The KITCHEN MEDICINE BOOK

166 Pages·2005·2.65 MB·English

The
KITCHEN
MEDICINE
BOOK
KELLY JOYCE NEFF

A Brother Rabbit publication
To William Morris
and all my teachers, past and present

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INGREDIENTS

INTRODUCTION.......4
One: RAW HONEY.......6
Two: APPLE CIDER VINEGAR.......13
Three: BICARBONATE OF SODA.......20
Four: SALT.......23
Five: WATER.......36
Six: CAYENNE.......49
Seven: GARLIC.......53
Eight: GINGER.......64
Nine: OREGANO.......68
Ten: TURMERIC.......73
Eleven: ROSEMARY.......77
Twelve: SAGE.......84
Thirteen: THYME.......89
Fourteen: PARSLEY.......94
Fifteen: BASIL.......100
Sixteen: RYE.......104
Seventeen: OATS.......117
Eighteen: HERB LORE.......120
Nineteen: HERBAL PREPARATIONS.......143
Twenty: OTHER REMEDIES, GREAT AND SMALL.......151
ABOUT THE AUTHOR.......162
BROTHER RABBIT.......165

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INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this book is twofold. The first is to impart a body of useful
knowledge of the medicinal and nutritional benefits of common kitchen items for
the maintenance and recovery of health in this day and age when we have moved
far away from such “common knowledge” in our fast paced and inorganic lifestyles.
The urgency of recovery of such knowledge cannot be more acute, when health
insurance costs are spiraling ever upwards, companies are restricting health
benefits coverage to employees, and often people’s only recourse to health care is
a very expensive trip to the hospital emergency room. While the information
contained here is not intended as a substitute for proper medical attention, it may,
I hope, be seen as an adjunct to it.

Doctors have been touting “partnership with the patient” and “self-care” for years
now, as their own insurance costs and patient load restrict the amount of time and
care they can spent with and give to each patient. “Complimentary medicine” as
herbal and other remedies are coming to be called, is the latest frontier in medical
science. This book is not intended as a treatise on medical herbalism or nutrition,
for that would require a volume many times larger than the scope of this little
book can afford. Anyone interested in further study of herbal or nutritional
therapies is invited to seek out any of the works listed here, or to make a study at
the local public library or on the internet (which itself has been a source of most
of the references herein). Do discuss what you find with your doctor or
naturopath; there’s much food for thought here, which can open up new areas of
inquiry between you and foster a relationship such as there used to be between
doctor and patient.

The second purpose of this book is to give the reader some idea of the vast store
of knowledge about these simple remedies which our human culture has accrued
over the millennia, and thus in a small way to help preserve it. It is, then, as much a

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folklore study as a piece of self-help. The benefit of such folklore is that it puts
us directly in touch with our human family through time – we remember that we are
part of the earth and of each other, that we are not in fact solitary units all alone
out there in the world, or the universe, but deeply connected, indeed inseparably,
from each other. If the thought from a mind three millennia ago can touch us,
move us, help us, how much more so the thoughts we project or receive from
others near to us in space and time? We are all one together.

May you be peace.

Kelly Joyce Neff
Pacifica, California
August 2005

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ONE
RAW HONEY

Raw honey – which has not been pasteurized or filtered, and ideally taken directly
from the hive – is a treasure chest of nutritional value and medicinal remedies. It
contains an abundance of vitamins and minerals, and is a natural and powerful
medicine, both internally and externally.

What can it do for us?

The list of Honey’s beneficial functions is a long one. Honey increases calcium
absorption; can increase hemoglobin count and treat or prevent anemia caused by
nutritional factors; can help arthritic joints, when combined with apple cider
vinegar; fights colds and respiratory infections of all kinds; can help to boost
gastrointestinal ulcer healing; works as a natural and gentle laxative; aids
constipation, allergies and obesity; provides an array of vitamins and minerals; and
supplies instant energy without the insulin surge caused by white sugar. Many have
found raw honey helpful for its positive affects against allergies and hay fever,
and one or two teaspoons last thing at night can help with insomnia. As an
antiseptic, honey is also a drawing agent for poisons from bites or stings or
infected wounds, and has outperformed antibiotics in treatments for stomach
ulcerations, gangrene, surgical wound infections, surgical incisions, and the
protection of skin grafts, corneas, blood vessels, and bones during storage and
shipment.

“Raw honey is exceptionally effective internally against bacteria and parasites.
Plus, raw honey contains natural antibiotics which help kill microbes directly. Raw
honey, when applied topically, speeds the healing of tissues damaged by infection
and/or trauma. It contains vitamins, minerals and enzymes, as well as sugars, all of
which aid in the healing of wounds.”

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So writes Dr. Cass Igram, D.O. in The
Survivor's Nutritional Pharmacy. In a
fascinating modern development, scien-
tists and doctors are beginning to re-
discover the effectiveness of honey as
a wound treatment. In recent years,
honey has been used effectively in
clinical settings for the treatment of
fist-sized ulcers extending to the bone,
as well as for first, second, and third
degree burns. Complete healing has been reported without the need for skin grafts
and with no infection or muscle loss. It can be applied full strength to such condi-
tions, covered with a sterile bandage, and changed daily. When the wounds are
clean, honey acts as a healer. This also is the same procedure for infected wounds,
ulcerations, and impetigo. Garlic honey can also be applied directly to infected
wounds which will help clean up the area of infection.

