Boils are generally caused due to infections that are triggered by the Staphylococcal aureus bacteria. The lactating women are particularly vulnerable to contracting such infections. In such women the staph bacteria can cause mastitis or inflammation of the breast and abscess or boils.

If the boils are not treated on time then they can rupture and infect the nearby region as well as the milk ducts. Infected milk ducts can spell danger for the breastfeeding infants because the milk may also get contaminated. The staph bacteria present in the breast boils can release the bacteria into the mother’s milk.

In the lactating women the breast boils occur when the breast inflammation or mastitis progresses and develops into pus-filled pockets or boils. If the mastitis is treated on time then one can avoid the formation of breast boils. However, if mastitis is left untreated then antibiotics therapy and surgical drainage may be needed to cure the boils.

The breast boils can occur due to the bacteria that are generally present on the human skin. The bacteria can creep into the skin of the breast if there is a minor cut or a crack on it. Breast feeding can cause cracks on the skin so the lactating women often develop an inflammation.

The symptoms of boils on the breast are as follows:

• At the onset there is pain and inflammation.
• If the infection continues unchecked then a boil may develop. It may appear in the form of a hard and painful lump.
• Along with the boils there may be chills, fever and body ache also.

If the boils are not treated on time then they may eventually affect the milk ducts, thereby posing a serious health risk for the breast-fed infant.

Bacterial infections may also occur on the nipples of the mother if the infant happens to bite the nipple.

For the safety of both the mother and the child a proper treatment is essential.

Moreover, the symptoms of a boil in the breast area are similar to some other serious medical conditions. Hence, it is all the more important to have a lump in the breast medically examined.

The root cause of acne is the excessive production of sebum. This clogs the skin pores and causes acne. Bacteria further complicate the acne by causing additional inflammation. Antibiotics are drugs that control bacterial infection. So we find that antibiotics are used in the treatment of acne and boils. Since the bacterial infections are contagious antibiotics are prescribed to avoid the spread of infection.

In order to cure acne a long-term antibiotic course is required.

The antibiotic treatment for acne and boils has a dark side to it as well. It can be summed up as follows:

• Antibiotics cannot penetrate into the walls of the skin abscess or boils, rendering them ineffective.
• Antibiotics are not required in mild cases where the infection can be controlled by the body’s own defense system.
• Antibiotics were considered to be a wonder drug in the past but of late the antibiotic treatment has lost its effectiveness.

This is mainly because of the following reasons:

1. The stubborn bacteria are capable of adapting to their surroundings. They become resistant to the antibiotics. The weaker ones may die but the stronger ones survive. Such bacteria become more powerful. So we see that the antibiotics that are used to kill the bacteria end up making it stronger. This necessitates the use of more powerful broad-spectrum antibiotics. Such antibiotics are more costly and toxic too. There are chances that the new antibiotics will also become ineffective when the bacteria become resistant to it as well. This leads to a vicious circle.
2. Moreover, we find that often antibiotics are prescribed unnecessarily to play it safe. However, this only suppresses the infections and does not treat them. Besides, antibiotics also lead to side-effects and they kill the beneficial acidophilus bacteria in our system. This triggers candidiasis or yeast infections.
3. Sometimes the patients do not pay any heed to the doctor’s advice. They overuse the antibiotics or else they do not complete the full course. All this leads to the formation of drug-resistant strains that are difficult to treat.

Since there are plenty of natural and safe home remedies to cure acne and boils, antibiotics should be used as the last resort only.

How to Cure Your Pimples in a Natural Way

Poultices have been used since ancient times to heal inflammation, boils, wounds, cuts, tumors, sprains to name just a few.

The reasons why poultices have not lost their significance even in the present times are as follows:

1. The skin being the first line of defense readily absorbs the therapeutic properties of bread, herbs etc.
2. Since poultices are usually applied hot they impart moist medicinal heat to the affected part.
3. The heat of the poultices also helps in drawing in more blood towards the pimples. This increases the amount of the white blood cells in the pimple region also. This makes the infection reach its climax quickly and speeds up the healing process.

The poultices help in healing skin disorders such as boils, ulcers etc in the following ways:

1. The can draw out the infection.
2. They soothe the inflamed tissues.
3. They increase the blood blow.
4. The help to relax the tensed muscles.

The use of moldy bread to treat infections has been prevalent since a long time back. The ancient Egyptians used to treat their wounded soldiers with moldy bread.

