Salt in Your Sock: And Other Tried-And-True Home Remedies

Pediatrician Beard gathers over 100 family recipes for healing minor injuries and ailments from acne to warts in this handy and occasionally offbeat reference. After cautioning parents to check with a doctor before trying any herbal treatment and emphasizing that folk remedies are no substitute for a doctor's care in the case of a real problem, she plunges into the suggestions. Some, Beard says, have a biological basis for effectiveness, while others seem unlikely to do much good but are harmless (she also lists some folk remedies that should not be tried). For each ailment, she offers a brief explanation of its symptoms and causes, a rundown of conventional treatments, and then a""Parent's Report"" of what she's heard works. Coughs, for instance, can be soothed by a tea of slippery elm or sage and thyme; alternately,""add 2 or 3 slices of bread to 1 1/2; cups of milk and bring to a boil. Cool, then put this poultice over the child's throat."" Earaches call for a few drops of oil of camphor or the titular recipe, wherein salt is warmed in a pan, put into a sock and placed against the ear. Beard postulates that the warmth soothes the pain and""perhaps the salt also draws fluid from the painful ear...and might decrease the middle-ear pressure."" For do-it-yourself types, this is a good compilation of recipes and old-timey folk wisdom. Parents won't find any miracles here, but they'll be intrigued by the inventiveness that infrequent access to professional health care inspired over the years.