Jamaicans are strange people. I should know; I’m one of them! We put as much faith in science as superstition, and over the years, this paradoxical mix created some interesting home remedies that actually work more often than not. Maybe it’s actually the “medicine”, or maybe it’s the placebo effect, but who can argue with results?
While the older generation and those in the countryside are most well-known for their elaborate remedies, there are five essentials of a Jamaican First Aid Kit, likely to be found in just about any Jamaican home—though not always stored together. Here goes!
1. Rubbing Alcohol
My [Haitian] Dad is forever irritated with my mom for this addition to her Jamaican First Aid Kit, and swears it is the reason she cannot abide cold weather. Rubbing alcohol’s intended use is as an antiseptic for shallow and external wounds. While this is one of its many functions in Jamaica, it is perhaps, not the primary purpose.
Here are a few other ways we abuse rubbing alcohol:
- As a child, if it’s raining and you get wet, your mother will likely pour a cork-full of the substance onto the crown or mole of your head.
- If the cold sneaks up on us before we could pour the alcohol on our head, we will damp our hands with rubbing alcohol, rub our face with it, and then inhale.
- If sinuses, flu, or colds makes us stuffy, we will keep a bottle handy for inhaling, to clear the breathing passage.
- Some Jamaicans may also inhale rubbing alcohol to combat nausea and headaches.
- If we have joint pain, we may use rubbing alcohol to rub the area, often followed by wrapping.
- If it’s really hot, rub it on your skin and stand in a windy area, or before a fan. Instantly cools you down!
- To revive people who have fainted
- Sanitise needles before using it to remove macka (a thorn)
- If Jamaicans have been handling work that makes their hands hot (like ironing) and they intend to shower or otherwise handle cold water immediately afterwards, they will rub the hands with rubbing alcohol, to prevent relapse. Relapse is when enzymes stop working in the body due to a quick change from hot to cold, and yes, it can kill you.
2. Epsom Salt
Another must-have in a Jamaican First Aid kit is Epsom salt. This, at least, we use in very much the same way as everyone else—for the most part, anyway. Here are a few of the many purposes!
- Creating a soak with warm water to soothe pain and reduce swelling, especially in the feet
- Added to water and drunk to relieve constipation
- Can be used as a detox for the body, or as Jamaicans say, a “washout”
3. Rum
Even the most Christian of Jamaicans keep rum somewhere in the house, if not for social drinking, then medicinal purposes. For the rest of us heathens, we enjoy rum in our Christmas cake, sorrel, and any other excuse we might find.
But, what are these medicinal purposes I alluded to? Well, let’s see:
- Disinfecting cuts and bruises, especially when rubbing alcohol is not available
- Rubbing the face, back or feet, and sniffing, to cure cold and fever, and clear the sinuses
- Bless the house and ward off evil spirits, by sprinkling or pouring some onto the ground
- May sometimes be used as a sedative, when added to tea or other drinks
- Adult Jamaicans, and sometimes teenagers (usually under the supervision of an adult) drink a mix of rum, honey, and lime to cure cold, flu, and fevers. One Twitter follower pointed out that this is so common, there is an actual pre-made product made by Benjamins, in Jamaica.
Though not medicinal, many Jamaicans may also sprinkle some rum on the ground in memory of family and friends who have passed on, when they open a new bottle.
4. Sea Salt
Most people use sea salt just for cooking. Many others may know sea salt can be used for treating wounds, piercings, and sore throats. But, of course, Jamaicans are much too creative to settle for just this. As a result, sea salt is also used for:
- Rinsing the mouth to treat or soothe bleeding gums and tooth aches
- Mixing with water and sprinkling it in and around a house to combat obeah (black magic) and ward off duppies (not always, but usually evil spirits)
It is well to note that for some of these remedies, such as cleaning piercings, we go swimming in the sea. Plenty of free sea salt, there!
5. Tea
Tea is the cure-all we inherited from the British. If you fall ill around a Jamaican, especially from the older generations, the first thing they will ask is whether or not you had tea that morning.
In fact, ask any Jamaican, and we might jokingly tell you tea cures AIDS, cancer, depression, and heartbreak, but here are some more truthful uses:
- Cures nausea and stomach pain
- Puts an end to your gas woes
- Weight loss and detox
- Lowers blood pressure
- Cures nausea
- Fights the flu
- Warm green tea can be mixed with sea salt to create a gargle for a sore throat.
