Ways to Treat Infections Without using Antibiotics ... What is yours?

This year I intended to plant some systemic medicals.  As usual, life got in the way.

I would like to know what others use to treat infections so that you do not have to go to the doctor and get prescribed antibiotics.  Sometimes folks are in situations where going to the doctor is not an option so having this information might be very handy.  What common items do you use?

I recently had some sort of crud on my face that I thought might be impetigo which is a staph infection that is treated with antibiotics.  I could not go to the doctor so I used what was available.  Alternating rounds of alcohol and hydrogen peroxide.  The crusty  scaly area went away with 3 or 4 days of using this treatment.

Sometimes (not always) a strong tincture of yarrow root (basically, jam a jar full of washed fresh roots and cover with whiskey) used as a mouth wash/soak will beat back infections in bad teeth.  At least temporary relief of pain and inflammation is common although not assured, and sometimes a jaw infection can be "cured" for weeks or months by doing this two or three times a day for several days.

You don't *have* to swallow, but when you've got a toothache, it's no time to be wasting whiskey in my view...

I'm very interested in this as my family and my dogs are currently battling MRSA. I seen some research on the use of probiotics to treat MRSA, but it's not prescriptive, it just says it could be helpful.

Regarding MSRA - on another thread:

Todd Parr wrote:I personally cured doctor-diagnosed MRSA with grapefruit seed extract and raw honey.

From my research:  MRSA - The symptoms of MRSA depend on where you're infected. Most often, it causes mild infections on the skin, like sores or boils. But it can also cause more serious skin infections or infect surgical wounds, the bloodstream, the lungs, or the urinary tract.

Though most MRSA infections aren't serious, some can be life-threatening. Many public health experts are alarmed by the spread of tough strains of MRSA. Because it's hard to treat, MRSA is sometimes called a "super bug."

Garlic and ginger - plus raw honey if you can get it - 'can' cure chest infections, or at least hold them at bay long enough to get some antibiotics....

Stacy Witscher wrote:I'm very interested in this as my family and my dogs are currently battling MRSA. I seen some research on the use of probiotics to treat MRSA, but it's not prescriptive, it just says it could be helpful.

Like Anne saw in the other thread, I cured it with honey and grapefruit seed extract, both applied directly to it.  Manuka honey cures it faster.  Put the honey directly in the wound and cover with a bandage.  I normally changed it morning and night.  Once a day before putting the honey on it again, I put grapefruit seed extract on it.  After 5 minutes or so it itches and burns, so I would wash it off and then put the honey on again.  I think the honey alone would cure it, but this is the way I did it.  Standard disclaimers apply, I'm not a doctor and cannot by law or in good conscience recommend medical treatments, I'm just passing on what I did.  Mine was a pretty bad infection with open sores that you could see into more than an inch and as big around as my little finger.  It was pretty scary.

For topical treatment of infected cuts, wounds, and something that I believe may have been staph, I have had tremendous results with goldenseal. Mix the powdered root with aloe to make a paste, apply that to the infected area and cover with a bandage or bandaid. Change it out twice a day.

I have taken goldenseal internally by putting the powder in capsules, I believe you can also buy pre-made capsules. Be careful when using it this way as it is hard on the liver. Allow at least 12 hours between doses and don't take it continuously for more than two weeks. I AM NOT A DOCTOR, just someone who has had great results and is passing that info on for others.

Stephen Buhner's book "Herbal Antibiotics" is a very useful resource.

First realize that a staph infection can be life threatening.  These bugs are the culprits that cause septic shock.  If you see ted streaks emanating from your infection, break glass, go to ER, don't mess around.

I had one of these skin infections recently on shin, and it was scary gross.  I found that topical chlorhexidine 2% applied often and soaked in a band-aid was very effective.  It's written and my experience confirms that these infections may lurk months as tiny yellow subcutaneous spots, so it bears watching and can get tedious.  The literature states that staph are particularly susceptible to chlorhexidine.  This is a disinfectant, not an antibiotic, of course.   The treatment is superficial, so you haven't wrecked your gut flora etc.

