Natural First Aid for Wounds

Plantain

Posted by Mary Lou Rogers (Brighton, Michigan) on 05/09/2009
★★★★★

As a child, I fell riding my bicycle. The handlebar, on which my face hit, did not have a protective grip and the metal sliced my cheek completely. The wound was sutured and subsequently became infected. My mother applied plantain leaves to my swollen, red, painful wound. Within hours, yellow purulent drainage poured out of my cheek wound. The relieve and healing were rapid. It's been a long time, but I think I was better in two days, no antibiotics. My mother calles them pig leaves and learned of them from her Lithuanian mother. As a nurse, I so wish I could use them on the horrific wounds I see.

Cayenne

Posted by Phyllis (Milton, FL. USA) on 02/18/2009
★★★★★

God Created Cayenne Pepper for our health, along with other herbs. I have been an avid user of CP for 20 years. I make my own tincture of 2 oz. cayenne pepper powder and one pint vodka. Mix on new moon and keep covered for 14 days. invert bottle twice a day to mix. Strain through cheese cloth. Keep in a dark glass bottle or out of direct light. Will keep for evvvver, it seems.

I put tincture on an incision after bladder surgery in 1995. I applied once daily with a Q tip. When I went to get my stitches removed 10 days later, the Dr. was astonished to see how well I healed. I have NO SCAR at all. He said he had NEVER seen anyone heal that well or fast.

I used to be a dog handler and have been bitten on my hands several times, some very deep and to the bone. You will find no scars, tho some of the bites were evtremely severe. I never had stitches once or even went to a Doctor for the bites.I let the wound bleed and did not wash it. The bleeding was the cleanser of the wound. I then applied cayenne powder directly to the open wound and held it in place with a butterfly tape or two. Bleeding stopped instantly, with absolutely no burning sensation. AND no scarring. Healed each time in days.

I firmly believe that all military should and must carry a supply of CP in their first aid kits. It would save many many lives due to traumatic open wounds of all kinds. Cayenne pepper should be administered both topically and internally, if possible, in severe bleeding cases. Internally will almost always prevent shockin those cases.

A tea of 1 tsp CP and a cup of hot water 3 times daily prevented a friend from having to undergo a second baloon surgery for his heart. His Drs. did not believe his "cure" but him and I know what cured him.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Posted by James (London, UK) on 10/13/2008
★★★★★

ACV is incredible with minor cuts/broken skin and mouth ulcers. Just soak some cotton wool or kitchen towel in it and keep it on the wound for as long as possible. It stops bleeding and starts to heal very quickly. The skin thickens slightly and turns white (almost pickled) and looks very clean, and bruising hardly even shows. Recovery time can be cut by days.

Cayenne

Posted by Rocky (Hayden Lake, Idaho) on 10/06/2008
★★★★★

A horse pushed me against my horse trailer a few years back & the aluminium sticking out cut me to the bone over the eye. I put cayenne in the wound & wraped a battle dressing around my head to keep it from dripping into my eye. From that moment there was no pain nor was there pain again through the healing...6 to 10 days.

As a point, a friend came to me with a cut deep into her knuckle. I have her cayenne & told her to change it every 3 days. Her pain went away during the healing (6 to 10 days) also there is no scar. The 1st year when her hand got cold you could see a blue mark. Now nothing. Rocky

Fresh Broccoli Juice

Posted by Anna (Philadelphia, PA) on 09/17/2008
★★★★★

Candied ginger helped my husband's sciatica so well (thanks EC!) that I want to share my family's secret "weapon" against all skin cuts - they heal faster and do not leave scars! Even those initially neglected that got infected. I wash the wound with fresh broccoli juice. I just grate some stems and squeeze juice over wound. Sometimes I keep the grated broccoli there longer. Then I forget it. Has worked thousand of times so far. Never failed.

