Use Your Kitchen, Not Your Medicine Cabinet!—Part 1: Introduction

By Annette McEndarfer

Go to the kitchen!
Is that what you think of doing when a family member is sick or first aid is needed in your home? As a mother of seven, I have come to appreciate my kitchen over the years. It has become a place of prevention, healing, and comfort in ways that, perhaps, you haven’t thought about.
I’ve always leaned toward a natural approach to health and first aid. When I suffered from dry hands I made an oatmeal paste which brought soothing relief and healed them nicely. Getting rid of a urinary tract infection in a day by drinking cranberry juice and flushing it through with beer also worked well for me.
I am astonished at how people today automatically run to the doctor for every little thing. The cost and side effects do not make sense to me. I absolutely believe that doctors have a place, and I am so thankful for them, but I think that many things can be dealt with safely and inexpensively in our own homes without tying up our medical professionals or putting ourselves at further risk by exposing ourselves to other illnesses in doctors’ offices and hospitals.

People have been treating themselves throughout the entire history of mankind. I love this picture in Ezekiel 47:12, “And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.”
The Bible also states that we are to treat our bodies as a temple. It is in our best interest to be proactive when it comes to our health. Learning to take the best care of our bodies can be an overwhelming prospect when there is an incredible amount of information available and so much of it is contradictory and can’t be trusted. Discernment is always a good thing.
Now, I am not a medical professional, nor do I claim to be an expert; I’m just a woman who likes to manage what I can in the safest, most inexpensive way possible for myself and my family. At fifty-plus years, I’m still learning and hope to continue to do so.
In this series we’re going to take a very brief look at how our kitchens can become our medicine cabinets. Next week I’ll be talking about prevention.
With more than twenty years of homeschooling under her belt, Annette McEndarfer continues to teach her seven children on their small homestead in northern Maine where she also has the privilege of investing in the lives of other ladies.