Infections of the hair follicles or sweat glands of the skin are termed as boils. They are tender swellings in the skin surrounded by large red areas. Boils are most common during summer.
Almost any part of the body can be affected by boils but they appear most often on the eyelids, face, upper back, back of the neck and buttocks. When clothes rub the skin in specific areas boils become more prevalent in these areas. Boils occurring round the nose and eyes are often serious because their toxins can spread to the brain.
The first main symptom of boil is the appearance of a painful red nodule on the skin. This grows in size and further breaks down in the middle for the pus to collect and looks yellow under the skin. It creates irritation and itching. There may be a single boil or several boils within the same area or different areas. Many times boils may also be accompanied by fever.
The main cause of boils is a germ infection which enters the hair follicles or sweat glands. They are contagious and can be transmitted from one person to another. The essential cause of this disorder is thus bacterial. Several factors contribute to the bacterial growth in hair follicles. Toxic condition of the blood is one of the main factors caused by improper dietary habits. Boils generally appear when the resistance power of the body comes down.
Nature Cure for Boils: The treatment for boils should first commence by a thorough cleansing of the system of the patient. For this purpose the patient should be given an exclusive diet of fresh juicy fruits for about three days. During this period a warm water enema should be administered daily for cleansing the bowels.
The patient should thereafter switch to a well balanced diet after an all fruit diet. More emphasis should be placed on raw vegetables, fresh fruits and whole grain cereals. If there is chronic constipation all the necessary steps should be taken to remove it.
Foods such as tea, coffee, sweets, cakes, pastries, chocolates, white bread, white sugar, condiments and pickles should be avoided by a person suffering from boils.
The use of onion and garlic has been found to be one of the most effective remedies for the treatment of boils. External application of onion and garlic juice on the boils helps to ripen and break them and evacuate the pus. These juices should be mixed together in equal proportions and thereafter applied.
Betel leaves have also been found valuable in the treatment of boils. The procedure is to gently warm the leaves till it gets softened. It is then coated with a layer of castor oil. The oiled leaf is to be spread over the inflamed part. This leaf should be replaced every few hours. After a few applications the boils will rupture and all the pus will be drained out.
Bitter gourd is another useful remedy for boils. A teaspoon of lime juice should be added to a cup full of fresh juice of this vegetable and it should be sipped slowly on an empty stomach daily for few days in treating this condition.
Cumin seeds are also very effective in the treatment of boils. Black cumin seeds should be ground in water and made to a paste. This paste should then be applied to boils.
Application of turmeric powder to the areas affected with boils helps in speeding up the healing process. The process is to roast few dry roots of turmeric and the ash is dissolved in one cup of water and applied over the affected area. This solution enables the boils to ripen and burst.
Above all regular outdoor exercise and fresh air is necessary as it helps in toning up the entire system and improves normal body resistance.
Thus we can say that natural remedies have been found to be very beneficial in the treatment and cure of boils.
