Category Archives: Folk medicine

New Year’s Day Sauerkraut

Age: 24

Text: “On New Year’s day my family eats sauerkraut for good luck. It’s a German thing. We have smoked sausage and mashed potatoes with it. We’ve been doing this since I was a kid, and my mom did it as a kid as well. We do it for good luck. To start the year off right.” 

Context: The informant grew up in Ohio and his parents did as well. His mom is part German, and passed on some of her German traditions to her kids. His mom grew up in Hamilton, Ohio where there is a portion of town called “Germantown” because a lot of German immigrants settled there. The German tradition is thought to bring about good luck and was brought to his Midwest my immigrants.

Analysis: For many people, the new year is an opportunity to make changes, set positive intentions, and start over, in a sense. And so, many rituals often surround the idea of prosperity and good fortune—This tradition does just that. Sauerkraut is believed to have certain healing properties including improved liver function, removal of bacteria and parasite, and is even thought to prohibit the growth of cancer. And so, I believe that the tradition of eating sauerkraut in the new year is done so in hopes of bringing good health and good luck in the new year.

Great-Grandfather’s Acupuncture

Nationality: Wu
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: China
Performance Date: 06/04/2023
Primary Language: Chinese
Language: Cantonese

Text:

One of the informant’s family members is believed to have a special power. The informant’s great-grandfather has the ability to use acupuncture to kill people. He can tell the “death point” of the human body, and by pointing to the acupoints, he can kill people. However, he stopped using this ability and did not teach anyone about acupoints because it is something immoral to teach. The “sky,” which refers to gods and ancestors, will watch him and disagree with him. It will hurt his luck and his descendants’ luck. Thus, no other member of the family learned the skill.

Context:

The informant learned the story from family members. During family gatherings and festivals, such as the Qingming festival, when people commemorate families, the informant’s parents and grandparents would tell the story of his great-grandfather. Something interesting is that the term “great-grandfather” is somewhat vague. The informant was not sure if the great-grandfather in the story was his grandfather’s father or cousin, or grandfather. It is more like a term that directs to an old and legendary family member.

Analysis:
The story reveals Chinese cultural beliefs and values related to powers and morality. The story of the great-grandfather who could use acupuncture to kill people is a testament to the enduring belief in physical, even a bit mysterious, powers and the fear of their potential misuse. The idea of the acupoint came from Chinese medicine and Kung-fu. Thus, this story reflects Chinese people’s belief in the effectiveness of Chinese medicine and Kung-fu.
The story also highlights the moral dilemma that the great-grandfather faced with his power. By choosing not to teach the skill to anyone else in the family, he was acknowledging that the power to take life was too great to bare as a human being. The ancestors and the “sky” serve as a judge that watches over people’s actions, which reflects the importance of ancestors and descendants in Chinese culture because the ancestors care about their descendants. The great-grandfather was aware that the use of his power would bring harm not only to his own luck but also to his descendants, which reflects the traditional Chinese belief that ancestors and the supernatural world have a significant impact on human life and that their displeasure could bring misfortune.

Nausea Remedy — Ginger Ale and Saltine Crackers

Nationality: American
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: USC
Performance Date: April 29th, 2023
Language: English

Context :

SM is a 20 year old environmental studies major at USC. She grew up in Dallas, Texas. Although her family took to modern medicine, dabbling in home remedies wasn’t uncommon.

Text :

“If I had any sort of stomach problem as a child, my dad would make me drink ginger ale and eat saltine crackers because it would cure my nausea. I can’t get over that nauseous feeling without living off of ginger ale and saltine crackers anymore.”

Analysis :

Folk medicine is actually a really strong type of folklore. Although the remedies don’t always work, they have been around for hundreds of years and have implemented themselves into everyday practices. SM, like many other Americans, were told to drink ginger ale or eat saltine crackers when they felt nauseous because it would help soothe their stomach. In a way, folk medicine “works” because it evokes the placebo effect. When someone truly believes they are getting better because they did something, even though it actually has zero effect on them, that’s the placebo effect. SM’s brain tricked her into believing that one of the only remedies for her stomach ache was to drink ginger ale and saltine crackers, even though that is medically proven to help.

Folk Medicine – Ginger Ale and Crackers

Nationality: Nigerian
Age: 18
Occupation: Student

Text:

“Ginger ale and crackers…mainly the Canada Dry ginger ale and specifically the saltine crackers. I forgot the brand but something premium… specifically those crackers. We use it I think more for nausea or if you’re vomiting and stuff but if you’re sick in general, like any type of sickness, and you can eat that’s going to be the first thing that your mom mainly is going to give to you…ginger ale and crackers”

Context:

One of my friends who is a part of the black community shared one of her folk medicine recipes. She does not remember where she came to learn of eating ginger ale and crackers, but she remembers it being passed down from her mom to her. She also mentioned how “it might be in the black community because [she] feels like if they’re black then they will know what [she’s] talking about.” She talked about how this technique “doesn’t really cure anything but it’s light on the stomach” and she thinks people continue to use this technique because “it’s comforting every time you receive it from someone.”

Analysis:

Folk medicine is often passed down from generation to generation. People enjoy sharing their little remedies to help cure some illnesses. Whether or not it cures anything is beside the point. I have not really heard of this technique of using ginger ale and crackers for an upset stomach, but I have heard of similar remedies. Oftentimes you’ll hear about eating bland foods for an upset stomach or that any carbonated drink could also help rid any feelings of nausea. Even though we have no scientific proof of these techniques we still use them because we hear the stories people tell us. We hear these stories of how someone used this technique and felt instantly better, so we want to try it out for ourselves. This is also because we usually hear these stories from people we trust, so that compels us to try these different remedies even more.

Folk medicine: black truffle aphrodisiac

text:

Mr. B: “There is a folk story about black truffle, here it goes. Napoleon was once an incomplete man who can’t bear children. One day, one of his men said to him that there is a folk remedy for this issue. So, Napoleon used a lot of black truffles and an old hen to make soup. After he ate all the black truffles and drank all the soup, he made sex with his wife. And this time his wife got pregnant immediately.”

Context:

Mr. B is a friend of mine who lives in China. He consumes a lot of stories that circulate on the internet. This story is one of the stories he discovered on Baidu, a Chinese search Engine.

Analysis:

This story might have happened, or more likely not have happened in history. But the most important thing is that we don’t know if this is true, which gives this story the characteristic of legend. The actual effect of black truffles on sexual performance and the ability to have a child is not scientifically proven. But black truffle might enhance human ability in that regard as it contains lots of minerals that are valuable to the human body. These traits make this piece about folk medicine: black truffle, in the context of a legend: Napoleon’s story.

The fact that this story is viral on the internet in China shows the globalization of stories and a continuation, or regeneration of folklore in the need of current social value. People who carry this story to others might be someone who is interested in aphrodisiac-related things. Needs create supply, whether in material supply or in mental supply: hope is an important aspect of moving forward.