Mine, which was a chancre maybe a 1/4 inch in height and 1/2 inch in diameter, started in NOv 2016, was mostly gone within a month except for follow up on tiny yellow spots or things that look like they might be tiny yellow spots.

I recommend against alcohol and peroxide used often because this will injure your skin somewhat and retard healing. Antibiotic cream (triple) was no help and maybe harmed in early stages; it prevents drying of the wound.

I don't believe there is an herbal source for chlorhexidine.  It is benign, being used in moujthwash.

I am not a healthcare professional.  Good luck!

One of my biggest concerns is getting things for the dogs handled while treating the family. Topical salves don't work well for the dogs as they just lick everything off quickly. I'm upping their baths, unfortunately one of my dogs hates water. I am hoping to find some kind of topical spray for in between baths, something that is light enough that they won't try to lick it. The pit bulls are prone to furuncles, which them become infected with MRSA. The chihuahua has terrible skin problems, I'm pretty sure she was the original cause of the MRSA, the vet kept putting her on meds. So, anyway, I'm looking for an integrated approach.

My infections aren't large, there are just a lot of them, a couple dozen on my arms, a few on my chest, and now a couple on my thighs. And the crusty nose so common with MRSA. I've been dealing with these skin infection for years, but never knew what they were, just got a diagnosis, previous doctor's just told me I was crazy.

Stacy Witscher wrote:One of my biggest concerns is getting things for the dogs handled while treating the family. Topical salves don't work well for the dogs as they just lick everything off quickly. I'm upping their baths, unfortunately one of my dogs hates water. I am hoping to find some kind of topical spray for in between baths, something that is light enough that they won't try to lick it. The pit bulls are prone to furuncles, which them become infected with MRSA. The chihuahua has terrible skin problems, I'm pretty sure she was the original cause of the MRSA, the vet kept putting her on meds. So, anyway, I'm looking for an integrated approach.

My infections aren't large, there are just a lot of them, a couple dozen on my arms, a few on my chest, and now a couple on my thighs. And the crusty nose so common with MRSA. I've been dealing with these skin infection for years, but never knew what they were, just got a diagnosis, previous doctor's just told me I was crazy.

I wonder if tea tree oil might help your skin infections? I've used it for healing cuts and a few times for an area that seemed like it was getting infected. It's worth keeping a small bottle of good quality essential oil around for occasional cuts. EDIT to say it probably wouldn't be good for the dogs if they lick it off...most info says don't take it internally although people do for certain things.

Tea tree oil is thought to have antiseptic properties and has been used to prevent and treat infections. Other traditional uses of tea tree oil include treatment of fungal infections (including fungal infections of the nails and athlete's foot), dental health, parasites, skin allergic reactions, and vaginal infections.

 http://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/tea-tree-oil/background/hrb-20060086

I've had good experiences with golden seal as someone above mentions...both for myself for healing and for my mother's eyes in years past.  She was prone to conjunctivitis. I used it as an eye wash and that cleared it up quickly, but during use the area around her eyes looked jaundiced from the color of the golden seal root.  At the time we were growing it and only used a small amount of root for the eye wash.  It's another herb that is worth having a small amount dried and available....it seems to stay potent a long time.

I think that my infections haven't become very serious because I already use tea tree oil and clove oil in my body products, like body butter. The antimicrobial essential oils were part of my idea for shampoo and topical sprays for the dogs. I just need to look into emulsifying agents to make a spray, etc.

Stacy Witscher wrote:I think that my infections haven't become very serious because I already use tea tree oil and clove oil in my body products, like body butter. The antimicrobial essential oils were part of my idea for shampoo and topical sprays for the dogs. I just need to look into emulsifying agents to make a spray, etc.

I've taken astragalus for several years for the immune system boost after having had tick fever.  It is also said to help with infections, this article includes staph and MRSA.  Maybe you are already familiar with it? I don't know if this is the best site for info but the first I ran across http://www.astragalus.com/antiviral-and-antibacterial/a-natural-antiviral-and-antibacterial-herb  I like Stephen Buhner's site as mentioned in a post above...he speaks highly of astragalus and many other herbal remedies.

