Friday, January 22, 2010

Vinegar

I thought it would be fun to share some of my "can't-live-with-outs" with you, so I'm going to share one, once a week. I hope you learn some fun, new facts!

Today's topic is vinegar! The word "vinegar" comes from the French word "vinaigre" which means "sour wine". There are many different types of vinegar you can buy and they're all made different ways. Some different kinds of vinegar include apple cider, white distilled, coconut, pear, and sugar cane (there are several more and some are only made in other countries). Although a lot of vinegars are made from vegetables, fruits, or corn, some are made from petroleum, so be careful of what you buy and read the labels.

In my home we use a lot of white distilled vinegar (WDV) and apple cider vinegar (ACV). I use ACV mostly as a conditioner for my hair (you can also use WDV for it also), but it also came in handy for a recent sore throat. I gurgled a 1/2 water 1/2 ACV mixture for as long as I could stand it and then mixed a little ACV, honey, and water together and swallowed it before bed. I woke up the next morning feeling so much better than the day before and my throat was no longer sore.

White distilled vinegar gets used a lot more in our home. There are so, so many uses for it! Vinegar is a natural, safe disinfectant, so we use that for all of our cleaning needs. I have a spray bottle of 1/2 WDV 1/2 water with 10 drops of Tea Tree Oil in it and I use it for pretty much everything. Cleaning the bathroom, countertops, toys, the dogs chew toys, windows, you get the idea:)

Here are some other things WDV gets used for:

- Laundry: Vinegar is a natural softener, so use it in place of conventional fabric softners. It also dissolves detergent buildup, if you use regular detergents, and attacks mold and mildew. It also kills yeast.

- To kill germs: I spray undiluted vinegar on doorknobs and handles whenever we have guests over or go out in public.

- Clean up pet accidents: Our dog Jay is good about using doggy pads and going outside, but we have the occasional accident. Simply blot up the urine and then spray with your 1/2 and 1/2 water/WDV mix. Blot again until it's almost dry and then sprinkle over the area with baking soda and let it dry. Vaccum up the baking soda once it's dry.

- Freshen the air: Have a spray bottle with a solution of 1 cup water, 1 teaspoon WDV, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and a drop or two of the essential oil of your choice (I like lavender for this). Note: please know how to use your essential oils correctly and do not use essential oils if you have a cat in the home unless you know how to use them properly without your car being exposed. A cat's liver can not metabolize essential oils properly and it can be fatal.

- Cuts and scrapes: Dab a cotton ball in WDV and use as an antiseptic.

- Kill flees: Add a little WDV to your pets drinking water.

- Baths: I give Lyla a bath with 1 cup of WDV added with a few drops of Tea Tree Oil once a week. She has had a huge improvement on the look of her skin since (she has excema and also was dealing with yeast at the time). We also rub her with Coconut Oil everyday and since we started doing both she looks much, much better.

- Keep your car windows frost-free: Coat them at night in a solution of 3 parts WDV and 1 part water.

- Clean the microwave: I don't know about you, but my microwave seems to get dirty way too fast, regarless of how often I clean it. For tough, baked-on food, put 1/2 cup of DWV and 1/2 cup water into a microwave safe bowl and bring the mixture to a rolling boil. Take the bowl out and your messes should be loosened and the microwave will be easy to wipe clean.

In case you skipped over the link at the top, here it is again! It's a great site with 1001 uses for vinegar. Whenever something comes up and I wonder "Can I use vinegar to take care of this?" I refer to that site or google:)

So, how has vinegar made your life easier and healthier? Feel free to leave a comment on how you use it!

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