Tag Archives: folk medicine

Empacho

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 38
Occupation: Mechanic
Residence: Los Angeles
Language: Spanish and English

Text: “When I was little, if I had a stomachache or was constipated, my grandma would say I had empacho. She would rub my stomach with oil while massaging my stomach and back. Then she would give me a té de manzanilla boiled with the pit of an avocado. I wasn’t allowed to eat cold food after that, only warm soups. No doctors were involved, just her hands and prayers.”

Context: The informant explained that he and his cousins were often diagnosed with empacho by their grandmother when they had constipation, bloating, or stomach cramps. He explained that empacho is believed to be caused by eating too much, eating improperly, or food “sticking” in the stomach. His grandmother learned the treatment from a neighborhood curandera (a folk healer) in Michoacán. He doesn’t fully believe in the diagnosis now, but he did say the treatment did make him feel better. It was comforting. 

Interpretation: Empacho is considered to be a folk illness in Mexican medicine. The idea that food can cause an internal imbalance that requires hands-on shows how healing illustrates how illness is perceived not just as biological but also energetic. The act of rubbing or even pulling the stomach is a way of drawing out the illness. Using warmth (like tea or massage) is a way to counteract the “coldness” in the body. This ritual becomes not only a form of medical intervention but a cultural one, preserving heritage and asserting identity. 

Steam Bath

Age: 24
Occupation: Paraprofessional

[Do you have any home remedies? Things you would do when you were sick as a kid?]

“I do! Either my grandmother or mother would boil a big pot of water. After it was steaming you would add pomelo leaves, lemon grass, and other herbs, ginger. Next, you would set it on the floor and kind of hover over it and bath in it, and it would open up your airways. It would also combat the cold air, if that makes sense.”

[It does! I know some cultures have hot and cold foods, but not like their actual temperature, but their impact on the body. Is it similar to that?]

“Exactly! It’s like when you were sick, your body was cold, and you need to heat it back up.Pho is also considered hot, because of all the spices.”

[Was this only for sickness? And when do you first remember seeing or doing it?]

“It was something my family did, but also my friends and some neighbors. And not necessarily, I know pregnant women or people who were about to be sick would also do it. Like after strenuous activity, it would tighten up muscles”.

Analysis: As I mentioned during my interview, many cultures share the idea of “hot” and “cold” foods, and this is the first time I’ve seen it out of a purely food context. After the interview with my informant, they mentioned how they felt that traditional medicine can be seen as more “gimmicky” because it tends to lean towards “cure-alls”, versus scientific medicine that pinpoints 1 issue. I think that in our example, you can see both of these ideas appear, the usage of the steam bath serves 2 purposes: to rid the body of cold air (something considered more “folky”) and to clear sinuses/the airway (which could be considered more “real” to Western medicine). I’m curious as to how, depending on the audience, steam baths could be portrayed: as a way for anyone to clear cold air, or only for people who are sick with clogged sinuses.

Folk medicine: Gargling Salt Water

Nationality: American
Age: 21

“Home remedies? I remember when I was younger we would gargle warm salt water whenever we had a sore throat.”

[Was it something you only remember doing as a kid? Or would your parents do it too?]

“No, my parents would do it too. I mean I also still do it to today. I’m not sure if there’s any real reason why it could cure a sore throat, but I think just gargling warm water is good because your throat can get dry. I do remember drinking the water for fun sometimes as a kid, but I don’t do that anymore.”

[Thank you!]

Analysis: Initially, what I found interesting about this is that although essentially it’s just a homemade saline solution, the term  “Salt water” is used instead. Additionally, I think this is a pretty efficient folk medicine because it’s fairly inexpensive (just salt and water), and can be found using items generally already in the house. It can also be made quickly, which would be perfect for a parent trying to heal children as fast as possible, or just themselves. This can be particularly helpful for children’s sore throats, because many kids don’t like the taste of cough syrup or general medicine, so getting them to gargle salt water is better than the possibility then the headache of gross medicine- or even downright refusal to take such medicine. Additionally,  the “gargling” can be seen as a fun activity (at least funner than taking medicine), which is always a bonus.

Mommy’s Magic Medicine

Text: “Growing up a little ritual we had when we were younger kids was that every time we got injured my mom would put Neosporin on our little cut or scrape and call it Mommy’s magic medicine. And so every single time I got hurt as a kid I remember my mom putting the Neosporin on my cut and at the time I didn’t know it was Neosporin, I always only knew it as Mommy’s magic medicine. And so I always felt relieved when that happened and it’s something that has resonated with me my whole life.”

Context: This story was shared by the informant, a law school student, who reflected on a childhood ritual involving minor injuries and the comforting presence of their mother. The informant recalls that whenever they got a cut or scrape, their mother would apply Neosporin while calling it “Mommy’s magic medicine.” At the time, the informant didn’t recognize it as a commercial product—they only understood it as something their mother used to make them feel better. This phrase, repeated over many years, became a deeply ingrained part of their childhood experience and remains a memorable, emotionally significant ritual that they continue to associate with safety, love, and maternal care.

Analysis: This is a great example of folk medicine in a family setting. Even though Neosporin is a store-bought product, the way the mom framed it as “Mommy’s magic medicine” gave it a kind of homemade, personal meaning. It wasn’t just about the ointment—it became a small ritual that the informant associated with healing and comfort. Calling it “magic” added a sense of wonder, and also helped make the pain feel less serious or scary.

This kind of thing is really common in folk medicine, where the emotional support is just as important as the treatment itself. Parents often use little sayings, routines, or made-up names to soothe their kids, and those moments become part of how children learn to handle pain or fear. In this case, the ritual shows how folk practices can exist right alongside modern medicine—what matters is the meaning attached to it. For the informant, that meaning stuck with them, even long after they found out what Neosporin actually was.

Informant Info

Race/Ethnicity: White

Age: 23

Occupation: Student

Residence: Oak Park, CA

Date of Performance: April 22, 2025

Primary Language: English

Other Language(s): N/A

Relationship: Brother

Folk Medicine for Cramps and Illness

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 24
Occupation: College Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Language: English

Folk Medicine:

My informant told me that she uses alcohol paper and the California Yerba Santa plant for discomfort and pain.

Context:

“Ever since I got my period the first time and cramps became a regular thing in my life, my mom passed down her homemade recipe that consists of placing an alcohol soaked paper in the belly button for as long as is needed, acting as a heating pad and Advil at once (it works). The plant that we use more within my family is Yerba Santa, a herb that serves for everything including fever, cramps, colds and headaches. A tea or even a paste can be made and usually one cup or a spoonful is enough.”

Analysis:

I had never heard of the Yerba Santa plant before my informant told me about her mom’s remedies, but when doing some further researcher I found that it is a great pain reliever. As we talked about in class, many times large pharmaceutical companies will use plants that cure ailments, pack them up into pill form, and sell them for profit. These home remedies, such as the alcohol soaked paper and the Yerba Santa plant, are great ways to get similar, in not the exact same, results as the name brand products. Relying on folk medicine instead of named brands helps you 1) save money and 2) not support brands who profit off of other cultures’ ideas and solutions without giving the people compensation.