You're sick and feel like shit. Have a hunt around your house and see if you have any of these home remedy solutions are hanging around ready for you to use. After all, it's not like we all have the spare cash for a doctor floating about the place...
1) Herpes on yo mouth A.K.A Coldsores
Chop up a clove of garlic and apply it to the affected area for ten minutes. If you have more than one coldsore, then chop up new pieces of garlic to avoid contamination.
2) Cough Syrup
Make your own cough syrup by mixing together 1/4 cup honey and 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar. Pour the mixture into a jar or bottle and seal tightly. Shake well before you open it and take a spoonful every four hours.
Contrary to what you might think, a hot toddy (mixing honey and whiskey) won't help you in the long run. It'll sooth aches and pain in the short run, but it will also massively dehydrate you. (Sorry about that.)
Advertisement
3) Sore Throat
Salt is an astringent and will help to help to get rid of a painful throat. Mix equal parts of salt and water and gargle to your hearts delight. This also works if you have sore wisdom teeth.
4) Black Eye/ Bruises
Green and black teas contain tannins and their compounds help shrink swollen tissue and narrow blood vessels. This is perfect black eyes and bruises if you moisten the teabag with water. Tea is also rich in antioxidants and amazing for cooling sunburn.
5) Foot Odour Aka Smelly Feet
If you can bear to part with a small quantity of your precious liquor, wet a cloth with vodka and wipe over your feet. The alcohol acts as an antiseptic destroying fungus and bacteria as well as drying out the moisture that lets these organisms grow.
Advertisement
6) Headaches
Bizarre but it works! When you're stressed, your jaw automatically tenses. Put a pencil between your teeth but DON'T bite down. Doing so automatically relaxes your jaw muscle which will prevent the headache.
7) Bad Breath
The live bacteria in yogurt can suppress levels of bad breath-causing bacteria. The 'good' bugs in yoghurt that they're always on about in adverts, crowds out the "bad" stink causing bacteria or creates an unhealthy environment for it. So keep a spoonful of yoghurt handy if you're a culprit of the old bad breath and watch those kisses come flying your way.
8) Blisters
Advertisement
Dab Listerine three times a day onto the affected blister. After a few days the blister will begin to dry out Repeat this until the pain goes away. Which won't be too long, I promise.
9) Eczema
Soothe flare ups by applying olive oil directly onto the affected area. Olive oil is packed with antioxidants that can reduce the inflammation associated with eczema. It's the basis for many moisturisers and on its own, lacks the chemical irritants of shop bought products. Rub 1 teaspoon per square inch of skin, which creates a seal that prevents skin from drying out. If your eczema gets really bad, cover oil-slathered skin with plastic wrap overnight to lock moisture in.
10) Hiccups
Yes Mary Poppins was correct. Sort of. Take a spoonful of sugar and your hiccups will disappear in a matter of minutes. The sugar is believed to modify the nerve muscles that would otherwise tell the muscles in the diaphragm to contract spasmodically and contribute to hiccups. Obviously.
11) UTI's
A surprisingly large amount of people get them. At the first sign of symptoms, drink a solution made with 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda mixed in 8 ounces of water. Continue this once a day until you can get some antibiotics from a doctor. Baking soda makes the bladder environment more alkaline, which reduces bacteria's ability to multiply. If you don't fancy baking soda, fresh cranberry juice is just as effective.