The first antibiotic named penicillin was discovered in 1982 by Prof. Alexander Fleming. Since then antibiotics are been used to control the bacterial infection such as boils, acne, pimples etc. Antibiotics are compounds containing bacteria and fungi which can destroy or control the competing microbes.

Bread and milk paste is a folk remedy that helps in curing pimples, acne etc in a natural way. The mold in the bread helps in destroying the bacteria that brings about skin problems such as pimples.

The following simple method can be followed to prepare a poultice of milk and bread to get rid of pimples:

1. Take a slice of bread and place it in a pan.
2. Pour some hot milk over it.
3. Let the bread soak up the milk.
4. With the help of a spoon mash the ingredients together to form a paste.
5. Apply the paste over the pimple.

Thus, we find that this remedy is both natural as well as scientifically proven. This is because bread mold contains natural penicillin which is a proven drug for curing bacterial infections.

A boil or an abscess can develop in any part of the body. A gum boil or parulus is a drainage point for the gum abscess. It is a common dental problem that often results due to neglect of a dental abscess.

The gum boil should be drained as soon as possible otherwise there may be chances of the infection spreading to the neck or head area. This can lead to serious complications.

If one notices a gum boil then a visit to the dentist is imperative as a timely treatment may prevent tooth extraction. Moreover, the drainage of the gum boil can do away with the symptoms but the abscess cannot be treated completely unless the root cause is found and cured.

The dentist examines the gum thoroughly to find out the cause and an x-ray is usually taken. After the cause is detected the dentist drains out the pus by means of a root canal treatment. A dentist may make a minor incision on the gum to drain the boil or even to extract the tooth as a last resort.

Till one visits a dentist a few tips can be helpful in draining the gum boil and alleviating the pain, such as:

• A slight pressure should be applied on the cheeks near the gum boil to drain the accumulated pus.
• A mouthwash can help in increasing the blood flow towards the infected region, thereby accelerating the drainage. For this one should add 1/8th teaspoon of salt to 8 ounces of warm water and rinse the mouth several times daily.
• The boil can be drained by simply placing a black teabag against the gum boil overnight.
• A baking soda and salt poultice can be made by mixing both in the ratio of 1:1. A wet cotton ball should be dipped into his mixture and kept against the gum boil. This also helps in draining a gum boil quickly.
• One should also disinfect the area by gargling with natural antibiotics such as diluted tea tree oil or grapefruit seeds extract.

After visiting a dentist one should rinse the mouth frequently with warm water and avoid eating from the affected side to promote healing.

Constipation is closely linked with the problem of boils. This is because our body removes the toxins through the colon and the skin. When a person is constipated the toxins which cannot get eliminated through excretion are eliminated via the skin.

Our skin reflects the internal state of our health. The presence of boils on the bum or elsewhere on the skin can be due to the following:

• Accumulation of harmful toxins in the body.
• Genetic factors.
• Lack of proper diet.
• Weak immunity
• Stress.

Our skin is often referred to as the body’s first line of defense. However, it has to face the constant onslaught of the sun, cold, heat, humidity, harsh soaps, chemicals and perspiration. Therefore, we often get rashes, boils, rosacea etc which causes a lot of awkwardness.
Unfortunately, the antibiotics that are used to cure skin boils only suppress the infections. They do not uproot the problem but only alleviate them for some time. This can lead to serious consequences as the internal problem can aggravate due to lack of a proper and timely treatment.

For our skin to be free of boils on the bums or elsewhere it is essential that the organs such as kidneys, liver, lungs and colon eliminate the toxins effectively. If there is constipation then the colon gets choked with fecal matter. The toxins that are required to be eliminated as soon as possible get stuck within the body for hours and spread toxins. The body makes an attempt to cleanse the filthy conditions due to constipation by filtering out the toxins through the skin.

This leads to the following:

• Skin becomes overburdened.
• Its pores get clogged
• Eruptions may occur in the form of bum boils or boils elsewhere on the skin.

There are several natural methods by which one can prevent constipation and detoxify the body to avoid bums or other boils. They are:

• Fasting
• Avoiding colas, junk and processed food.
• Intake of cabbage juice.
• Black walnut tincture.
• A high intake of water

Thus, we find that a therapeutic fasting coupled with detoxification can prevent constipation and the subsequent boils on the bum or on other places.