Keep in mind that we drink many different types of teas in Jamaica, with the most common choices being coffee, cocoa, peppermint, ginger, and cerasee.
Naturally, with these effective tools in our medicinal toolbox who needs a doctor, right? Well, unfortunately, we still do. We haven’t yet found the right tea to cure all our ills, but we know it’s out there, and with a touch of rum and rubbing alcohol, we’ll be better in no-time! 😅
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References
What’s a Jamaican post without some authentic Jamaican advice? Below are some of the tweets which confirmed and supplied information for this post. Have a good laugh at our expense! Trust me—we’re laughing with you!
Any Jamaican who says they only use sea salt to COOK will be henceforth banished and stripped of their black, green, and gold. 😂
Unnuh lie like! Unnuh neva use salt water gargle unnuh sore troat! Gimme unnuh passport, an' gweh! 🤣
— Alexis Chateau 🇯🇲 (@alexischateau_) May 19, 2018
1) rubbing alcohol – rub up your chest /head/back when you have flu.
-smell it when you have bad feelings /sinus
-disinfect cuts .
2) Epsom salt – use in warm water to treat pain
– drink a little in water for constipation
3)sea salt -cooking— Ella 🌻 (@sash_ella) May 19, 2018
Sea salt: gargle for sore throat. Also good for disinfecting cuts and bleeding gums
( Regular salts have additives that interfere with healing so sea salt is better)
— M'Buckup inna (@Rizzle2k) May 19, 2018
I went with my nurse friend to get my last piercing and she insisted I go buy sea salt for it afterwards. Plus in pharmacy our lecturers mentioned that use for it to tell patients
— M'Buckup inna (@Rizzle2k) May 19, 2018
Rubbing alcohol: hmm disinfection I guess? I use rum to rub on back for cold…
Epsom salt: is that the one when you dehydrated? Idr
Seasalt/table salt: gargle for sore throat
Lawks weh di last one?— Professor Moriarty (@ded2life) May 19, 2018
LOL!!! I do it all the time. My dad did it too. With rum I would put honey and lime in it for colds too. Kinda like a hot toddy…without the heat lol
— Professor Moriarty (@ded2life) May 19, 2018
Just to show you how prevalent that is here: Benjamin's has this product on our market pic.twitter.com/co6FP6xtb8
— M'Buckup inna (@Rizzle2k) May 19, 2018
Never use Epsom salt? Give me back your citizenship! 🤣
— Alexis Chateau 🇯🇲 (@alexischateau_) May 19, 2018
Let's see.
1. Rubbing alcohol – When you so hot you pour this on yourself and stand under a fan. Heaven.2. Epsom salt – Helps revive someone having a faint
3. Sea salt
For cooking? Think salt keeps away duppy but not sure— Mosskat (@Mosskat) May 19, 2018
Tea: buss gas. Lower pressure, stop nausea, cure flu, wash off yuh heart, cure badmind.
Tea fix everything 😆
— M'Buckup inna (@Rizzle2k) May 19, 2018
Broken heart? Drink some tea
— Professor Moriarty (@ded2life) May 19, 2018
Rubbing alcohol: reduce fever. Sniff if you're having a headache(mom did this ALOT. Don't do this. It's not healthy). Revive people who've fainted (again. Not healthy. Menthol crystals are better for this)
— M'Buckup inna (@Rizzle2k) May 19, 2018
4)tea -buss gas which cures you of all ailments
5) rum- drink for fun and to cure flu
-rub pain (sometimes covered with almond leaf)
-run duppy by sprinkling it at the grave side
-also you have to tip a little on the ground for your dead friends when you open a new bottle.— Ella 🌻 (@sash_ella) May 19, 2018
Rum: rub on foot bottom to cure flu. Gargle for sore throat with honey and lime. Rub down to reduce fever. settle nerves-*cough*alcoholism*cough*-
— M'Buckup inna (@Rizzle2k) May 19, 2018
1. When you have a fever, or got soaked in the rain.
2. Bath (for certain ailments) and foot soak
3. Gargle for sore throat, also a saline solution for angry sinuses. Among others.
4. Just about everything that's wrong w/ you.
5. Again, just about everything that's wrong w/ you.— Langi Lala Studios (@langistudios) May 20, 2018
Disclaimer
Just in case it needs saying, though these are actual remedies used within the Jamaican diaspora, please do not use this article for medical purposes. Reporting what Jamaicans do—even though we are always right, obviously—doesn’t mean it is healthy or will work for you. If you are ill, please consult a physician.
