Natural preventions and solutions to illness are more popular than ever as people recognise the toxic side-effects inherent in all pharmaceutical drugs and many of our 'processed' foodstuffs.

There are many traditional therapeutic uses for foods, herbs and spices. With these you can try natural first-aid treatments for a variety of ailments, and introduce preventative medicine into your diet. The healing powers of good food prepared properly are becoming well-known and are your investment in a chemical-free lifestyle. New research is finding health promoting 'nutraceuticals' and 'botanics' in common plants and herbs.

Simply by combining the right foodstuffs, herbs and spices you can make natural remedies that help you eliminate noxious pharmaceutical chemicals from your medical cabinets, foods, homes and bodies. Simply by including appropriate herbs and spices in a sensible diet you can help to prevent illness and keep healthy. As long ago as 1980 the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Dietary Allowances (who established R.D.A.’s or Recommended Daily Allowances) found no scientific evidence for nutritional benefits from vitamins, minerals or trace elements in dosages greater than those supplied by a balanced diet. Pharmaceutical industries with generous advertising budgets persuade many people that it is better to have ‘expensive urine’ than be at risk to disease through lacking the right vitamin or mineral in a diet, mainly because so much food is now 'de-natured' and overprocessed.

Since some of the global chemical companies are now involved in producing our food, its become quite difficult to source ' a balanced diet' from just shops. Unadulterated food that is still chemical free and that contains the neccessary elements for human health in a balanced diet can be difficult to find. But Mother Nature is out there - waiting for us to come back to the garden, so why not start straight away ? Make it a mission to get more contact with nature by hunting down wild or organic food and medicine to its source.

Instead of reaching for the aspirin or painkiller which promotes acidity and irritation in the stomach, why not try one of the many plants with Salicin (on which aspirin was based), like Black Willow Bark ? Make is a mission to go out into the countryside and (responsibly) collect some. A recent analysis of the original sources for all 1,031 drugs approved worldwide netween 1981 and 2002 has concluded that none of these could be traced unequivocally to a totally synthetic source. Of the 300 plus compounds in clinical trials for cancer treatments, only one resulted from a labatory alone (source Resurgence Magazine Issue 261, 'Medicines from Nature', Joanna Ede).

Digestive problems ? Commercial 'tummy settlers' often contain chemical constituents such as aluminium and chalk. Why not use Fennel or Dill, natural digestive herbs used long before the Romans used to march chewing roasted dill seeds ? These naturally occuring 'digestifs' are powerful stomach tonics.

Got a cold ? A combination of the right foods, herbs and spices can knock days off it and speed recovery time by supporting your immune system with what it needs, the right food medicine.

Common herbs are easily grown, even in a window box. Others can be purchased dried or picked from the wild and stored. Many herbs grow successfully indoors and bring a world of new tastes and qualities to fresh food. Spices are widely available and other common kitchen items have many uses in first-aid treatment. In addition to herbs and spices, examples of common kitchen items that are useful for first aid are listed below:

• Almond oil
• Salt
• Bicarbonate of soda
• Hot water bottle
• Springwater
• Black pepper
• Microwave oven
• Vinegar
• Blackcurrant jelly
• Mustard powder
• Apples
• Lemons
• Potato
• Corn on the cob
• Oats
• Yoghurt (live)
• Garlic
• Onions
• Honey
• Oranges

Other useful items with which to complete your natural first-aid kit include:

• Bandages
• Garlic oil capsules
• Sticking Plasters
• Witch hazel
• Calendula ointment
• Lavender essential oil
• Cotton Wool
• Lint
• Dr. Bach’s Rescue Remedy
• Peppermint essence

Home Made Medicine