As a prepper, you love things that serve more than one purpose. This is the reason why multi-tools are so popular within the lot. The same way of thinking applies to items found in the kitchen. While most of what you have there is used for preparing and cooking meals, some can also be used as cleaning agents or home remedies. We have listed down 10 essential home remedies that you should have in your prepper pantry.
Why You Need Home Remedies in Your Prepper Pantry
In an SHTF scenario, hospitals and other medical institutions may cease to function. If that happens, you don’t have anywhere to go for medical emergencies. That’s why it’s necessary to have first aid training and to stock up on medicines and medical supplies.
If you or someone in the family has an existing health condition, you should ask the doctor if you can stock up on the prescribed medications. Also, you need to learn how to take care of the patient in case no medical professional can. This includes learning about different natural home remedies you can use in lieu of actual medications.
10 Home Remedies to Stockpile
Aloe Vera
Prepping is not just about hoarding food, water, and other basic necessities. It also involves attaining self-sustainability. This is possible by producing your own food through farming, gardening, raising animals, and other methods.
Self-sustainability also means you can take care of yourself if doctors and hospitals are not available or accessible. Herbs and other plants come with medicinal benefits that can be utilized as home remedies. Make sure you maintain a medicinal garden so you have options in case the doctor is out, so to say.
Aloe vera is one such herb that deserves a spot in your survival garden. Aloe vera gel is an effective home remedy for wounds and first- and second-degree burns. You just have to apply the gel directly to the affected area.
Aloe vera juice is made by removing the skin and yellow latex from the leaf using a sharp knife. The gel is then rinsed thoroughly to remove the remaining latex and bitter taste. Finally, blend the aloe vera gel with water until you get your desired consistency.
You can drink the juice directly or add other ingredients to make smoothies, lemonade, or even cocktails. Aloe vera juice helps improve oral and digestive health, treat skin conditions, and provide relief from heartburn, constipation, and irritable bowel syndrome.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple cider vinegar has been quite popular among health-conscious people. It provides numerous health benefits, which is one reason why it has become a staple in many kitchens and prepper pantries alike.
Diabetics will benefit from taking apple cider vinegar since it’s said to help lower blood sugar levels and improve insulin sensitivity. While proper medical treatment is still recommended, you can use this home remedy to supplement said treatment.
Other health benefits of apple cider vinegar include sore throat relief, dandruff treatment, warts removal, weight loss, and cancer prevention. It can also be used as a mouthwash, denture cleanser, food preservative, fruit and vegetable wash, and hair rinse.
Black Pepper
Take a peek inside a prepper’s pantry (if they allow you to) and you’ll likely see lots of spices, seasonings, and condiments. These are important as they provide you with enhanced flavors to your otherwise bland meals. Enjoying a tasty meal is a great morale booster during stressful times.
One spice that any prepper would be wise to stock up on is black pepper. Aside from sharing its mild spicy flavor to your meals, black pepper also provides plenty of health benefits. It’s a potent antioxidant that also has anti-inflammatory, and cancer-fighting properties. It also helps in controlling blood sugar and cholesterol levels while also aiding in better gut health and nutrient absorption.
Black pepper also makes a great home remedy for coughs. Simply make tea using a teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper in boiling water and add honey for better results. It also can potentially be a natural pain reliever and treatment for degenerative brain conditions based on animal studies.
Some people attest that black pepper can stop bleeding. This may work for minor wounds but it is still recommended to get proper medical attention. If the wound is deep and bleeding profusely, you need the proper first aid items to treat it. You should also get medical help immediately.
Coconut Oil
There’s a reason why coconut is sometimes referred to as the Tree of Life. Every part of the tree can be used in different ways, many of which can help you stay alive. That’s probably why we often see an image of a man stranded on an island with a lone coconut tree.
The coconut tree provides materials for shelter, coconut water for drinking, and coconut meat for food. Coconut oil, meanwhile, is a must-have in any prepper pantry. Derived from fat from coconut milk, coconut oil can speed up the healing process when applied to a wound and soothe burns.
Coconut oil is also used as home remedies for bug bites, bee stings, athlete’s foot, sore joints, skin rashes, and eczema. It also provides UV protection and promotes better dental health.
Honey
Honey is another popular survival food since it’s high in calories and nutrients. It also has a long shelf life. Honey doesn’t go bad but it tends to crystallize. A few minutes submerged in hot water should turn it back to its normal form, though.
It is also one of the dependable home remedies everyone should have in their pantry. Honey is a good alternative to medications in treating wounds like cuts, scratches, and burns. It has antimicrobial properties, which help prevent infection. Honey also promotes faster healing and reduces pain.