In the lab, astragalus demonstrates antibacterial activity against:

   Shigella dysenteriae, which can cause bloody diarrhea.
   Staphylococcus aureus, which can cause staph infections and MRSA.
   Streptococcus hemolyticus, a virulent form of strep that can cause scarlet and rheumatic fever.

Richard Kastanie wrote:Stephen Buhner's book "Herbal Antibiotics" is a very useful resource.

I have his book and highly recommend it.  The quotes in my signature line are from this book.  

Todd Parr wrote:Like Anne saw in the other thread, I cured it with honey and grapefruit seed extract, both applied directly to it.  Manuka honey cures it faster.  Put the honey directly in the wound and cover with a bandage.  I normally changed it morning and night.  Once a day before putting the honey on it again, I put grapefruit seed extract on it.  After 5 minutes or so it itches and burns, so I would wash it off and then put the honey on again.  I think the honey alone would cure it, but this is the way I did it.  Standard disclaimers apply, I'm not a doctor and cannot by law or in good conscience recommend medical treatments, I'm just passing on what I did.  Mine was a pretty bad infection with open sores that you could see into more than an inch and as big around as my little finger.  It was pretty scary.

Apparently sugar paste works too: http://alsearsmd.com/2010/07/heal-your-wounds-the-sweet-way/

Did anyone mention colloidal silver? Super easy and cheap to make.  And from what I recall it's best to make your own because it has an electrical charge that diminishes as it sits.  Which is said to be of great importance to it's effectiveness.  So don't waste your money on the stuff at the store unless you're in a pinch.

Now that I've mentioned it....I wanna say that I believe in building health overall instead of just treating symptoms.  To me, I like to think of colloidal silver as the thing that is used only when needed, and it's rarely needed.  And now days I don't want to put all that metal into my body, even if it is effective.  But I still have the ability to make it if it's ever needed, and won't hesitate to ingest it if it's that dire.

Around 7-8 years ago when I learned of colloidal silver I drank a quart per day for two or three days in a row. I had made a few gallons over the course of a couple months...and drank it all during that time frame.  I would typically drink around half to a full quart per day. I think it's more effective like that, and I simply wanted to share, especially for those people who are afraid to take an effective dose.  Look into it though for sure, because if you make it incorrectly you'll end up ingesting other stuff that isn't good for you.  It's simple to make correctly...use distilled water ONLY.  Using tap water or adding salt is how people get argyria when ingesting colloidal silver.  And some people mention that they like to eat fermented foods afterwards to repopulate their gut with some good microbes.  I don't recall eating fermented foods intentionally to repopulate my gut....but that was during the time I was learning to make fermented food.

On the topic of fermented food.. I think I'm recalling that fermented foods will repopulate the gut with good microbes that take out the bad microbes.  So maybe that could be used as an "antibiotic" for the gut..??

I do caution very strongly about using colloidal silver because of it may do more harm than good. I developed metal allergies to the point I can only tolerate Platinum 950 and Titanium. Niobium is an alt I haven't tried yet. These are the metals of last resort if you have metal allergies (contact with skin takes minutes to a few days. If it's metallic I don't do well. I even migrated past high carat gold as the alloy metals and impurities would get me). I would not dare just because of that and other health issues that seem to preclude introducing higher concentrations of a possible allergen into my body.

For me wound care is number one if you have open wound or abcess. Sterilizing and lancing abcesses with care, then good hygienic wound care will help a lot. For organics I will use hydrogen peroxide to 'eat' the foreign organics. Frequent wound dressing changes at the beginning, don't be afraid to open up/uncover, clean, and redress the wound. A hot pack carefully applied to increase circulation can also help with both swelling and the body dealing with the issue itself.

Some do swear by honey as a topical and it has both anectdotal and medical trials behind it.  