How to Cope with Disorders that Cause Recurrence of Boils

The normal life-cycle of a boil includes its appearance, ripening, erupting and subsequent drying up. The treatment of a boil may help in its quick maturing and suppurating or oozing out the pus. In the case of recurrent boils the boils show up soon after withering away. There are several disorders due to which even after a complete treatment and subsequent healing the boils keep recurring.

They are as follows:

• The body has a natural defense system by which it can control bacterial infection. The pus that is formed in the boil is due to the presence of neutrophil which is a type of a white blood cell. The nuetrophils are a pivotal part of the body’s defense system. They move out of the blood vessels where they are produced and reach the site of infection. If a person has a low white blood cell count then the body is not prepared to fight off the bacterial infection. This leads to recurrence of boils.

• Diabetics and HIV positive patients have bacterial colonies in their nasal chambers. Due to this they keep facing repeated attacks of boils.

• Heredity can also play a role in the problem of recurrent boils. Some people may have a sound health but they may be the carriers of the staph bacteria genetically.

• Obesity is also one of the factors that may lead to recurrent boils. This is because obesity leads to an imbalanced metabolic process.

• Recurrent boils can also be the outcome of stress.

• If the surface of the skin is damaged then it stands a high risk of recurrent boils.

• Hidradenitis suppurativa is an inflammatory skin disorder that is characterized by recurring boils or abscesses. Such boils lead to a pus discharge and may also cause complicated open wounds and scarring.

This disorder occurs as a result of the following factors:

1. Sex hormones
2. Endocrine factors
3. Genetics
4. Cigarette smoking

Recurrent boils can be avoided by relaxation techniques such as yoga and meditation. In order to build up a strong immune system one needs to detoxify the body by eating healthy and staying away from foods which contain chemicals, synthetic flavors, artificial colors, taste enhancers etc.

What is the treatment for MRSA infected sebaceous cyst?

A sebaceous cyst or an epidermal cyst is a skin growth that contains sebum and skin proteins. It is a slow-growing, freely movable and painless lump under the skin. It arises mostly from swollen hair cavities.

If an infection begins in a sebaceous cyst then the surrounding area becomes red, swollen and tender. An abscess may develop due to a bacterial infection.

However, a sebaceous cyst rarely develops a bacterial infection. Sometimes if it gets ruptured then keratin gets released into the dermis. This may lead to an inflammatory reaction that clinically resembles an infection. The cultures of such ruptured cysts rarely reveal the staph bacteria.

The treatment of the sebaceous cyst includes the following:

• Incision and drainage.
• Antibiotics in some cases.

Drainage is the only option in case of rather large sebaceous cysts. This can be done in the following way:

• The cyst and the nearby area is wiped with beta dine swabs.
• 1% lidocaine with epinephrine is injected before the lancing begins in order to numb the area.
• A scalpel is used to cut distally starting from the proximal end of the cyst.
• With sterile gauze the contents of the sebaceous cyst are squeezed.
• When the cyst gets drained completely the cavity is directly explored with a curette or a gloved finger to clear loculations. Thereafter it is irrigated with 0.9% saline solution and lastly, it is packed with gauze.

Antibiotic therapy is required only if there are multiple abscesses. In such a case an empiric treatment should begin with a drug that is active against the MRSA such as:

• Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole
• Clindamycin
• Tetracycline
• Vancomycin
• Linezolid
• Daptomycin
• Doxycycline
• Minocycline

It is quite essential to complete the course of antibiotics that the doctor prescribes, even if one feels relieved before the last dose. One should avoid skipping doses as well. This is because the severe antibiotic infections are becoming hard to treat because of the bacteria that develop resistance to it. Most of the bacteria have become stronger and less responsive to antibiotic treatment. Stopping the antibiotic course half-way makes the bacteria more resistant.

Castor oil is obtained from the seeds of the castor oil plant which is a small annual plant. Studies show that ricinoleic and oleic acid, the two constituents of castor oil, are far superior in controlling bacterial activity then the well-known antimicrobial agents, sorbic and 10-undecenoic.

Castor oil is widely used in the industry as well as in medicines. On account of its plethora of uses and healing properties it was known as the Palma Christi or the hand of the Christ in ancient Rome.

Poultices made from the castor leaf are commonly used to cure boils and swellings. A simple application of castor oil on the skin is helpful in curing disorders such as warts, skin lesions etc.

