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Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Epsom Salts?

Art just showed me an article that was in the Honolulu Star Advertiser about Epsom salts that I thought was pretty interesting.

When Art ran the Honolulu Marathon, Ed, his marathon advisor and our friend recommended he use Epsom salts to soak his legs to relieve his tired muscles. Art was surprised at how well it worked. I remembered then that when he nearly cut his finger off, they had him soak his finger in Epsom salts during the healing period.

The part that caught my eye was about bug bites because I've been getting really bad bug bites...huge welts that itch like crazy and last several days. It also reminded me of Susan from Stony River Farm who is suffering from Poison Ivy.

Here are a couple of links that show some wonderful uses for Epsom salts.
The Magic of Epsom Salts
13 Wonderful Ways to Use Epsom Salts

Here's what the Star Advertiser wrote about the Bug-Bite thing. "A compress of Epsom salt is useful for treating bug bites, bee stings and poison ivy. To reduce itching, the council recommends a compress recipe of 1 gallon of water and two cups of Epsom salt."

Whoa... that makes a whole lot of solution, but when I start getting desperate with my next bug bite, I'll have to remember this.

14 comments:

  1. Interesting and informative post. I didn't see the story in the newspaper.

    Hope the salts work for Susan!

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  2. helpful info, i've always heard of epsom salts but never used them...

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  3. Yes, Epsom Salts is an old old remedy. It works well for a lot of things. I bought some not long ago and used it but now I don't remember if it was for me or for Bob, probably for Bob.

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  4. oh I'll have to remember to try this for bug bites, especially since it's the season for this here.

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  5. I remember soaking a bad cut in epsom salts when I was a kid. My mother probably learned about it from her mother. It is an old remedy. It is also used in gardening. I guess I wouldn't want a gallon of solution for a bug bite. I guess it could be reduced down.

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  6. Great information and it does work well and is an old remedy. I hadn't thought about it in a long time, but I think I'm going to get some to soak my knees in!! Lord knows it can't do any harm! Hope your week is going well!

    Sylvia

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  7. hi Kay...epsom salts.. not heard of it before.. but anything to do with salt as an anti bacterial solution.. it is good..

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  8. That's worth a try! My grandmother swore by Epsom salts, but they already seemed old-fashioned when I was a kid. We never had them at home.

    I must have "felt" your post somehow, because I posted about salt today, before reading this! I had to laugh at the coincidence of it.

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  9. It's very comforting to soak my feet in an epsom salt solution, especially in my bubbly foot spa. Ahhhhhhhh!

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  10. I must remember to use Epsom Salts the next time I get bug bites, because, like you, the bites always swell into huge welts and last for days, causing me to itch like crazy. Ken doesn't even get bitten by bugs because they focus all their energy on me. I have a recipe for houseplant food that includes Epsom Salts in the mixture.

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  11. Oh yes, Epsom salts are miracle minerals. I remember using them for all sorts of sores... great post, Kay!

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  12. I have always kept Epsom Salts in my Linen Closet. These salts can be used for so many things! Thanks for sharing.

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  13. I'll give it a try, if I can find Epsom Salts here.
    Meanwhile, I have discovered that vinegar on cotton on the bite (right away) and then lavender oil relieves the itching for hours.

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