For spider, ant, bites; bee and especially hornet stings; I tend to use medical grade activated charcoal and a preparation including plantain extract as a poultice to draw the venoms out of the flesh. Meat tenderizer containing papayin (extract of papaya) works on the hornet stings applied as a poultice.

As with all treatments, results may vary.

This thread might be of interest https://permies.com/t/42434/kitchen/garlic-cure-bacterial-infections

Ok, whats MRSA, everybody else seems to know what you are talking about, I cannot work it out?

Deb Rebel wrote:Some do swear by honey as a topical and it has both anectdotal and medical trials behind it.  

For spider, ant, bites; bee and especially hornet stings; I tend to use medical grade activated charcoal and a preparation including plantain extract as a poultice to draw the venoms out of the flesh. Meat tenderizer containing papayin (extract of papaya) works on the hornet stings applied as a poultice.  As with all treatments, results may vary.

Good to know about activated charcoal for insect bites as I had never heard of using it.  I have plantain and found it to be helpful, too.

As a comment regarding using honey, DH had a place on his face that his doctor thought was a "recurring cancer" and referred him to a dermatologist.  He never  went, instead used applications of honey.  It wasn't an overnight cure as it took many months of application.

This topic has some good imfo:

https://permies.com/t/19864/kitchen/guess-cold-home-remedies#166565

Especially this and a Fire Cider recipe.

Melba Corbett wrote:Lots of good information already posted.  The cayenne and ginger are heating herbs and help combat a "cold" condition of the body, not just a cold.  
If the left nostril is primarily clogged that is a sodium deficiency (not table salt, but green vegetables or celery as a source), and the right indicates a potassium deficiency (think apple cider vinegar, lemons or carrots).  Sore throat is a sulfur deficiency (onions, garlic, kale or collards,  or the supplement MSM).  A cold is a deficiency of all three.  Juicing carrots and celery and adding something as a sulfur component works pretty well.  Once the cold has started though, and taken hold, the body has such an accumulation of mucus it needs to throw off, it may persist for a while until the process is complete.  Quicken that process by keeping the bowels freely flowing (magnesium, more liquids, etc. )  
I've taken 1/4 tsp. of MSM granules in juice for a sore throat and yes, it tastes horrible; but it stopped it in about one minute.  

I'm surprised no one has mentioned MMS. It stands for miracle mineral solution. Chemically, it's NaClO2, and it comes in a two part solution, one containing the sodium chlorite, and the other citric acid. How it works: Mix part A and part B according to directions, the citric acid knocks the two oxygens off the compound yielding individual oxygens, or free radicals and what remains is NaCl, or table salt. It will kill both viruses and bacteria and interestingly, it doesn't seem to mess up my gut like antibiotics do. The only problem now is it's getting hard to find as the FDA doesn't like it because it's cheap and safe which means folks don't spend money on doctors or prescriptions. (remember, the FDA is a conglomerate headed by former pharmaceutical, chemical and food industry executives who do favors to protect industry profits. It no longer functions as a watchdog for the people as originally intended) It can still be found, and those seeking it in the states may have to get it from a foreign country.

Even though I mentioned it....I too recommend looking to ingesting colloidal silver as a last resort.  And as Deb mentioned, some people can't tolerate it.  So if you have sensitivities to metals, I would urge you to heed Deb's advice.  I personally prefer herbs, juice, food, cleansing, instead of ingesting metal.  But if it's all that you have, it can be useful.  Fasting will remove metals from the body.  I gave some to a couple recently that adopted a puppy that had been quite neglected.  The puppy had some type of sores on its skin.  They put it in a spray bottle to apply it, the puppy looked better three days later.  I think the particle size was a little too big, but it still seems to be helping.  I haven't used a lot of colloidal silver so I can't share many stories on it.  There are videos on youtube of colloidal silver under a microscope killing pathogens.  

Vetericyn  --  I have this on hand for all the animals.  I've used it for years on wounds to speed up healing, and it will prevent scars if used consistently.  I've noticed that it also works on skin, "infections/rashes/parasites", I think it works on all of those things if I'm recalling correctly.  I chatted with someone that used this on her young daughters face after a big cut from an accident that would of left a thick scar.  She said that she specifically used it because she knew that it would heal quickly with no scar.

