Home Remedies

Home remedies have stood the test time, passed on from one generation to the next. It have become a normal part of the home-care culture that no one questions the effectiveness of it all.

Here are some of the more famous (or infamous) ailments and home remedies that has helped, or made us cringe, along the way.

Chicken pox mainly effects children and spreads easily. One of the main effects of the highly infectious diseases is itchiness.

Scratching one of these itchy spots can cause permanent scarring. The secret to stopping the itch? Oatmeal. A bath of oatmeal is considered a natural remedy for relieving the itch.

This bath is prepared by cooking two cups of oatmeal in two litres of water for 15 minutes. This mixture is then put into a cloth bag, preferably cotton, and a string is tied tightly around the top. This bag is allowed to float in a tub of warm water and swished around until the water becomes turbid. Precaution should be taken to ensure that the bag is not torn.

The child with chicken pox can splash and play in the water, making sure that water goes over all the scalds, while the pouch of oatmeal can remain in the tub.

Acne is the one dread of all teenagers. If your grandmother had her way with it, she would gleefully rush into the kitchen, start peeling an orange and rub it on your face!Orange peel pounded with water and applied to the affected area acts as a natural remedy for acne.

Another remedy can be the cucumber. Cucumbers have a natural cooling effect which reduces unsightly pimples.

Couple this with rubbing a freshly cut clove of garlic and viola! - smooth skin is in on the horizon.

The common cold and sore throat is common in a hot country like Malaysia. People are turning to ways to cool down and escape the searing heat.

 Drinking lots of water, as most doctors prescribe, has become a norm.
 
Drinking honey and gargling with salt water are some of the common home remedies. 

Another not-so-common household cure for sore throat would be a concoction of four cloves of garlic, a tablespoon of honey and a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar.

This mix will either knock the cold out of you or knock you out cold!