What is an onion bag?
An onion bag (onion wrap) consists of a cloth cloth or a cloth bag in which a finely chopped onion is wrapped. It is warmed before application.
How does the onion poultice work?
What ingredients do you need?
If you want to make an onion bag, you will need a kitchen onion and a thin cloth (eg cotton handkerchief, cotton sock) or cloth bags:
- First you need to peel the onion, cut it into small pieces and crush it a little. This will release the active ingredients contained in the cells.
The next step is to heat the onion bag. This is because it promotes the release of the ingredients of the onion. There are various options for warming:
For example, you can place the onion poultice between two hot water bottles or heat it over steam or in the microwave. Some people also immerse it in boiling water for about two minutes. But then you have to squeeze the onion wrap before further use.
Caution: No matter how you heat the onion bag – it must not be too hot when you put it on the ear. Otherwise there is a risk of burns! Therefore, check the temperature of the bag beforehand (e.g. on the inside of the forearm). Especially a sachet that contains stewed onions or has been heated in boiling water usually needs to be allowed to cool down a bit before being placed on the ear.
How to use an onion bag?
- Secure the onion wrap with a cap or headband.
- In addition, you can tie a terry towel around the head of yourself or your patient. Then the onion poultice will stay warm longer.
- You can leave the onion wrap on the ear for one to two hours, or as long as is comfortable. You should leave an onion bag on the baby for half an hour to a whole hour.
For what ailments does the onion poultice help?
The experience medicine uses the onion wrap with ear pain in many cases with large success: Thus with a middle ear inflammation the onion – in the form of a warmed onion bag – can often relieve the pain effectively. Even though this application has not yet been scientifically recognized, it is nevertheless also recommended by many doctors as a home remedy.
When is it not advisable to use onion bags?
Some patients find heat unpleasant for earache. In this case, you should not apply a warm onion bag to the ear (and also refrain from other forms of heat application, such as red light irradiation). Instead, you can apply and fix the onion bag without heating it. The blood circulation will make it a little warmer by itself, so that the active ingredients are released better.