Junos Story:An Herbal Wound Case   <--This is a thread by Doc Jones here on permies.  Follow the link from that post to his site for more info on that case, there is another case story linked within that one.  Very incredible case stories.  It's amazing what herbs can do for the body.  I use herbs all the time for myself and my animals, I find them very effective.

Cleansing, juice fasting, eating very clean and juicing...can be incredibly helpful for all situations of infection.  It will give the body a rest, and then it can spend time strengthening the immune system to help eradicate the infection.  And there are many things to add to your juice to help get rid of those infections.  Chilis, garlic, fresh herbs, ginger, turmeric, are some that would likely help.  Lou Corona has a popular juice recipe that would probably be good, called, Lemon Ginger Blast.

On the MMS  ---  I spent a lot of time researching it 4-5 years ago, and it seemed promising.  I gave it a try...for a short while.  There are many glorious stories of it on the the internet from what I remember.  But I would caution anyone using this internally.

I used 3 teaspoons of cayenne a day to heal my tonsillitis (with visible pus on the tonsils and it was already going up and in my ears, last time that happened, chemical antibiotics didn't even help, doctor had to puncture a hole in my upper palate to drain the pus). It helped nicely. I couldn't take it in a hot water as Dr. Christopher's web page recommended, so I stuffed it into capsules and took 12 capsules a day. I avoided hotness in my mouth, however another end still felt it...It was totally worth it. Not just infection went, but I didn't feel weak like I would from chemical antibiotics.
 Other antibiotic herbs are lomatium, olive leaf, usnea, goldenseal, Echinacea, calendula, Oregon grape root, red root, and some others. The key is to take enough. And with some like a pokeweed to take not too much, LOL....Tinctures are probably the easiest to take enough as they are strongest.

Depending on where the infection is ... if it's external I use aloe and honey as a topical application and bathe in tea tree oil soap and shampoo. For stings I chew up a leaf of plantain or giant ragweed and apply the juice. Internally, as I'm currently battling severe strep, I've been using a collodial silver spray, oregano oil, and drinking a tea made with garlic, ginger, red pepper, lemon, and honey. That's my go-to for respiratory infections usually but lately I've been adding mullein to it as well. For things like puncture wounds I soak in epsom salts and hot water.

I had life threatening MRSA and been down to the end of the antibiotic train so this is near and dear to my heart. As I type this I have an infection from a chainsaw cut to my finger.

I noticed when I worked on the dairy farm, cuts were healed within 24 hours by iodine. Since we were a Gold Standard dairy, to get our bacteria counts incredibly low,we used 7% surgical grade iodine, The dairy farm closed a few years ago, but we still have 55 gallon drums of the stuff and it is my go-to for infections.

Warning MRSA Tirade about to start!

I was angered when I went to the hospital for my logging accident where I spent 4 days. The hospital in question only half did the MRSA protocols. This is the skinny; the hospital is more worried tat the MRSA patient will spread the superbug to the rest of the hospital, but that is only HALF the problem. A hospital environment is teeming with infections and problems, so they should also be protecting THE PATIENT. The reality is, if I died, it would have been just a statistic.

I got upset and had to insist they do what they were supposed to do so that I would not get sick. In other words, it is not what I could spread as much as what my body could get and not fight off!

If anyone on here has MRSA and goes to the hospital, fight for the right things to be done because they are putting YOU at risk. I nearly died from MRSA so it is nothing to be shy about.

This concludes my tirade for the month and Permies everywhere can now return to their regularly scheduled discussions of compost, livestock and rocket mass heaters!