In order to cure guinea-worm sores the castor plant leaves are coated with some bland oil and heated. The hot leaves are then applied over the sores to extract the worms. So, we find that castor oil has the potential to draw out impurities.

For curing minor skin infections a few drops of castor oil are applied on the affected skin and covered with a band-aid or gauze. If the infection is large then a clean cloth is soaked in castor oil and applied. The castor oil should not be dripping from the cloth but just in a moderate amount. Castor oil has been successfully used to cure puncture wounds even in those cases where the patients have suffered from severe infections at the site of the wound.

Pilonidal cyst is a kind of a skin abscess that usually occurs along the tailbone or coccyx. The term pilonidal has its roots in the Latin words pilus which means hair and nidus which means nest. The pilonidal cysts contain hair and debris. There are several theories about the origin of a pilonidal cyst. The most plausible one is that it occurs due to the penetration of hair in the skin.

Since castor oil can draw out impurities easily so it also has the healing power to cure a pilonidal cyst because it draws out the impurities from it such as hair and debris.

A salve is a healing ointment that is used to soothe the skin. The drawing salves have therapeutic properties by which they can draw out boils, insect poison and wood splinters from the skin. Although they are not yet approved by FDA but the demand for these salves does not cease. Many families use home-made salves to heal bee stings, rose bush and splinter problems in kids. They are available as an over-the counter medicine too.

Before one decides to purchase drawing black salve one should be sure that the product is the right one. Incidentally, there are two different herbal products that are generally referred to as black salve. The second product is the black salve that contains bloodroot.

The best commercially available black drawing salves are those which contain the following:

• At least 10% – 20 % of ichthammol.
• Phenyl alcohol.
• Skin-enriching vitamin E.
• Anti-inflammatory comfrey oil.
• Bergamot oil.
• Arnica Montana.
• Echinacea.
• Calendula.
• A base of beeswax.

The most active ingredient found in drawing black salve is Ichthammol. It has anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties which make it effective in the treatment of cysts. It heals the cysts by weakening the skin slightly. This softens the skin and increases the blood supply. As more blood reaches the affected region it brings along with it more white blood cells. These cells are a part of the defense mechanism of our body and they help the body to fight off the infection in the cysts.

Since the black drawing salves that are available in the market are quite costly, one can also consider preparing them at home. The best and the most potent salve is the one that contains herbs because herbs have therapeutic properties.

There are several recipes for preparing black drawing salve at home. The following things should be kept in mind before using a home- made black drawing salve:

• As a precautionary measure consult your doctor before using it.
• Apply a little amount on the forearm to make sure that there are no allergic reactions.

These tips may be helpful for a safe treatment.

Garlic is a popular and powerful herb. Apart from being commonly used in cooking it is widely used in medicines due to its therapeutic properties. It is a natural antibiotic and anti-inflammatory agent.

Several studies have provided bio-chemical evidence that garlic is an effective antimicrobial drug that can disable an exceptionally wide range of infectious organisms such as the bacteria, fungi etc.

When garlic is crushed a compound known as allicin is produced. Allicin is a broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent which can ward off various types of infections.

The topical application as well as oral intake of raw garlic can speed up the healing process of a boil. This happens primarily because the infection that leads to boil formation is caused by the bacterium known as staphylococcus aurous. Since garlic is a proven natural antibiotic it can help in controlling the infection. It reduces inflammation and helps to bring the boil to a head.

Before using garlic topically for curing boils it should be crushed and left for some time. This leads to the generation of allicin that is instrumental in getting rid of bacterial infections. If garlic is chopped or crushed finely more allicin is generated which increases the medicinal value of garlic.

Garlic can be used in the following ways to get rid of boils:

• It can be rubbed on the boils directly.
• The paste of garlic can be applied over the boils.
• It can be used in a diluted form also by mixing it with water and grinding it.
• One can take it orally in the form of a capsule or else it can be included in one’s diet. When taken orally it helps in building up a strong immune system, removal of harmful toxins from the system and in purifying the bloodstream. These factors can keep acne at bay.
• If also helps in curing pimples when rubbed on them several times daily. The pimple disappears completely without leaving a scar behind.

Thus, we find that since garlic is a broad spectrum antibiotic it can be used for curing boils that occur mainly due to a bacterial infection.