Have you ever realized that whenever you have a party or get together at your home with a bunch of people that there is always a group of people that end up hanging out in the kitchen? What is it about the kitchen that makes people want to hang out there? It could be a lot of reasons. You are closer to the beer or wine in the refrigerator, closer to the food and munchies or maybe you like that close quarters feeling of being able to talk to someone without yelling at them from across the room.

Have you realized that the kitchen is more than just a place to prepare and cook your meals? It is the room in our homes that give us nourishment to survive and thrive. But did you also know that it is the room that provides the best natural home remedies as medicine that we need to stay healthy? Hippocrates, often called the father of western medicine said “let food be thy medicine and let medicine be thy food.” He also said “to do no harm.” Yet modern western medicine totally disregards anything that Hippocrates has said. So why call him the father of western medicine because I’m sure he is rolling over in his grave at what western medicine has become.

That being said you need to adhere to what Hippocrates has said and let “food be thy medicine” because food and natural substances have powerful and effective and SAFE healing properties. Let me tell you of several that have been scientifically proven to work wonders WITHOUT any negative side effects. Many of these I have either tried myself or know of family and friends who have.

CINNAMON & VINEGAR FOR DIABETES

There have been many medical studies that have shown that taking 1-3 grams of cinnamon a day will decrease blood sugar levels by 10-29%. Cinnamon also helps to reduce cholesterol and inflammation as well as regulate blood pressure. As stated by Dr. Julian Whitaker MD in his December 2010 newsletter of Health & Healing, “Because compounds in the saliva can break down the active ingredients in cinnamon, I suggest that rather than eating it by the spoonful you add it to coffee or tea before brewing. Mixing it with hot water also helps eliminate some of the undesirable compounds found in whole cinnamon. Aim for a quarter to a half teaspoon two or three times a day.” – I personally add a half teaspoon to my cold or hot cereal in the morning.

As for vinegar, it also helps to regulate blood sugar control. It works by blocking the uptake of carbohydrates and especially works great when taken with a high glycemic meal which is bad for those with Diabetes. To help keep blood sugar normal, especially when you eat more sugary foods than you should, take two tablespoons of vinegar mixed with 8 ounces of water and some Stevia or Xylitol for sweetness before or with a meal or add it to a salad. Any vinegar will do but the best option is an organic Apple Cider Vinegar.

V8, CELERY & HIBISCUS TEA FOR HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE

I have mentioned a couple of places on this website that Low Sodium V8 Juice is an excellent way to keep blood pressure in the normal range. The reason for this is not just because it contains 8 different healthy vegetables but because it is high in potassium. An 8 ounce glass of low sodium V8 juice contains 840 mg of potassium and other nutrients like magnesium that help to lower blood pressure.

Celery like V8 also contains a lot of potassium which relaxes the arteries and brings down blood pressure. In order to get the benefits from celery you would have to eat a one pound bag of it every other day. I don’t know about you but that is way too much celery for me to eat. So again, the best and easiest way to consume a vegetable like celery is to juice it.

If you are not into eating or juicing your vegetables then try Hibiscus Tea. This tea has the power to reduce your blood pressure just as well as any high blood pressure medication but without any of the negative side effects. Three cups of Hibiscus Tea a day does wonders for your high blood pressure. If you combine that with an 8 ounce glass of Low Sodium V8 or 1 pound of Celery, you can forget about any high blood pressure medication.

BERRIES FOR URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS

Berries are a powerhouse of benefits. Not only do berries, especially cranberries, increase immune system strength and protect against many types of bacteria but they also can prevent and treat urinary tract infections. Blueberries have a unique protective effect on the brain. A placebo controlled study in 2010 discovered that older people who drank 2 and a half cups of blueberry juice every day for three months had an increase in improvements on tests of memory and learning. These blueberry juice drinkers also had lower rates of depression, more energy and better glucose control.

