Society is increasingly turning to pharmaceuticals as a means of relieving pain, treating infections and illnesses, but many of these synthetic drugs come with a long list of side effects. What the world doesn’t know is the potency of natural remedies. Thus, medical coverage is not universal, and this precipitates the need for holistic treatments. Near Eastern medicine has largely been discarded in favor of pharmaceuticals, and millennia of medical knowledge was discarded in the process. What can be cured with crushed clovers is now replaced with ibuprofen. This is one of the biggest flaws in our “universal” health system. I developed a medical journal over spring break last year, and have been expanding it ever since, adding holistic remedies used in place of synthetic drugs to treat a variety of ailments. This would not only restore almost forgotten medical knowledge, but also foster a peaceful relationship between Muslims and other Near Eastern communities during a time when such peaceful relationships are vital.
How long will we remain ignorant of these things? Yes, perhaps drugs and over-the-counter medications are much more efficient and work faster, but what about our appreciation for medical literature and a millennium’s worth of medical knowledge? Should they be discarded? pulled?
This is something that we as a society have to work towards, one step at a time.
Recently, I put this to use. A few days ago, on January 6, 2018 at about 9:00 p.m., my father indicated that he had some discomfort in his right eye. Curious, I took a high resolution photo of the eye in question, in a slightly supine position. I analyzed the image and discovered irregular growth/swelling on the right upper eyelid. I remember studying and reading about various eye infections and irregular growths in some of my classes at school, including conjunctivitis (“pink eye”), myasthenia gravis, and blepharitis. I concluded that the symptoms my father was experiencing were characteristic of what is commonly called a “stye.” In stye, the eyelid is usually slightly red, almost as if it is trying to develop into a minor form of blepharitis. I asked myself and my dad, “Maybe this stye was the cause of the lack of sleep? I asked this because some blood vessels in his right eye were slightly bulging. “No,” he replied. I read and researched about the stye online Just before my mom got up to go to the pharmacy to buy her some over-the-counter medicine, I read that a stye could be cured with ONE SIMPLE TECHNIQUE: HEAT.
I told my father to apply heat (the best option) so that the inflammation in the idea and any bacteria that are there can dissociate (if that’s the right word). He held a hot soaked towel OVER his right eye (note: he didn’t necessarily have to TOUCH his eye with the towel). He held it for 6-8 minutes and repeated this until the pain subsided. The next day, he performed the same procedure. After only two days of routinely practicing the same procedure (NO MEDICATIONS), my father’s eyelid returned to its normal color and shape.
So there you have it.
Certain things CAN be cured simply with holistic natural remedies. We like to think that doctors, physicians, pharmacists, etc. they are “in charge” of Medicine. Not necessarily. Medicine can start at home, with us. One step at a time.