My grandmother was born in the latter part of the 19th century.  In those days, long before social security, to see a doctor cost money that they didn't have and more often then not, there was only one doctor for the entire valley so the chances of him coming to you before a day or two, at best, might be slim.  That is why most household developed their own herbal and emergency remedies.  My grandmother, believed that a thorough cleansing of the system was necessary to fight off any infection and to leave no breeding ground for bacteria.  Thus, she was a great believer in fasting and enema - yes, enema!  She used to make a "bouillon de legumes" i.e. simmer a few vegetables (carrots, leeks, celery, etc) in a lot of water and drink only the liquid part for a couple of days while cleansing the bowels with an enema.  This was very popular in France and even to this day you can find an enema kit on Amazon.fr.  Poultices were also a big part part of her pharmacopoeia.

Anyway, I guess I have picked up a lot of her recipes and my "medicine cabinet" is mostly in the garden.  Garlic, thyme, sage, rosemary, onion, comfrey, cabbage, calendula, elder, hypericum, echinacea, cayenne, borage, yarrow, peppermint, honey, mustard, mullein, pulmonaria, valerian, and the more exotic ginger, aloe, lemon, golden seal, and so many more.  I make tinctures, ointments and liniments and depending on the infection treat accordingly.  I know no better remedy than a cabbage leaf to draw out the pus in an infected wound, or a strong elder tea to reduce a fever.  There are so many to chose from but my favourites are golden seal, followed closely by echinacea and tea tree.   For burns and stings from insects, my favourite is lavender essential oil.

Instead of focusing solely on antibiotics, nourishing the skin or localized area affected would be another possibility to help --chickweed ointment, plantain ointment, are both very good for the skin. the toxins produced by the bacteria help to break down the surrounding areas making them more vulnerable, fortify the surrounding areas to help prevent reinfection--with the dogs this might be trickier, sometimes cayenne can be used to discourage licking, maybe put the treatment salve on and then layer the cayenne on top

Some of the essential oils might have similar qualities discouraging licking, soothing skin, fighting infection, whatever, but experimentation/observation will be the key.  Be careful if they start to lick essential oils, excessive consumption could be toxic.

Most of the antibiotic herbs have been mentioned-I wouldn't drink more alcohol than necessary, the liver needs to be in great shape to help process all the other toxins being produced by the infection

I will emphasize Garlic, fresh, inside and out--make a garlic oil with a blender, garlic cloves and olive oil, strain and apply as needed.(then eat the left over pieces of garlic, or use them on a salad. Garlic oil has the advantage for pets of being very effective, and very healthy internally as well. Everybody smells like garlic, so no body notices the smell

Dr. Christopher had an anti-plague tonic that had about a dozen herb decoctions and extracts, but the simplified version was a simple vinegar extract of cayenne, garlic, ginger, and horseradish

many find it hard to keep around since it is such an excellent salad dressing.

I totally agree with anything in the way of fasting, cleansing, but would stay away from the high power antibiotics, that's what has gotten us here to have to deal with Mrsa

On the other hand, the probiotics inside and out could be very helpful, kim chee, good fermented sourkrout,  rejuvelac from sprouted wheat berries, or simply lightly rinsed vegetables from the garden

ultimately connecting back with the microbial world in the soil around us is what I think will save us all--have you tried mud plasters?

In my journey with my husbands MRSA and other superbugs used solvern silver and elecapane. I have been putting up what I used for daughters cancer too at http://www.highpointcompany.com/mystory.html

Most people get MRSA because of antibiotics. GMO foods shown to have glyphosate round up which is registered as a potent antibiotic and uses a glycan to get the cells to absorb the poison. I used raw milk to put back good bacteria.

I have no problem using solvern silver because the other things I give detox of anything the body doesn't use.

All the references to colloidal silver in this thread make me want to mention Paul Karason, the most infamous person to have failed to match his dosing to his personal sensitivity level, with the result that he turned himself into a Smurf:



Photo and more information (albeit from a skeptical perspective) via this Wired magazine article.  It is worth noting that many many internet sellers and fans of colloidal silver products can easily be Googled up who hotly dispute Paul Karason's story ... claiming that what he took must not have truly been colloidal silver, often going into impressive-sounding chemical-mumbo-jumbo detail about why they don't think so and how he would have been fine if he had only purchased their product instead.  But all sources without a financial interest in any version of the product seem to be in agreemement -- take too much (with "too much" varying quite a bit depending on your own personal body chemistry) and you could wind up an impressive gray-blue color, whatever other health benefits you do or do not realize.  

