Home remedies for ringworm

Ringworm doesn't really care who it affects - you, your dogs, or your cats. And since it spreads easily, if you've got kids in school, you may find yourself treating it.

It's not really a worm. It's a fungal infection of the skin that usually shows up in humans as raised red patches with defined edges... looking like a worm curled under the skin. It doesn't always look like a ring when it affects your pets, but it does make their hair break off over the affected area.

Ringworm can be transferred back and forth between pets and humans - pets and pets - or humans and humans. The fungal spores can live for a long time in the environment, so it's important to do a good anti-fungal cleaning if your home has had it.

But - I promised some home remedies, not a lecture on house cleaning, so here they are. Use most several times a day.

1. Aloe Vera
2. Tea tree oil
3. Honey and olive oil in melted beeswax
4. Apple cider vinegar
5. Listerine mouthwash
6. The oregano herb - mix with olive oil
7. Epsom salt solution - soak once a day
8. Nail polish - if you use it on pets, make sure it's dry before you turn them loose
9. Chewing tobacco - any wet tobacco. Use as a poultice and wrap it.
10. Diluted lime sulfur - one part to 16 to 32 parts water. Will stain!
11. Grapefruit seed extract
12. Raw papaya
13. Fresh garlic
14. Bleach - one part bleach to 6 parts water
15. Bag balm
16. Pure virgin coconut oil - also good for diaper rash!

Remember that everyone - pets and people alike - has a different system. Watch for allergic reactions and discontinue if they appear. Remember that allergies can take many forms - including headaches and muscle aches.

Milk of Magnesia better than prescription drugs?

It sure sounds like it. This morning's Spokesman Review included the weekly doctor's column and a reader had written that after years of treatment for skin problems on her face, someone had told her about Milk of Magnesia.

She tried it, and within a week her skin was clear - something she hadn't experienced in a very long time in spite of using expensive pharmaceuticals. She rubs it on her face in the morning and lets it sit while she showers, then rinses.

The doctor included other examples of equally good results - proving that once again, home remedies are sometimes better than anything you can buy at the pharmacy counter. And better yet - they're cheaper and have no destructive side-effects.

If you have a skin rash, acne, or any other type of skin problem, why not give it a try?