As a sweetener, honey is better than sugar. It supposedly helps lower blood sugar levels, which makes it a must-have for diabetics. Honey is also used in treating sore throat, sunburn, psoriasis, dry skin, ulcer, and herpes.
Preppers love honey even more because it boosts energy. Swallow one tablespoon of honey and you’ll have enough energy to outrun zombies for a few miles. Honey can also be turned into a mead, an alcoholic beverage. Preppers can use mead for bartering.
Red Chili Pepper
Unless you’re a billionaire with a world-famous chef living inside your underground bunker, likely won’t have the luxury of enjoying Michelin-star dishes once the world ends. The best chance of ever enjoying tasty meals while the world is overrun by human-eating zombies is to stock up on spices.
Chili powder, chili flakes, cayenne pepper, and paprika are some of the spices that will give your EOTW meals a little kick. Derived from red chili peppers, these spices not only provide hotness but also double as home remedies.
Chili peppers are rich in beta-carotene as evidenced by their red or orange color. The high amount of vitamin A makes these spices useful against allergies, colds, fever, flu, and chronic sinus infections. Red chili is also an effective home remedy for joint pain and arthritis. It helps relieve headaches and migraines, which will be quite common in stressful situations.
Similar to black pepper, some people claim that ground red pepper also stops bleeding. However, others say its effectiveness as a home remedy for wounds lies in its ability to aid in healing wounds.
Tea
Next to coffee and alcohol, tea is perhaps the most popular beverage preppers have in their stockpile. Tea offers plenty of health benefits that would come in handy in an apocalyptic world. For one, tea boosts the immune system, which is necessary since you don’t want to get sick easily while you’re already struggling to survive.
Tea has other uses aside from giving you something nice and hot to drink. As a home remedy, it can be used for pain relief. You can place a moist tea bag on burns, insect bites, or minor wounds to lessen the pain and discomfort. Green and black tea can also be used to stop bleeding. After tooth extraction, simply place a moist tea bag on the bleeding gum to encourage blood clotting.
Tea Tree Essential Oil
The ability to make essential oils is one skill that you’ll be glad to have during the apocalypse. Essential oils are more popularly used as stress relievers thanks to their glorious scent and calming effect. That alone is a good reason why you should have essential oils at home. However, preppers love essential oils more for their numerous health benefits.
Tea tree oil is considered one of the most useful essential oils. Some even call it a “medicine cabinet in a bottle” since it is used to treat more than 70 medical conditions. It can be used for minor scrapes, blisters, burns, chapped lips, canker sores, cold sores, and mouth ulcers.
Tea tree oil also treats numerous skin conditions such as acne, skin tags, warts, eczema, and cradle cap while also providing pain relief from earaches, gout, and arthritis. It provides support in boosting the immune system and improving oral health. Other health issues tea tree oil can be used for are dandruff, body odor, pink eye, stye, ringworm, yeast infection, herpes, and more.
Thyme
Thyme is a popular culinary herb with a sweet, minty, and peppery flavor. It goes well with baked or roasted chicken, pork, or lamb. It’s also a natural remedy for a number of health issues.
Thyme is rich in antioxidants, which is believed to be the reason why it helps relieve coughing, sore throat, and bronchitis. It is also used as a home remedy for diarrhea, gastritis, upset stomach, flatulence, and other digestive problems.
Grow this herb in your garden so you can always enjoy fresh thyme. You can also dry the leaves and pack them for later use. You should also learn how to make thyme essential oil so you can treat baldness, kill mouth germs, and treat ear infections.
Turmeric
Turmeric has been a staple in Ayurvedic medicine, a traditional holistic healing system. It was so valuable that it was sometimes thought of as “gold” during biblical times. The Golden Spice is even believed to be one of three gifts from the Three Wise Men along with frankincense and myrrh.
These days, turmeric powder is becoming more popular with preppers. They’re stockpiling the herb mainly as a natural cure for various medical issues. Turmeric is a potent home remedy for wounds thanks to its antibacterial and antiseptic properties. Its analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties also do wonders against pain, arthritis, and toothache.
Turmeric also works as an alternative remedy for diabetes, liver disease, heart disease, and cancer. Other health benefits of turmeric include treatment for cough, common cold, acne, depression, and Alzheimer’s disease.
These are just a few of the many home remedies every prepper needs in their pantry. If you look around your kitchen, you’ll find more things that double as a natural remedy. Check out Gentleman Pirate Club to learn more about DIY remedies, first aid tips, and prepping.
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