Dr. D. C. Jarvis, M.D., has made apple cider vinegar and honey drink popular in this country. As an exponent of the old Vermont Folk Medicine, he claimed that a simple drink of two teaspoonfuls of apple cider vinegar and two teaspoonfuls of honey in a glass of water at each meal is a cure-all for practically every ill of mankind, including arthritis.1
There is considerable doubt in many minds as to the scientific value of this popular remedy.
Now, when I am confronted with an old folk medicine or remedy used for hundreds of years, I investigate it not with a doubt or suspicion, but with a great respect. I reserve my doubts and skepticism for the new toxic chemical drugs which are put on the market daily without much testing or clinical experience as to their true therapeutic value or undesirable side effects.
It seems to me that apple cider vinegar and honey treatment for arthritis may have true merit. People with arthritis are usually in a dilapidated state of health. Their general health is broken down. The functions of the vital organs are weakened and impaired. This is especially true of their digestive and assimilative systems. Most people of middle age and over usually experience diminished secretion of hydrochloric acid in their stomach. This condition leads to poor digestion and consequent inefficient assimilation of nutrients from the foods consumed. This lack of hydrochloric acid in the stomach affects the whole metabolism, especially the mineral metabolism. The disturbed calcium metabolism is but one of the many known contributing causes of arthritis.
Apple cider vinegar and honey drink taken with meals helps to compensate for the insufficient secretion of hydrochloric acid and thus improves digestion of foods. This results in a better assimilation of nutrients and in improved metabolism. Of course, other fruit acids, such as lemon juice, apple juice, or fresh pineapple juice, taken with meals, will accomplish about the same effect.
Honey has many wonderful medicinal properties and is truly one of nature’s miracle foods. In biological medicine, honey replaces white sugar whenever a sweetener is needed: in drinks, in foods, etc. Both cider vinegar and honey are beneficial for the digestive tract and exert a favorable influence on constipation, which often accompanies arthritis.
A good use for apple cider vinegar and honey is in making a salad dressing. With cold-pressed vegetable oil and a few natural spices it makes a most delicious and wholesome dressing for fresh vegetable salads. Warning: ordinary white vinegar is not suitable for these purposes and should never be used. Use only natural apple cider vinegar of health food store quality.
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