CHENNAI: A public health scare can spin off unsolicited messages in your mail or phone on indigenous ways of cure and prevention of diseases. Swine Flu is no exception.
Playing up on people’s fear are a flurry of messages on both cellphones and emails with suggestions of tulsi leaves, eucalyptus oil, or Nilgiri oil claiming to cure as well as prevent the flu.
A mail that is doing the rounds says the humble tulsi could be the answer to the dreaded swine flu. The mail further states that it does not just prevent but also is a sure shot cure, quoting ayurvedic medical practitioners. The mail suggests that a juice or paste of at least 20-25 medium sized leaves should be consumed twice a day on empty stomach. This, the mail says, will increase the body’s resistance and reduce the chances of swine flu.
Another message being passed around on cellphones suggests that one drop of Nilgiri oil can be put on a handkerchief as a preventive measure towards swine flu, quoting it from National Institute of Virology that Eucalyptus oil has anti-bacterial qualities and one can use a few drops of oil in steaming water.
Dismissing such claims, Dr.J.Mohanasundaram of the Government General Hospital says the Pune incident was an example where the alternative medicine and local remedies did not help.