If it hurts, put cabbage on it

      If it hurts, as a general rule, I put cabbage on it.  There are exceptions to this rule: don’t put cabbage on inflamed skin; it will make it worse.  But anything under the skin is fair game.  I’ve used cabbage to good effect on: strains; sprains; toothache; back pain; abscesses; bot fly maggots; mastitis; surgery incisions; tumors; and even painful lungs with flu.  At a family reunion a few years back, I found that it is used in the South to stop inflammation from over-full breasts while weaning.

Cutting the head in half cross-wise makes it easier to take leaves off the top for poulticing.  Use the lower half for eating.

The book that I got the remedy from, Organic Garden Medicine (by Dr. Jean Valnet, Erbonia Books, New Platz, New York, 1975), had three cases of it curing gangrene, both traumatic and arteriosclerotic.  It was terse in its treatment of most plants, only devoting ½ to 1½ pages to each; cabbage got 20 pages.    

Cabbage laid out for a large poultice, ready to fold and roll.

The first time I used cabbage on a toothache, it hit like the kick of a mule.  I took 800 mg of ibuprofen, and then put a piece of cabbage about 2” wide on the nearest cheek with a 2” Ace bandage, wrapped from chin to crown.  The pain immediately began to lessen, and in the morning, it was gone.  I used it on and off for several days as it got sore, until I saw a dentist who said that I needed a root canal and wanted to give me antibiotics for a week first to reduce the infection.  I told him that I had my own antibiotics; that I would keep cabbage on the cheek and garlic oil in the nearest ear (more on garlic oil later); and I would see him in a week.  The cabbage poultice would only stay on my head during the day, but within the week the infection was practically gone, and cabbage had kept me pain-free for 11 days.

Folded and flattened with a rolling pin.

To make a cabbage poultice: take cabbage leaves; cut the big ribs out of the middle; flatten the rest with a rolling pin or bottle; and put it on the part that hurts with an elastic bandage.  For larger poultices and on thin skin, one may spread the leaves out on a paper towel before flattening and fold the paper towel over it to make it easier to apply; the cabbage will work through the paper; cheese cloth would work as well.    On the thicker skin of the face and hands, it will absorb better and stick better without the paper towel; on thin skin, the paper towel can protect against irritation.  Overlapping the cabbage makes it last longer.

Laid on a 6" Ace bandage for back poultice.  Back up to the table to pull it onto the back; wind it around and pin it.

Cabbage is a member of the mustard family.  It’s a strong remedy; don’t overdo the crushing when you roll it.  One person thought it would work better if she put it through a blender; she burned the heck out of her shin.  Don’t put the bandage on too tight, either.  If it hurts more after you put it on, it’s wound too tight; rewind it looser.  Change it when it starts to get irritating as it dries out, usually within 8 hours; more often if it is a bad infection.  For long-term use, leave it off for 8 hours per day to rest the skin.

                                            

Double back and front poultice laid out for treating a bladder infection.  Pull the end poultice on the back; turn and pull on the front to wind, adjusting the position of the poultices before winding the rest on.

        Like any antibiotic, cabbage can be overused and cause immunity in particular bacteria.  But its anti-inflammatory effect remains effective and useful for stopping pain, and in the case of bladder infection, keeps one's urine flowing freely.
                                                           Revised at News-You-Can-Use-by-Rycke.blogspot.com.