Aspirin was dubbed the wonder drug of the 19th century. It reduced fever, acted as a pain reliever, and can bring down swelling. Unknown to many people, the drug derived from willow bark has other uses as well. You can cut down on other household bills by knowing the various uses of salicylic acid.
If you check the labels of must dandruff shampoo bottles which can run between $2 a bottle for the generic brands and $6 for the more expensive name brand stuff you will find the the active ingredient in most of them that helps control the flakes is in fact the main ingredient in aspirin. Rather than spending a lot of money on a shampoo to control the product you can crush aspirin tables up and mix them into a more normal shampoo.
It is not well known but aspirin when applied to the skin also has anti-fungal properties. Obviously taking it internally will not work to cure your athlete’s foot, but many foot designed to cure the infection often use salicylic acid as one of their active ingredients. In most cases, the other ingredients are just talcum or a talcum like powder that help to keep the feet dry, another important thing to do when combating athlete’s foot. Simply buy some talcum or other powder and mix two or three crushed aspirin tablets with it. (How many will depend on the size of the bottle used.) Apply to the feet two times a day after making sure to carefully dry the effective areas and pay special attention to the areas between the toes.
If you check the main ingredient of many face washes designed to combat acne, you will again find that the active ingredient in many astringent products is what they make aspirin from, that is, salicylic acid. The most common inactive ingredients in these mixes is water. So mix one or two aspirin tablets with 20 ounces of water and you have a cheap if not always affective way of removing dirt and oil from your face.
Perhaps a more alternate obvious use of one of the most common over-the-counter medication is using a small tablet of baby aspirin to relieve toothache pain. Simply place the tablet on the affected tooth and let it set there. In addition, using this form is safer than the adult versions for reducing the risk of heart attacks according to the popular medical site, WebMD.
According to RDLiving, the wonder drug of the Nineteenth century can also be used to keep flowers longer. Break a tablet in half and place it in a vase to keep roses and other types of flowers cut off from the stem in your house a little longer.
In addition to its other uses, aspirin can also be used as a laundry aid. Both egg stains and perspiration stains can be removed by it use. For perspiration stains, mix one half-cup water with two crushed tablets and let the let the stained part of the piece of clothing soak in the solution for up to three hours.
Egg stains are a little more complicated. If removing the stain with luke-warm water so the stain doesn’t set does not work, mix cream of tartar with some crushed aspirin and let it soak for a half an hour. Once this is done rinse the afflicted piece of clothing thoroughly in warm water. The stain should then be gone.
There are other uses for this willow bark derivative put people with severe asthma or who are allergic to salicylic acid should probably not apply many of the methods listed above, especially if it requires the drug to come into direct contact with the body. For most people a lot of money can be saved by simply buying some generic tablets at your local store and finding new uses to put this amazing substance to.
Sources:
http://www.rd.com/content/extraordinaryuses/extraordinary-uses-for-aspirin/
Head & Shoulders Shampoo Bottle
Sea Breeze Astringent Bottle
