost one shirt. Do test the item. The shirt I lost was because it was bleached unevenly.

Stain remover: 1 cup powdered dishwasher detergent; 1/4 cup liquid bleach and 1 gallon very hot water. Mix in plastic container, add item or items, soak until stain is gone. May have to repeat soaking with fresh batch of the remover.

Josi Hatalla, Pittsburgh

We do not endorse any of these cleaning methods as gospel. But most employ common sense, which we endorse wholeheartedly.

To remove ballpoint-pen ink from fabric, use hair spray. First, put a clean terrycloth towel under the fabric and then spray the ink with hairspray. Gently rub the area, adding spray until the marks have disappeared. I use the cheapest spray in a bottle so I can pour it if necessary. It doesn't seem to hurt the fabric, although it will be stiff until it is washed. This has worked for me every time, often saving an article of clothing I would have had to discard otherwise.

Joan Kubancek, Upper St. Clair

For that red wine stain on the tablecloth, my grandmother, Veronica Franchini, always put salt upon the spill immediately (a lot of it).

Vera Batey, Pittsburgh

Cheap aerosol hairspray works great to remove ink stains and marker stains on just about anything from clothes to cars. It also works great to freeze insects, so that you can remove them or swat them without their being toxic.

Jennifer Laugelli, Pittsburgh

One that always worked for me in getting out stains, even rust, is a squirt of lemon juice and salt on the stain, then sit it out in the sun for a couple of hours. When you come back, the stain is gone. Wash as usual, no bleach needed.

Linda Gaskins, Raleigh, N.C. (Western Pennsylvania native)

Remove grease spots from clothes by rubbing cornstarch over the area and press with an iron, OR, before washing the clothing, cover the spot with cornstarch-paste solution and let dry.

Whiten piano keys by washing them with alcohol.

Barbara Schmitz, San Antonio, Texas

Oriental rugs need freshening? Choose a cold day with freshly fallen snow. Lay rug on snow. Have a 2- or 3-year-old toddler? Have him jump up and down on the rug. No toddler? Use flat side of broom and thump gently. Turn rug over on a fresh area of snow and repeat "cold wash."

Printed fabric on white background dirty? Add equal parts of Clorox and white vinegar to wash water. Whitens the white but does not bleach the colors -- proven personally!

Grimy remote control or computer keys? Dampen Q-tips or cotton balls with rubbing alcohol. It dries quickly and doesn't get into the interior.

Pat Warman, Uniontown

We here at the Post-Gazette are not sure we want to drag our Oriental rugs out onto the snow. But we are sure that we appreciate our readers' participation and hope that our big fat list of home remedies brings you a little relief, both comic and otherwise.

Some remedies were not included because of space constraints or because they arrived too close to the publication date.