Strange and Interesting Health Hacks

Take a look at some of these strange and wonderful 21st century health hacks.

Have you even wondered what our ancestors did when they got a toothache before aspirin or paracetamol was freely available? In Ancient Egypt, they used dead mice ground up into a paste (!). People also ate clay, applied leaches to their bodies and rubbed animal dung in their eyes - all for the sake of good health. Seems crazy, doesn't it? Well, if you think the era of weird cures is behind us, you've got another thing coming. Take a look at some of these strange and wonderful 21st century health hacks.

1.Marshmallows are Medicine

Next time you have a sore throat, try eating a couple of marshmallows, seriously. Apparently, the gelatin relieves irritation and soothes a sore throat almost instantly. It turns out that the marshmallow root, which is what marshmallows used to be made of, is yet another ancient Egyptian remedy, and it's just a coincidence that gelatin works as well.

2.Say Aaah…

Via Flickr: jessicamullen

Although dead mouse paste is no longer used as far as I know, there are still several strange health hacks for a toothache. Because it contains eugenol, clove oil is used as a natural anesthetic. Why is it weird? Because it tastes absolutely vile. Besides cod liver oil it is arguably the worst taste on earth. Luckily, if, like me, you can’t stomach it you can apply a ginger and cayenne paste or rinse your mouth with hydrogen peroxide. But if you want to prevent toothache, these days oil pulling with coconut oil is all the rage.

3.What The &*^%$)!?

Believe it or not, but when you stub your toe and a curse word pops out, you are actually reducing pain – and this has been proven scientifically. A study by Keele University in the UK revealed that the nervous system’s perception of pain is dulled when a few expletives are shouted out. And if you’re thinking it’s just because it distracts you from the pain, think again. It was also found that neutral words or euphemisms simply don’t have the same pain-numbing effect as profanity.

4.Shop Until You (Don’t) Drop

Via Flickr: felixtsao

According to a scientific study you can lower your risk of dying by 25% if you go shopping every day. Yup, take out your credit card. A team of researchers discovered this after conducting a study involving over 1,800 people aged over 65. The study was published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health and it says that daily shoppers live longer because it is a form of socializing.

5.Bob Says: ‘Breathe’

I heard that a simple health hack that prevents stitches while running is to exhale on alternate feet. Although I couldn’t find any scientific proof of this, I did ask my neighbour Bob to give it a go. According to Bob, it works a charm! Whether there is a biological reason for this, or whether it is simply because the runner is mindful of breathing and it distracts from the pain of a stitch, it works and that’s all that matters.

Now can somebody please tell me a health hack that will motivate me to start running?