I've tried to write this comment as neutrally as possible; I genuinely don't have any data, or an opinion, on how much good colloidal silver does for treating infections (the topic of this thread).  But I felt it was worth mentioning the very real risk of argyria (which is the fancy name of the skin condition that results in you turning that impressive color) from taking the stuff.  I'm all about informed risk-taking.  Do your research, people, and make sure you're comfy with the possible outcomes of the products you're ingesting.

I saw the blue Man on Dr. Oz, Mercury was used years ago for all kinds of ailments and it worked but down the road people suffered many side effects , I personally would not ingest any heavy metals , I already have aluminum poisoning, mercury poisoning and lead poisoning , and I know how difficult it is to get rid of these metals safely.

Regarding the heavy metal issue, there is a free teleconference on heavy metals and how to remove them that will be taking place on the internet soon called Heavy metal Summit.  Here is the link: http://theheavymetalssummit.com/schedule/
Regarding herbs, they work in different ways. Some are topical antimicrobials which means they will work externally on the skin and from the mouth to the anus as they have contact here. These will also work in the nasal passages and sinuses and lungs if inhaled. (Some are safe to inhale and others are not.) Then there are those that also work internally in the blood stream to other areas. These may be antimicrobials with direct action that kills microbes or they may actually be acting on the immune system to enhance the immune system's actions to protect your body. Some herbs do both. My favorite herb to use externally is Calendula. It is easy to grow and I make a 1:0.65 (about 25% acohol) really strong fresh plant tincture of it and use it as a spray. Thyme and oregano are helpful as inhalations. I usually use one of them mixed with anything with menthol to open up sinuses and allow the oregano and or thyme passage past congested tissues. A common plant with menthol in it is peppermint. They also help with lung infections although depending on what the infection is, I will of course add other immunomodulators. Wild indigo is great when there is serious stagnation in tissues. Yarrow and Goldenseal are both antimicrobial and additionally are astringent so they decrease inflammation and edema while acting as an antiseptic to an area. That makes them helpful in sore throats, ear infections, and nasal congestion.

Regarding MRSA and berberine containing herbs:Berberine is found in a variety of herbal plants including, Gold thread - Coptis chinensis, Goldenseal - Hydrastis canadensis, Amur corktree - Phellodendron amurense, Guduchi - Tinospora  cordifolia, and Oregon grape root - Berberis spp.  In a 2005 research study, berberine showed antimicrobial activity against all tested strains of methicillin resistant staph aureus (MRSA). A synergistic effect was found between  berberine and oxacillin when used against MRSA, and an additive effect between berberine and ampicillin. 734
H. canadensis leaf extract has been shown to be an antimicrobial agent and quorum quencher for MRSA. The activity of the crude extract has been compared in research to that of its major alkaloid, berberine. In particular, researchers investigated activity against USA300 MRSA isolates, which have emerged as the most common strain of MRSA observed in community-acquired soft-tissue infections. The Hydrastis leaf extract had greater activity than berberine alone. Researchers demonstrated H. canadensis leaf extract’s ability to act against MRSA with different mechanisms. They decided that all the components of the leaf and roots together would have better efficacy than its individual components in the treatment or prevention of MRSA infections, by virtue of its ability to target the pathogen via multiple pathways. 736 (this material is from "Herbal ABC's - The Foundation of Herbal Medicine", book out in February of 2018.

OK I give up , What is MRSA?
Why not type it out fully so others who don't know will become knowledgable?

John C Daley wrote:OK I give up , What is MRSA?
Why not type it out fully so others who don't know will become knowledgable?

MRSA
[ˌemˌärˌesˈā]
ABBREVIATION

   methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a bacterium with antibiotic resistance.

