Scabies

Scabies was a very itchy skin condition caused by a parasitic mite.

Watercress applied in a poultice was used in the treatment of scabies. Dilute rosemary oil rubbed on the skin was also thought to help. A more unusual-sounding cure was the application of baked apple to the skin to ease scabies.

An old method of soothing the itchy skin in scabies involved applying a weak solution of vinegar to the skin. Another remedy was a weak solution of carbolic acid, while yet another was a solution of bicarbonate of soda.

Rubbing soft soap all over the body, taking a hot bath, and scrubbing the body all over with a nail brush were parts of another suggested remedy. After this, the skin was dried and sulfur ointment was rubbed in and not washed off for twelve hours. Any clothes that had been worn by the scabies sufferer had to be baked.

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