An aspirin a day is supposed to assure heart health, but maybe the same effect can be achieved through an apple a day or a niacin pill. Here is my experience.
Disclaimer: The information in this article is entirely my own opinion based on my own experience. It is not meant to replace or compete wwith the opinions of any medical practitioner.
An Apple a Day ...
... keeps the doctor away. That is what you were probably taught if you grew up in an English-speaking environment, although probably no one ever explained to you why. Just in the last few days I have come to the conclusion that I may have stumbled on the answer to that puzzle. It came to me after writing the article "Willow, the Aspirin Tree" which is linked below.
Mind you, this folk remedy does not do me any good, because I have a strong negative reaction to the very ingredients which make this fruit a folk remedy, salicylates.
An Aspirin a Day ...
... keeps a heart attack away. That is what we have been told in the last 20 years, and I have seen evidence to support the claim. But why should we be taking a synthetically derived salicylate when they are available all around us in natural forms which are far more palatable? Is it that the medical establishment considers something which comes in a medicine bottle to be a more reliable remedy? I have repeatedly heard physicians claim that a pill is to be preferred to a natural remedy because its content can be measured accurately. Well, how do we know the exact optimal amount for each person?
No, thank you. I will stick with the apple a day and avoid the negative effects of the aspirin. To find other natural sources of salicylates, refer to the Willow article.
A Niacin Pill a Day ...
Salicylate-rich fruit makes me hyper, and the skin on my fingers peels when I handle fresh apples, so I use another way of cleaning out my blood vessels on a daily basis, and that is niacin. If you have ever swallowed a niacin pill, you will have noticed a prickly warm feeling and the flushing of the skin as the blood vessels open up. This is a normal and harmless reaction. People whose blood vessels are extremely clogged may not feel any reaction at all. That is not a good sign.
By experimenting, I have found a way of using niacin which minimizes and even eliminates the flushing effect. I dissolve a 1000 mg tablet in a 2 or 3 liter bottle of my homemade Snapple which my husband and I consume during a 24 hour period. It is necessary, though, to shake the bottle each time before drinking, because the niacin tends to accumulate near the bottom. That way, the effect of the niacin is not noticeable.
The recipe for the homemade Snapple is also in the article "I don't drink water" which is linked below.
Niacin is a form of vitamin B3. The other form, niacinamide, does not produce the same reaction.
What about Apple Cider Vinegar?
Raw apple cider vinegar is considered the main New England home remedy for whatever ails you. Much has been written about the subject, and I will write an article on it telling about my own experience. I have no adverse effects from it as I do from apples.
Let me give you one little foretaste:
Sipping a drink with apple cider vinegar along with a meal prevents food poisoning even when killer bacteria are ingested.