More severe cases of MRSA infection usually have worsening symptoms, including: muscle aches, joint pain, bone pain, chest pain, painful breathing, shortness of breath, fever and chills, low blood pressure, fatigue, headaches, rash and malaise.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection is caused by a type of staph bacteria that's become resistant to many of the antibiotics used to treat ordinary staph infections.

Most MRSA infections occur in people who've been in hospitals or other health care settings, such as nursing homes and dialysis centers. When it occurs in these settings, it's known as health care-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA). HA-MRSA infections typically are associated with invasive procedures or devices, such as surgeries, intravenous tubing or artificial joints.

Another type of MRSA infection has occurred in the wider community — among healthy people. This form, community-associated MRSA (CA-MRSA), often begins as a painful skin boil. It's spread by skin-to-skin contact. At-risk populations include groups such as high school wrestlers, child care workers and people who live in crowded conditions.

 https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/mrsa/symptoms-causes/syc-20375336

...and much much more online information, just using 'MRSA' as a search.

The following are three of my medicine cabinet essentials:

- tea tree oil for things of the skin. Undiluted for cysts (castor oil has also been very effective against cysts) and diluted for things such as hot spots on dogs, a noxiously infected half eaten paw of a newborn pup with the paw having tendons and bones jaggedly hanging out (the other half accidentally eaten by an over-zealous mama when taking off the amniotic sac), acne, mouthwash, lice (just spray some diluted on towel-dried, freshly washed hair and put on a shower cap for a few hours. Problem solved.)

-colloidal silver for skin things, as well as internally. I used this for the above mentioned pup's paw also, dunking the paw in a small bowl of the colloidal silver every other hour, and alternating it with dunking it in lightly diluted tea tree oil. (Newborn puppies do not feel pain. They feel discomfort such as being hungry or cold, but not actual pain, otherwise one could never use tea tree oil for such a wound. The burning sensation from it would be intolerable. Colloidal silver, on the other hand, does not cause that kind of burning sensation. It feels like water does on the skin.)
We have also used colloidal silver straight in the eye for conjunctivitis both in the children and the dogs, as well as for a house finch we found on one of our walks who couldn't open his eyes because they were so crusted over. Seems to be safe for just about every species with a myriad of uses.
After extensively reading research papers and scientific experiments from universities around the world, I have learned to make true colloidal silver myself. (Just about all the instructions one reads on the internet about making colloidal silver do not produce true colloidal silver, but rather silver ions which do not have the same antimicrobial effect as colloidal silver. True colloidal silver is amber colored and the higher the PPM, the deeper the amber color. Just an FYI.)

-GSE (grapefruit seed extract). Amazing stuff for many things. We use it mainly internally, but I have read it is also a good antibacterial/antiviral for wooden cutting boards, etc. I also use it when making all natural lotions that have a water phase to keep the lotion from growing mold, etc. Very effective.
I also used it in very high doses when one of our dogs got pyometra many years ago, again, with great results.

My human and animal family rarely have need of anything but when something does come up, one or a combination of more than one of the above has taken care of whatever the issue was for over two decades already.

Black Seed Oil and Castor Oil for Skin infections, and to prevent them. + I use a good Coconut Oil for it's pleasant smell, as well.

I'm a big fan of Doctor Linus Pauling and Vitamin-C. And much of the natural remedies in this thread sound great too.

I know most of this thread is focused around MRSA, I wanted to share my experience with a different sort of infection.

A few years back I picked up conjunctivitis (pink eye) from my nephew. I didn’t and still don’t have insurance, and I prefer not to use antibiotics so I did a quick internet search. I ended up doing eye drops of raw cows milk from a local organic farm. I did a drop in each eye about every few hours the first day then only about 4 times the second day. By the third day I was back to normal. I’ve had this work for strep infections in the throat as well taking a sip of the milk every hour or two the first day.

I’ve also had a spider bite that I believe was from a brown recluse. It was not healing and only looking worse for almost a week before I finally found online that echinacea would help. It applied an echinacea extract directly to the bite as well as taking it orally (about 20 drops) 3-4 times a day. The bite cleared up in about 3 days. I have no scaring or discoloration today.