Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Spider Web Medicine



One of the chores I gave myself as my new years resolution was to get my basement into order.  Get rid of the crap I don't use and organize the rest so that it can be found easily in an emergency.  What good is having survival stuff if you can't find it.

So I've been down in the basement this week, finishing the project, and cleaning up cobwebs.  As the daughter of a swamp rat I have a hard time getting rid of cobwebs because of their medicinal value.  Yes, cobwebs are one of the greatest healing sources of wounds there is.  In times past this was well known, but most people today give you a funny look if you reach for a spider web to cover a cut.  But it works and science can prove it.

Spiderwebs are secreted from...well...spiders, and because of their living origins and because they are so thin, they should rot quite quickly.  The smaller something is, the faster it rots.  But spiders excrete an antimicrobial fluid that keeps the web from rotting.  This will last on the web long after the spider as deserted it.  This is why cobwebs build up in your basement instead of just disintegrating to dust.  You have to take down cobwebs, they don't do it for you.

Now science is looking into this "new" source of antibiotics because of how fast bacteria are becoming resistant to the antibiotics we have created in labs.  They are working with the bacteria Escherichia coli or E. Coli, and testing it against many different species of spider's webs.  So far every web they have tested destroys the number of E. Coli cells that are in the petri dish.  And it is only taking small amounts of the web to destroy large amounts of the E. Coli bacteria.

So the next time you get the broom or duster out to get rid of those "dirty" cobwebs, remember, they may be the cleanest thing in your house.  And if you are out int he wilds and give yourself a cut, look around, Mother Nature may provide you with the perfect healing salve in the form of a spider web.

Spiderwebs can also be wrapped around feet to help get rid of athlete's foot or bandaged onto ring worm sores to help kill the spores that cause them.

So the old swamp rat (my dad) was right when he would run his hands through the alders and gather up spider webs to wrap up our blisters from paddling the canoe all day.  It is amazing how much wisdom we have lost by letting the big chemical companies save us from all those bad germs out there.  Now those chemicals are no longer working against the new super strains of bacteria and we are "crying for our mommies" and their ancient wisdom.  Let's hope it isn't all gone.

10 comments:

  1. The chemical companies will just make a synthetic spider web, make a medicine from it, charge an arm & leg for it, then petition congress to outlaw "harvesting" cobwebs for personal use and make it illegal to harbor spiders in your home as they would be then considered a Class II substance therefore drug paraphernalia.

    Sorry, feeling a bit cynical today :)

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    1. Little boys with fake spiders who try to scare their sisters would be tazed by mistake. "It looked so real", said the officer as he watched the boy being loaded into the ambulance.

      I can be cynical too. Only on this one, what I would cynical about would be that the government and the big chemical companies will make that synthetic spiderweb, sell us on fear of spiders, make a poison spray to kill all the spiders, and 20 years later find that it causes health problems in our children and we lose an entire generation.

      Sad how what you and I wrote has already come to pass in many ways, so we can see it easily with spiders.

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  2. Ah, Yes! The wisdom of our Elders...while I understand Carolyn Renee's cynicism, as a Crone (Grandmother), and a woman who believes the Matriarchal System is being integrated in every part of our Blessed Universe as we speak, and soon to take precedence once again, I have to keep my eyes on the prize that the 'old ways' will be made manifest once more, in the very near future. I see this evidenced by the patriarchal systems falling away all around us. Thus the unrest of our world...people are tired of it all and want truth and honor once more...Grandmother Spider was a Wise One Indeed! :)

    Loved your post today Rea!
    P.S. I wonder if it would work on Psoriasis?

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    1. While I'm right with Carolyn Renee and her cynicism, I'm also hoping AkasaWolfSong is also correct. The current systems are speeding us on toward destruction.

      You have so much wisdom to share, Rea, that I'm hoping many, many more people discover you soon! You have a lot of good stuff to share.

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    2. You, dear lady are a wise woman. Sometimes I see that shift too, back toward sanity, not a consume and destroy world. Other times I feel like I am banging my head against the wall.

      As our elders leave us we lose more and more of the wisdom they hold. How many of us wish we may have listened just a bit closer when Granny was going on about something that our seven year old minds thought was boring.

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  3. I never gave it any thought, but this makes sense. Thanks so much for sharing your post on Wildcrafting Wednesday. Very cool!

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  4. I would like to pin this post, but can't without an image. Any chance you could add one? If you do, let me know, and I'll add it to my pin boards.

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    1. Laurie, I added a picture from my computer. I hope that helps. Oh, and thank you so much for reading my blog. :-)

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  5. Very interesting, thank you! Never knew this...

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