Cayenne

Posted by Alice (New Fairfield, Connecticut) on 09/11/2008
★★★★★

Cayenne pepper really does work for sore throats! I have been using this remedy for quite a few months now and it works everytime. It does require doses throughout the day but stick with it. My suggestion is to put 1/8 teaspoon of it into a shot glass (2tbsp) of water and down the hatch...it is not going to taste great so get it down as quickly as possible and be done with it is my motto. My 8 year old daughter can down it like a pro and after a few times could even gargle a little in the throat. Have a glass of something (gingerale takes the heat right off for us) to chase it with and be amazed.

Cayenne is also a miracle for cuts that won't stop bleeding. It had worked several times for us. Just wash the cut out in water and put a thick paste of it over the wound and cover with a bandage. It does not burn the cut!!! In fact the first time I tried it the wound hurt after I washed it off too soon. Back to sore throats... Apple Cider vinegar works also but my daughter can't tolerate that so we stick to this one...I do both for good meaasure.

Cayenne

Posted by Alice (Sierra Vista, Az) on 08/26/2008
★★★★★

I had just read about cayenne stopping bleeding. I had worked to remove a bad tooth from my mouth and did not expect what happened: blood gushing out so fast I was choking on it. I had no idea it would bleed like that. I panicked and dumped probably a half teaspoon of cayenne on the wound and the bleeding stopped almost instantly. I was amazed, but it worked. Like turning off a faucet. The bleeding stayed stopped too.

Apple Cider Vinegar and Copper Sulfate

Posted by Liz (Stuttgart, Germany) on 07/06/2008
★★★★★

i mix 40 ml of cider vinegar with 20 grams of copper sulphate into a one liter spray bottle..top with water and it makes the most effective wound spray i have ever used (been using on it on my horses for over 20 years) .. it works equally as well on skin conditions .. copper sulphate prevents proud flesh and kills all skin fungus.

Coconut Oil

Posted by Dean (Los Angeles, California) on 01/03/2012
★★★★★

2 weeks ago I cut my middle finger right in the inside of my middle digit. It was very deep and bleed for over 24 hours. I knew I didn't hit a main artery but it was just flowing out at a steady rate not squirting. I wrapped it up with some non-stick gauze and tape and the next morning I washed off most of the blood and put some coconut oil over the wound, I wasn't too sure if it would help due to the fact that blood was till coming out of the cut but not as fast as the night before. I took off the bandage again that night and the bleeding has stopped so I put some ACV on a paper towel and wiped my finger down and put the coconut oil back on the wound and continued to change the bandage and reapply the coconut oil for the next 3 days.

On the 4th day I noticed the wound had closed with no sign of infection. I stopped wearing the bandage and just switched to a large athletic band aid and now 10 days later it is completely healed up with no infection. I have never used coconut oil on a cut before but it did speed up the healing process and I believe kept it free of infection. I get cuts quite a bit (I work with glass) so I have a good idea of how long a deep cut takes to heal and this time by using the coconut oil it cut down the healing time by at least half.

Turmeric

Posted by Steph Williams (Danville, VA) on 11/08/2007
★★★★★

I've had great success with turmeric to stop wounds from bleeding. If you catch a slice by the kitchen knife quick enough, the blood will coagulate behind a layer of turmeric. I also add turmeric to a warm water soak with sea salt or epsom salt to draw out infection/inflammation from wounds for my family. I treated our dog's copper head bite with a turmeric poultice. Her leg was swollen and the skin around the 2 puncture wounds was necrotic and oozing and after many soaks and poultices, it healed leaving no scar.

Neem Juice and Tulsi

Posted by Mary (Phoenix, AZ) on 02/27/2007
★★★★★

There are two more treatments i have heard used in india for bacterial infections:

1.neem juice. neem or other name is margosa it seems to be king of herbs

2.holy basil. its called tulsi in india. somewaht related to basil herb in US. but i dont know if the basil herb available in US has same medicinal properties. they both smell similar but they appear different.

