Pasteurized egg products would be safer
Q. I have relatives who make milkshakes for my 5-year-old granddaughter. They always put a raw egg in the milkshake.
They seem to think the uncooked egg is better for the child. I believe I have read that all eggs should be cooked before eating. Is this true? What is the danger of eating or drinking uncooked eggs?
A. Raw eggs can be contaminated with salmonella. Such bacteria can cause food poisoning that can lead to serious illness. Any food that contains uncooked eggs, such as homemade cookie dough, cake batter or eggnog, can pose a hazard.
Pasteurized egg products can be purchased in the refrigerated dairy case. They would be far safer.
Q. When I was a boy I had a lot of trouble with asthma. When I was 10 I started playing the harmonica. The blow and draw of the music forced me to develop diaphragmatic breathing, as singers do. Without realizing it I conquered my asthma.
I still play chromatic harmonica (virtuoso style). During World War II I carried two harmonicas through combat in Italy. I haven’t had asthma in more than 70 years.
A. Deep breathing can have many health benefits, including lowering blood pressure, easing anxiety and helping to control asthma. Although people sometimes grow out of asthma, your harmonica playing might have helped.
Readers who would like to know more about the power of deep breathing for asthma and other conditions might want to listen to our one-hour radio show on this topic. A CD of the show is available for $15 from the People’s Pharmacy, CD-489, P.O. Box 52027, Durham, NC 27717-2027.
Q. Recently I heard of a remedy for bedsores or similar wounds. You take 4 parts sugar and 1 part Betadine and make a paste. Then you apply it directly to the wound. The nurse who mentioned it swears by it and has used it when conventional remedies have failed. Needless to say, I am reluctant to believe this, but I do have an open mind when it comes to natural remedies. Any ideas?
A. Bedsores require medical supervision because they can lead to life-threatening infection. It was just such a complication that caused Christopher Reeve’s death.
We first heard about sugar for hard-to-treat wounds in 1985. Dr. Richard Knutson, an orthopedic surgeon in Greenville, Miss., described using a sugar-and-iodine mixture to treat serious wounds in more than 5,000 patients.
When a nurse first told him about this old-fashioned approach, he was skeptical: “The first thing you think about is the old jar of marmalade in the fridge growing all that junk. You think you’ll create a perfect medium for bacterial growth. That turned out not to be the case.”
Dr. Knutson mixed 4 pounds of table sugar with 1 pound Betadine antiseptic ointment and 6.5 ounces Betadine solution in a double boiler. This mixture is applied daily to a depth of one-quarter inch on a clean, dry wound. It can be covered with an ordinary gauze pad, and should be changed at least once a day.
Use of Betadine on an open wound such as a bedsore is controversial. Before considering this recipe, please check with the patient’s physician.
Q. Other than over-the-counter drugs or baking soda, is there a natural way to reduce heartburn?
A. Chewing gum or sucking on hard candy stimulates the flow of saliva. This helps neutralize stomach acid that has splashed up into the esophagus.