| Home Remedies - Facts or Quacks? | | | | in chemical factories as little white pills of |
| That's what I recently asked myself. Myths and | | | | acetylsalicylic acid. Perhaps you know it by its |
| legends often have their basis in a grain of truth. | | | | more common name... |
| Are home remedies based on truth too? A little | | | | Introducing The Miracle Drug - Aspirin! |
| research provided this unusual perspective on one | | | | That's right - centuries of chewing on willow bark |
| of our most frequently-used medicines. | | | | led to the creation of one of our most |
| Are We Barking Up The Wrong Tree? | | | | widely-used medicines: aspirin. Once the amazing |
| Not if it's a willow tree! Chewing on willow bark to | | | | curative abilities of the active ingredient in willow |
| reduce fever and inflammation dates back to the | | | | bark were recognized, ways were found to |
| time of Hippocrates (400 BC). Willow bark was | | | | mass-produce it as a cheap yet effective product. |
| used as a medicine in China and Europe for | | | | Originally hailed as a wonder drug, aspirin was |
| centuries because of its ability to relieve pain and | | | | found to have multiple medical uses. It serves as |
| lower fever. Early American settlers even found | | | | a pain reliever, fever reducer, reduces |
| Native Americans gathering bark from willow | | | | inflammation, and even acts to thin the blood to |
| trees to treat the same conditions. | | | | help prevent heart attacks. That's a lot of power |
| What's So Special About Willow Bark? | | | | in seemingly ordinary willow tree bark. |
| Willow trees, including the white, black, purple and | | | | Amazingly, this was not a discovery by a single |
| violet species, contain a chemical called salicin. | | | | person. As we had discussed above, many groups |
| Chewing or pulping this bark releases the salicin. | | | | of people around the world were using this home |
| Once the bark is ingested, the body converts the | | | | remedy (or even cave remedy!) for thousands of |
| salicin from the willow bark into salicylic acid. | | | | years. This is definitely one home remedy I would |
| Salicylic acid is still used today to treat fevers, | | | | classify as a fact, not a quack. |
| decrease inflammation, and even help heart | | | | It makes me wonder though: how many trees did |
| disease. | | | | they have to chew on before they found the |
| There's no need to gnaw on a tree like a beaver | | | | right one? |
| every time you have a headache. Nor is it | | | | You can find free home remedies using the |
| necessary for drug companies to plant, grow, and | | | | resources below. They might not be miracle |
| harvest groves of willow trees and remove the | | | | drugs, but they can help you avoid the cost and |
| bark. Today salicylic acid is produced synthetically | | | | embarrassment of common illnesses. |