Cayenne

Posted by Douglas (Monticello, FL) on 09/03/2006
★★★★★

Cayenne pepper stops bleeding and heals the wound, even one that the bone could be seen in the heel of the hand. The scar is almost nil.

Aloe Vera

Posted by Jessica (Boston) on 03/25/2016

Couldn't agree more the best way to heal a cut or abrasion is to use the Gel cut straight from the Aloe Vera leaf and placed over the wound. It will cut healing time in half and also improve the look of any scaring that may be left behind after the healing process. An Aloe Vera plant is a great thing to keep at home for such instances. Natures natural remedies are always the best.

A & D Ointment

Posted by Madelyn (Idaho) on 03/30/2023

Hi Cindy, I had thought about doing this too. I tried using just cod liver oil on my body but it didn't smell very good, especially if it touched clothing or bedding. Do you have a good cod liver oil you use that might not have a strong odor?

Surgical Wound Remedies

Posted by R. (Orange, CA) on 04/09/2019

I had minor surgery on my chest almost a year ago. The area is about an inch and a half long and it always so close to healing, but it keeps reopening. I've been putting bacitracin on it per my doctor's suggestion. I've upped my protein intake and have been drinking plenty of water along with making sure not to put stress on the area. I'm not sure what else I can do. Any suggestion would be appreciated.

Surgical Wound Remedies

Posted by Teena (Melbourne, Australia) on 04/10/2019 233 posts

I have had great success using raw honey on open wound, I would also suggest you look at the amazing wound healing benefits of the comfrey plant. Best to you

Onion

Posted by Tammt (Al) on 11/03/2016
★★★★★

Wow the post about potatoes for blood poisoning

! Luv to hear other things u grandma used. I know I have seen the fine skin of a white onion stop bleeding.

Onion

Posted by Karen (Michigan) on 12/12/2016

Could you elaborate how to stop bleeding with onion skins? Thank you.

Cayenne

Posted by Pandora (Mount Olympus) on 12/29/2022

I think the salt may have caused the pain. Have you heard of the expression “like rubbing salt into a wound?” The fact it did not hurt right after is likely due to cayenne!

Cayenne

Posted by Mama To Many (Tennessee) on 12/08/2015

Cindy, This tape sounds so cool! I will definitely be getting some for my first aid box. Thanks for sharing. I have never heard of this stuff! ~Mama to Many~

Apple Cider Vinegar

Posted by Gem Roice Nerit (Philippines) on 04/15/2014
★★★★★

I had a bike accident and I scratch my chin I just soaked it in ACV and it heals it fast.

Hydrogen Peroxide

Posted by Man (Sojouring America) on 02/27/2014
★★★☆☆

WORKED TEMPORARILY

I have a painful under fingernail unhealing thing going on. I spray Hydrogen Peroxide on them twice a day and it heals but then the issue returns.The stinging of the H2O2 under the finger nails is every time I spray H2O2. Like an infection under my finger nails, all of them). I have a wound on the thumb, a slight cut that will not heal. It keeps on painful and comes and goes. It heals and then if I do any work with my hands, the thumb wound opens up again.

Cayenne

Posted by Rick G (Woodridge, Il) on 03/28/2013

Update: I waited about 48 hours to change dressing so as not to disturb the cayenne pepper cauterization. Last night I took the bandage off and there was still no bleeding. I re-applied a heavy sprinkling of cayenne pepper onto the affected area as a precaution. I will keep this dressing on for 24 hours and then return to regular dressing changes.

This is the same general technique that several other Earth Clinic members have used successfully.

Thanks to all for your replies. As far as my cancer goes, I appreciate the suggestions, but it is beyond that.

Royal Jelly

Posted by P (Middle Of, Fl) on 02/13/2012

Hey! I too had an open wound about same size of your daughters and had put honey with the same success! I suggest you don't stop; keep going until wound is totally healed! I also suggest applying coconut oil & castor oil once its closed to minimize scarring!

FYI; I have read here on EC that cayenne pepper heals open wounds too with no scars! Awsome!