God's Provision through Nature

CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT JASON SAID MY BLOG WAS BORING?

Okay, so maybe he's right this week. But could I have a little mercy, being that we've been battling a cold, sinus infections, and pink eye (yes, pink eye) since last Wednesday? If you know me at all, you know that the only way you are going to get me to the doctor's office for these types of illnesses, is tied up kicking and screaming or by ambulance. Thankfully, that hasn't happened, so I want to share a little of the natural remedies that we've used this week.

So as to not repeat myself, I'll refer you to my previous post on garlic for the healing properties of this natural wonder. Today, I'll focus on 2 other options: grapefruit seed extract and colloidal silver.

Grapefruit seed extract (GSE) is used daily at our house, if for nothing else than to spray our chicken eggs as we bring them in from the hen house (5 drops/ounce of water, kept in a large spray bottle). We use this bottle to clean wounds, disinfect cutting boards, sterilize medicine dispensers, general cleaning...the possibilities are endless. I use Nutribiotic brand drops, which is very economical as one small bottle (around $12) will last even a large family for about a year.

As for illnesses, I normally don't use GSE for viral infections, although it can be effective. For these, I use garlic. But if I suspect that an infection has developed (mine and Jason's colds both developed into sinus infections), then I continue with the garlic and add the GSE. Jason and I take the tablets, and the children take 3 drops GSE diluted in about 1 Tbsp. filtered water or juice (given in a medicine cup) at all 3 meals plus bedtime. Along with each dose, a chewable Vit. C tablet is given as well. When 1 child is sick, the whole crew gets the same treatment. I have found this amazingly effective for prevention. For example, Jason got sick, then Sis, then me. As soon as Sis began feeling bad, I started everyone on these immune boosters, and so far the boys have been spared. (If you live at home all day with a house full of loving, wrestling, kissing, sharing kids, you know that this is quite an accomplishment!)

Colloidal silver is another great remedy to have on hand. For good reasons, I only buy name brand CS (Sovereign Silver), which is very expensive, so it is not very practical for a large family as a treatment for daily illnesses, although it is very effective. But for specific infections, such as pink eye or a throat infection, CS is wonderful. Now, I, nor any of my children, have never had pink eye, so this was new to me. I did some research, and discovered that the name "pink eye" covers a wide variety of eye infections, or conjunctivitis. It is possible to catch it from your own cold, which is what I suspect happened with Sis. (For example, rubbing your nose then rubbing your eyes.) After battling a cold for 2 days, her eye suddenly got really bad, really fast. I immediately started warm compresses and CS drops in her eye, and HAND WASHING! I wiped down the light switches, mouse & keyboard, doorknobs, toilet flusher handle, remote control, faucet handles..everything with rubbing alcohol, and I sprayed toothbrushes with the GSE mixture. I gave Sis (and the boys) GSE and Vit C by mouth, and did the eye drops about 4 times/day. She got sick Friday evening, and was well enough to go to church by Sunday. (Dr. Mom, however, woke up at 5:00 Sunday morning with one eye glued shut!) And as a precaution as well as a courtesy to our church, everyone washed their hands on the way out the door to church (I, of course, could not go.) I also washed everyone's pillowcases in hot water with detergent and GSE each day there was pink eye in the house.

In addition to these natural remedies, we also used eucalyptus oil, and salt water gargle and salt water nose spray/wash. Obviously, life has not been as boring as my blog around here. It takes more work to use God's natural resources than to go the doctor and get a quick prescription which works more quickly, but is worse for you in the long run. This post is meant to focus on the "how", and someday I'm going to post more on the "why" of natural remedies. I'm sure you've all heard about the scary MRSA superbug in the news, and I'll share a little about our family's 3 year struggle with this plague. As horrible as it was, it was the Lord's way of putting our family on the road to better health. Someday, your life may depend on the strength of a pharmaceutical antibiotic, so it is wise to NOT build up your body's resistance to antibiotics for treatable illnesses like strep throat and the ones described in this post, and instead to build up your immune system with natural immune boosters like garlic, GSE, and Vitamin C.

And remember 2 things: The reason that natural remedies don't work for most people is that they aren't used consistently enough, in high enough doses, and for a long enough period of time.

Disclosure: I am obviously not a doctor, and don't claim to have medical expertise. This is meant only to be taken as shared experiences from an informed mother who is very thankful for doctors and medical technology, but who is not afraid to trust her God-given instincts in caring for her own family.