GINGER & PRUNES FOR GASTROINTESTINAL PROBLEMS

No matter what problems you have with your stomach ginger and prunes can cure what makes you feel ill. For nausea it’s ginger to the rescue. I remember as a kid my dad used to give us kids ginger ale or a ginger iced tea when we had an upset stomach. Ginger is good for easing the queasiness caused by pretty much everything from the stomach flu and seasickness to morning sickness and the bad effects of chemotherapy.

If you are constipated a time tested cure is still what was given to me as a kid, prunes and/or prune juice. Eight ounces of prune juice every day will help quite a bit with your problem, so will a handful of dried plums. Another great food for constipation as well as lowering cholesterol, blood pressure and blood sugar is ground flaxseed. I mentioned the benefits of ground flaxseed in an earlier blog post. A quarter cup of ground flaxseed a day will do wonders for your health.

If you have gas try chewing on some fennel seeds after a meal or make a tea with them. You can get fennel seeds at any grocery store in the spice isle. Fennel seeds are also good at getting rid of indigestion.

COFFEE FOR HEADACHES AND MORE

Coffee can boost your energy levels by making you more alert and focused. Coffee can even give you an endurance boost during exercise. If you have a headache coffee can also help by reducing the pain but if you drink coffee every morning, missing your morning cup can also cause a headache. NOTE: All of these benefits of coffee only pertain to black coffee and not coffee with milk and/or cream. Adding dairy to coffee negates many of its health benefits. The caffeine in coffee can also help to relieve an asthma attack because it is similar in chemical makeup to theophylline which is a drug that relaxes your airways. The caffeine in coffee should never be a replacement for asthma inhalers but it’s good to use if you have an asthma attack and do not have an inhaler available.

SUGAR AND HONEY FOR WOUND CARE

Yes you read that right. Healing a cut, scrape or an open wound with table sugar or honey has been used quite successfully for centuries. Both sugar and honey create what is known as a hyperosmotic environment and all bacteria cannot survive in such an environment. So because of this wounds heal quite quickly and usually without any scarring.

To use sugar and honey for an open wound, pack the wound with sugar or honey, cover with gauze and wrap with a bandage. Every three days remove the bandage and gauze, thoroughly clean out the wound with water and reapply the sugar or honey, gauze and bandage again. My doctor has used this technique on himself and with his kids, I even tried it twice and I would say that using sugar is better because it wasn’t as messy or sticky like the honey was, but they both worked great. Sugar or honey can also be used for burns.

SOME OF MOTHER NATURE’S OTHER CURES

– Aloe Vera is good for burns. If you have an Aloe Vera plant just break off a leaf, squeeze out the gel and apply it to the burns as needed.
– Eating pitted cherries will relieve the pain and inflammation of gout.
– Cayenne pepper sprinkled in soup or a drink will clear a stuffy nose. You can also dab it on a minor cut to stop the bleeding
– Baking soda can be used to get rid of kidney disease.
– Using a banana peel on warts will help to get rid of the wart.
– Drinking fresh carrot juice once every day will help to keep your skin from getting wrinkles.
– Eating tomato paste is a natural sunscreen that protects your skin from the inside out. It also helps to fight cancer of the prostate.
– Broccoli is high in vitamin C and is the strongest of the cruciferous vegetables at fighting cancer.

And there are many more cures from natural wonders that may be lurking somewhere in your kitchen. You have to remember that all of these natural cures have been used quite successfully for hundreds of years. Just because the pharmaceutical industry now dominates most all of our health care system doesn’t mean that all of these natural cures do not work anymore. They still work great and in most cases work better and safer than the expensive and most times dangerous drug solutions. Many times drugs have a host of negative side effects. Cures from Mother Nature only have positive side effects.

With all of the many natural cures available that I didn’t list here, I really would like to know about more. So if you know of more “cures from your kitchen” that you can share with all of us, please leave them in the comments section below. Also share this post because most people would like to know these simple yet safe and effective remedies and cures that could save them a trip to the doctor.