Dr. Peter Molan, Professor of Biochemistry at Waikato University, New Zealand,
has been at the forefront of honey research for twenty years. He heads the
university’s Honey Research Unit, which is internationally recognized for its
expertise in the antimicrobial properties of honey. Clinical observations and
experimental studies have established that honey has effective antibacterial and
anti-inflammatory properties. Astonishingly, it painlessly removes pus, scabs and
dead tissue from wounds and stimulates new tissue growth. “Randomized trials have
shown that honey is more effective in controlling infection in burn wounds than
silver sulfadiazine, the antibacterial ointment most widely used on burns in
hospitals”, explains Dr. Molan.

Dr. Molan believes that if honey were used from the start in cases of septicemia,
there would be far less tissue damage resulting. “The remarkable ability of honey
to reduce inflammation and mop up free radicals should halt the progress of the
skin damage like it does in burns, as well as protecting from infection setting in”,
says Dr. Molan. “At present, people are turning to honey when nothing else works.
But there are very good grounds for using honey as a therapeutic agent of first
choice.”

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Researchers believe that the therapeutic potential of honey is grossly
underutilized. With increasing interest in the use of alternative therapies and as
the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria spreads, honey may finally receive
its due recognition as a wound healer.

Indeed, it works: raw honey makes a sterile, painless
and effective wound dressing. Apply it directly to
open cuts, abrasions and burns, and cover it with a
piece of gauze. The results will occur quicker than
with conventional alternatives, such as salves and
creams.

Honey is exceptionally effective for respiratory
ailments. One Bulgarian study of almost 18,000
patients found that it improved chronic bronchitis,
asthmatic bronchitis, chronic and allergic rhinitis, and
sinusitis. It’s an effective treatment for colds, flu, respiratory infections, and a
generally depressed immune system. Whereas sugar shuts down the immune
system, a good quality honey will stimulate it into action.

Here are some more ways to utilize the healing power of honey:

BURNS - Apply freely over burns. It cools, removes pain, and aids fast healing
without scarring. Apart from being a salve and an antibiotic, bacteria simply cannot
survive in honey.

BED WETTING - A teaspoon of honey before bed aids water retention and calms
fears in children.

INSOMNIA - A dessertspoon of honey in a mug of warm milk aids sleep and works
wonders.

HYPERACTIVITY - Replace all use of white sugar with honey. White sugar is highly
stimulating with no food qualifies. Honey provides the energy without the “spike”!

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NASAL CONGESTION - Place a dessertspoon of honey in a basin of water and
inhale fumes after covering your head with a towel over the basin. Very effective!

FATIGUE - Dissolve a dessert spoon of honey in warm water or quarter honey
balance of water in a jug and keep in the fridge. Honey is primarily fructose and
glucose, and so it’s quickly absorbed by the digestive system. Honey is a unique
natural stabilizer: ancient Greek athletes took honey for stamina before
competing, and as a reviver after competition.

FACIAL DEEP CLEANSER - Mix honey with an equal quantity of oatmeal, and apply
as a face pack. Leave on for half an hour then wash it off. Great as a deep cleanser
for acne and other unwanted blemishes.

POOR DIGESTION - Mix honey with an equal quantity of apple cider vinegar and
dilute to taste with water. This is also wonderful for the joints – and promotes
weight loss.

HAIR CONDITIONER - Mix honey with an equal quantity of olive oil, cover head
with a warm tower for half an hour then shampoo off. Feeds hair and scalp. Your
hair will never look or feel better!

SORE THROATS - Let a teaspoon of honey melt in the back of the mouth and
trickle down the throat. Eases inflamed raw tissues.

FOR STRESS - Honey in water is a stabilizer, calming highs and raising lows. Use
approx. 25 percent honey to water.

ANEMIA - Honey is the best blood enricher by raising corpuscle content. The
darker the honey, the more minerals it contains.

FOOD PRESERVATIVE – If you replace the sugar in cake and cookie recipes with
honey, they’ll stay fresher for longer due to honey’s natural antibacterial

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properties. Reduce liquids in the mixture by about one-fifth to allow for the
moisture present in the in honey.

BABY'S BOTTLE - Four teaspoons of honey to a baby's bottle of water is an
excellent pacifier and multivitamin additive. If the baby's motions are too liquid,
then reduce the honey by half a teaspoon; if too solid increase by half a teaspoon.
(Caution: Don’t give raw honey to babies under 1 year old; it’s just too rich.) For
teething, honey rubbed on a baby's gums is also a mild sedative and anesthetic.

OSTEOPOROSIS – Research has shown that a teaspoon of honey per day aids
calcium utilization and prevents osteoporosis – probably not a bad idea for anyone
over 50.

LONGEVITY - The most long-lived people in the world are all regular users of
honey. An interesting fact, yet to be explained, is that beekeepers suffer less
from cancer and arthritis than any other occupational group worldwide.

MIGRAINE - Use a dessert spoon of honey dissolved in half a glass of warm water.
Sip at the start of a migraine attack, and, if necessary, repeat after a further 20
minutes.

CONJUNCTIVITIS - Dissolve honey in an equal quantity of warm water. When
cooled, apply as a lotion or eye bath.

COUGH MIXTURE – Combine 6 oz. (170 g) liquid honey, 2 oz. (55 g) glycerin, and
the juice of two lemons. Mix well. Bottle and cork firmly, and use as required.

Raw honey may become granulated, as some does after a week and another maybe
only after several years. If the granulations bother you, simply place the honey
into a pan of hot water (not boiling) and let it stand until becoming liquid again.

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