Calling 911 will most likely not be an option during a massive or long-term disaster. Medical preparedness is often considered the most difficult obstacle when forming a well-rounded and thorough survival plan. Enhancing our first aid skills by taking a course is one important way to increase the chance of surviving a SHTF scenario. Learning how to use available items to naturally prevent, treat and cure common ailments is an equally important aspect of medical prepping readiness.
We often delve into home remedies, over-the-counter alternatives, and natural health tips on Survival Based. This roundup of the top 5 survival medicine tips offers yet more insight and resource material for use when expanding your medical prepping plan.
Top 5 Survival Medicine Tips
Wound Care
Stop bleeding fast by using a few pinches of hot pepper powder. Drop the hot pepper directly onto the small cut or wound, and the bleeding should subside in about 20 seconds. Native Americans often used cayenne pepper in a host of first aid remedy recipes. If attempting to stop a larger wound from bleeding, pour about one teaspoon of red pepper into a glass of warm water and drink the rather unpleasant tasting mixture quickly. The components in the pepper are believed to rapidly equalize blood pressure and prompt the clotting of blood. Pepper is also often thought to contain disinfecting properties.
Oral Health
Gum and tooth health should not be neglected now, before disaster strikes, or after a TEOTWAWKI scenario when you can’t call a dentist. I did not delve into the issue of dental health preparedness until after reading several James Wesley Rawles and Dr. William Forstchen books, which referenced SHTF tooth loss. It was then that I fully realized that my family did not have a detailed plan to protect our teeth and gums; that lack of prepping had to change. We had stocked up on toothpaste and toothbrushes, but little else.
Receding gums loosen the bond with the teeth and often lead to tooth loss. Unless you have a dentist in your tribe (my favorite term for mutual assistant group) or live a safe distance from a dentist that can fix your problems without electricity, you could be left with a mouth filled with rotten or loose teeth that will soon fall out.
Drinking green tea is often regarded as a natural way to combat and correct receding gums. Drinking a glass of tea twice each day is the recommended manner of treatment. The catechins in the tea help to strengthen the bond between the gums and teeth and foster tissue health. Aloe vera has also been used to naturally treat receding gums. Drinking aloe vera juice as a daily mouthwash and/or gently brushing your teeth and gums with the liquid from the plant after regular tooth brushing may also help prevent and treat receding gums.
Oil pulling with sesame or coconut oil has also long been used to treat receding gums and to enhance overall oral health. Simply warm the oil slightly and swish it around in your mouth once each day. Keep the oil in your mouth for at least one minute and attempt to increase the pulling time to up to 15 minutes over time.
Arthritis Pain
Sore joints are not only painful, but they can also prevent necessary work from getting accomplished around the homestead or prepper retreat. The amount of manual labor required to maintain just the three basics of survival (food, water and shelter) will be a significant change in daily habit for many Americans.
Tea tree oil is not only nature’s antibiotic, but is also useful in treating sore joints, tendons and muscles. Massaging the oil onto the affected area typically offers temporary relief sufficient to lessen stiffness and continue on with the chores.
Magnesium is another great natural arthritis pain reliever. Rubbing magnesium onto the joints will help to relieve tensions. You can also take oral magnesium supplements and add more of the component to your diet to reduce flare-ups.
Epsom salt can also be helpful in the treatment of arthritis pain. Pour one cup of salt into a standard-size mixing bowl filled three-quarters full with warm water. Soak the sore area in the bowl until the water turns cold and then massage the area.
Gout
Gout is not only painful, but the condition will also likely prevent you from completing your security perimeter patrol on the prepper retreat and thwart efforts to milk the cow during a disaster scenario. Gout is caused when more uric acid is present in the body than can be metabolized. The acid crystalizes in the joints and prompts acute pain, which can ultimately lead to arthritis. Gout pain most often presents in the feet, toes or ankles.
Eating too much processed pork, such as hot dog and bologna, has been known to cause gout in some individuals. Diet adjustments could be key to preventing gout outbreaks.
Cherries and apple cider vinegar have been known to help break up the uric acid crystals and reduce the time that gout pain keeps the sufferer confined to a chair or crutches. Eating black cherries or drinking black cherry juice is highly recommended when the first signs of gout begin to appear.
Mixing 1/2 cup of baking soda with 8 ounces of water and drinking it down will also quickly help relieve gout pain for many folks. This process might need to be repeated up to three times a day for up to two days to break up the uric acid crystals enough to move about with ease.
Natural Flu Shots
Getting the flu is a miserable experience. Colds and flu can spread rapidly during a disaster when family and tribe members are living and working so closely together. When resigned to bed due to a fever, chills and overall body ache, you will not be able to pull your weight on the homestead.
Flu shots, like many vaccines, can be a controversial topic. Every time my father-in-law convinces my husband Bobby to get a flu shot, he gets a mild form of the illness and still gets sick later in the winter because the almighty shot was not designed to protect you from the latest strain. Even if you are a flu shot loyalist, running to the local pharmacy or health department to get pricked will not be possible during a power grid down or similar significant disaster.
Making natural flu shots is easy, and they taste good too.
Natural Flu Shot
Ingredients
1 cup hot tea or apple cider
2 cups warmed, not boiled, fruit juice
1 ounce or four packets of gelatin
1 ½ teaspoons of your favorite healing herbs (You can use just one, or use ½ teaspoon of one herb and 1 teaspoon of another. Due to their health-enhancing components, I most often use ginger root, cinnamon, mint, orange zest, lemon zest or turmeric.)
2 tablespoons honey, optional (Honey not only tastes yummy, but it also boasts copious amounts of healing properties.)
Directions
1. Put the herbs, cider and juice in a medium saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes. If you opted to use tea instead of cider, brew the tea and allow it to steep for ten minutes before pouring into the pot with the juice and herbs.
2. Sprinkle the gelatin into the pot and stir until it is fully dissolved.
3. If using honey, pour it into the pot.
4. Stir the mixture once more to make sure the ingredients are thoroughly intermingled.
5. Pour the flu home remedy into a 13×9 pan and allow to cool. If possible, place in the refrigerator or other cool place for three hours.
6. Once cooled, cut the flu shots into 1-inch cubes and give them to the folks you want to help protect from the flu.
1 comments
Hot pepper on cuts? How about a simple old-fashioned tea bag?