Old fashioned Cures Did They Work?

In the old days there were lots of home cure remedies given to you by your parents, to save bothering the over worked Doctor too much!

Like bread and warm milk known as Pobs' for an upset tummy ,which I still use to this day and works every time for me.

Gargling with warm salt water, was always a good one for sore throats and gum boils.

Other Cures we used frequently were treacle and butter for a bad chest, or you could rub the good old goose grease in, which helped sweat a heavy cold out of you.

If all these magic potions didn't shift you, then you had to go the doctors for a bottle of Red Linctus. Which is sadly no longer on prescription anymore.

If you go to an old fashioned chemist the pharmacist may make a bottle up for you. I've always wondered what secret ingredients it was made from?

My dad also used to blow warm pipe tobacco smoke in my ears to melt the wax and help my earache.

Moving on through the most common ailments Bicarbonate of Soda was used for toothache.

Sliced potatoes wrapped in a cloth around your leg was supposed to help your varicose veins.

A soap and sugar poultice would help to draw out the poison of boils.

Of course most children were given a regular dose of castor or cod liver oil to keep their bowels moving. Parents were great believers in such things in those good old days!

If you are old enough to have tried some of these remedies and have survived them, let me know what worked for you.

Who knows we may need them, the way the National Heath Service is going!