Poor Man's Medicine

Here I go again with some random thoughts swirling around in my brain this morning.  Comments from Exile and Melanie on the “Elections and the Supply and Demand for Food” got me thinking a little.  They posited that the reason why I didn’t see the increased traffic and demand at the Home Storage Centers this election cycle compared to the previous four was that people can’t afford it now.  Could it be that the wealthiest nation on earth, and in the history of the world, is becoming poorer?

And is this necessarily a bad thing?  (OK, hear me out.)

As you might recall, my husband was laid off in August.  And a week after that, I developed an ulcer.  I don’t think I would have gone to the doctor for it, even if he hadn’t been unemployed and we’d had insurance.  But without insurance, DIYing treatment with herbs was a no-brainer.  Have I been better off because I didn’t take the pills which could have caused unwanted side effects?  I’ll never know, but I can guess that in this situation I am healthier for being (hopefully momentarily) poor.

I grew up with the notion that the wealthy were healthier because they could afford better care.  If insurance didn’t cover an illness or procedure, they could pay out-of-pocket for all the expenses.  The poor didn’t have that luxury.  TV ads requesting donations for the poor in Africa remind us of that today. 

Dr. Steve first prompted my questioning the notion of the wealthy being healthier in his classes many years ago.  He related how in Victorian England, the wealthy would have their wound bandages changed daily, because they could afford it.  The poor could not afford that luxury, so their bandages were changed only 2-3 times per week.  How was it that the wounds of the poor healed faster?  Well, the newly formed tissues weren’t being disturbed, for one.  Being poor meant they were actually getting better care in this situation.

In one conversation this past summer, my son Jared shared garlic’s historical reputation for being an undesirable food, with some even claiming it was unhealthy.  It was actually a common food not fit for the wealthy because anybody could grow it.  Garlic and onions were peasant food.  And yet, they have so many medicinal uses.  And they make our food taste good.

So many of Grandma’s home remedies were stinky or tasted bad.  That usnea tincture for my ulcer was a horrific assault on the taste buds.  And the image that Big Pharma promoted and that our media supported, was that if you were using grandma’s remedies, you were probably poor.  Only the wealthy could call for a doctor.

In that same conversation with Jared, he noted that dandelions were brought to this continent by the colonials because it grew so well and was so nutritious.  What do the wealthy do today?  They use herbicides to eradicate dandelions, as well as plantain and mallow, from their lawns.  Only poor people have dandelions spoiling their grass.   

When Nestle corporation in the US began its big push selling baby formula in the 1940s and 1950s, which women were the first to start buying it?  The middle and upper classes.  Only the low-class and immigrants continued to breast feed their babies.

In Eggs or Anarchy, we read how Lord Woolton, Minister of Food in Great Britain during WWII, fed the country and helped them become healthier in the process.  What were they eating?  Whole grains.  Peasant food.  The cheap stuff.  Because when societies collapse, it’s the cheap stuff that sustains. 

And this then again begs the question, are the wealthy actually healthier?  Are there changes we can make in our attitudes to become healthier? 

When society collapses and when our carefully stockpiled Big Pharma medications run out, we’re going to be relegated to using herbs.  Will it be a blessing for us?  Will we be healthier?  Will we be able to stop or arrest illnesses because we can start using our home-prepared remedies immediately, without having to wait to see a doctor?  Without bankrupting ourselves?  (Which then gives rise to more stress and illness?)

And then when you think of all the medicinal herbs surrounding us, and especially the invasive ones that exert so many medicinal benefits and are free for the taking, like the scotch thistle and chicory I just wrote about, you have to wonder if maybe God wants us to be humble, to be teachable, to utilize medicinal herbs and nutritious food more and to look to Him for guidance.  Perhaps having a bit of financial struggle in life is a path to bringing us closer to Him. 

Links to related posts:

Eggs or Anarchy 

Medicinal Uses of Chicory

Medicinal Uses of Scotch Thistle