apple cider vinegar & honey help arthritis

I've come across one too many references to the apple cider vinegar (with mother) with honey mixture as an old time remedy for arthritis I decided to google for more info - see below - and plan to try it for a while. Since my sister recommends drinking something acidic with meals anyway to help digestion it seems this way I could help two problems with one honey drink :)

From the website: arthritis-treatment-and-relief.com

"Dr. D.C. Jarvis, practitioner in Vermont, wrote a book entitled Arthritis and Folk Medicine. It is an interesting account of the centuries-old remedies used by farmers in Vermont for preserving vigorous health into old age. The book explains in detail the uses of apple cider vinegar for everything from relieving arthritis to reducing blood pressure to curing osteoporosis.

Jarvis believes that people with arthritis are calcium deficient, yet their joints and blood vessels are lined with calcium deposits that interfere with blood circulation and cause pain. He explains: “People with arthritis are usually classified as calcium deficient, although they do tend to accumulate calcium deposits. Vermont folk medicine says they are not making hydrochloric acid in the stomach, or else the amount made is too small. Normal calcium metabolism is so highly dependent upon this acid that when there is a lack of it a disturbed calcium metabolism is inevitable.”

Apparently Vermonters believe that treatment of arthritis, and many other health problems, must begin in the stomach. Jarvis found that when an apple cider vinegar cocktail is taken daily, calcium deposits are released back into solution in the bloodstream to be re-circulated to the proper parts of the body (the bones), thus alleviating arthritic pain and warding off osteoporosis. He explains: “The bones are a storehouse for calcium, and the ability to deposit calcium in the bony framework of the body with the aid of vinegar is certainly of value in elderly people because it makes the bones stronger and much less likely to be broken.”

In his conclusion, Jarvis summarizes the Vermont folk medicine prescription for arthritis: “Give 2 teaspoonfuls of apple cider vinegar and 2 of honey in a glass of water, taken at each meal. If this mixture is not accepted by the stomach at mealtimes it may be taken between meals.”

Use the cider vinegar and honey treatment for arthritis and also apply cider vinegar externally to painful joints. Local treatment can also be given by soaking the arthritic hand, or foot in a strong, comfortably hot solution of cider vinegar for ten minutes, two or three times a day - (a quarter of a cup of cider vinegar to one and a half cups of water).

Arthritic knees can be attended to by making a poultice - soak the cloth in a mixture of cider vinegar and water, (as per above mixture) wring out and wrap it around the joint, then secure with a dry cloth to retain heat. When the wet cloth cools, it should be wrung out in the hot solution and applied afresh. Repeat several times, twice daily.

The Arthritis Foundation does not endorse this treatment and lumps it under unproven remedies. My patients sometimes will try things like this. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. I personally don’t see any real harm in trying it. But I wouldn’t advise using this as a substitute for what your rheumatologist recommends."

goat potato chips...

thinking about other free goat munchies; at some point I read an article about feeding goats dry fall leaves during winter, tried it out this fall and yes, they do eat them like we do potato chips :)

A couple things I learned, they LOVE apple tree leaves, but pitted fruit trees like cherry (wild and cultivated) and peaches are poisonous. As are Rhodondendron, Mountain Laurel and Yew. Do a google search for a complete listing...

When leaves are abundant the goats are probably not that interested in what you offer since it is available everywhere; it's when it's all gone 'in the wild' when a handful each day with their hay will be greatly appreciated. Don't throw it on the ground; eating of the floor is unsanitary anyway, but even yummy leaves on ground tend to be ignored.

I only save leaves in paper bags and when 'collecting' filled bags only save the ones for the animals that are completely dry (at least a couple days no rain) and are light weight, without extra moisture. Wet leaves will start composting, and the molds would make the goats sick, not happy.

Furry Chrismas Tree Recycling?

I was thinking... seeing all those dumped nice Christmas trees along the roads... how good a goat treat would those make?

I asked Michael my goat guru and he remembered seeing an article on the web about a town collecting all it's trees after new years and donating them to a goat farm, so it's not that unusual of an idea! He did also mention feeding white pine on the other hand (not a xmas tree type pine) can cause miscarriage - very good to know, as we have a large white pine which always looses branches I was intending to feed to my (pregnant) girls!

I brought home a nice looking tree (no spray on glitter etc) and the girls are steadily munching on it - not too much at once, bu munching away none the less :)

See blog article "Christmas Trees recycled by Goats" and article "Rescued Goats eat Discarded Christmas Trees like Candy"

Cinnamon Bread

6.5 - 7 cups white & whole wheat flour
6 tablespoons sugar
1.5 teaspoon salt
1 pkg / 2.5 teaspoons yeast
1 cup milk
3/4 (1/2 if proofing) cup water
1/3 cup margarine
3 room temperature eggs

filling:
softened butter to spread
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2-1 cup raisins (optional)

Proof dry yeast with 1/4 cup warm water and 1 teaspoon sugar.
Mix 2 cups of flour with sugar & salt.
Put milk, water & margarine in glass bowl and microwave for 2 min.
Gradually add to dry ingredients in KitchenAid and mix.
Add proofed yeast and eggs.
Gradually add the rest of the flour to make a stiff dough which pulls off the sides of the bowl.
Cover with warm damp cloth for 30-60 minutes in a warm spot.

Remove dough from bowl and divide in two.
Punch each half down to about a 14x9 triangle.
Spread softened butter all over, sprinkle with sugar/cinnamon.
Roll as you would a jelly roll, begin at short side.
Tuck in ends to prevent leaking and place in metal bread pan.

Bake at 325 degrees for about 50 minutes.
To see if it's done, turn over and knock to hear if it's hollow.
Place cookie sheet under bread pans as the goodies can leak out.

Great to bring to potlucks, the bread looks wonderful and tastes even better!

From Countryside, Nov/Dec 2010 page 71

Oliebollen

New Years' Eve fried dough "Dutch style"

1 cup raisins (optional)
4.5 cups all purpose flour
2 cups lukewarm milk
1 tbs salt
1 egg
24 grams yeast

rinse the raisins, black and/or yellow, and drain well
dilute / proof the yeast in a little lukewarm milk
combine flour and salt in stand mixer, add milk, egg, yeast mixture and raisins - mix well

the mixture should fall in flakes, not sheath

let rise covered in warm environment for at least an hour
when it has risen and is full of bubbles it is ready

use a deep fryer on the french fries setting (remove the colander)
use two spoons to scoop batter from bowl, constantly rotating to make 1,5-2 inch balls, and drop them into the frying oil - leaving room to move about

After about 3 minutes turn around, if they have not already done so, and bake for an additional 2 minutes (the larger the diameter of the ball, the longer the baking time). They should be golden brown (like french fries) and crispy, without a doughy center.

"Oliebollen" are the predecessors of Doughnuts - believe it or not since they do taste completely different. The batter changed over the years, especially with the addition of sugar. One invention to prevent a doughy center (an issue with frying large volume) was to remove the center completely, resulting in the recognizable doughnut "O" shape :)