Oxymel, a medicinal drink or syrup compounded of vinegar and honey, is a formulation used alone or as a basis for medicinal dosage forms from ancient times to the current era. Oxymel, a popular ancient medicine composed of honey and vinegar, was prescribed for persistent coughs by Hippocrates and his contemporaries, and by physicians up to modern day.
Oxymel was used by Hippocrates (460-370 BC) and Dioscorides (lst century AD) in epilepsy as the basis of medicinal formulations' or solely in fever, by Galen (2nd century AD) to ease obstructions in the stomach, by Soranus (1st-2nd century AD) as the basis of an oral contraceptive formulation containing rocket seed and cows parsnip, and by Paulus Aegineta (7th century AD) as squill oxymel as a detergent medicine for asthma.
It is also used as an ordinary drink nowadays in Iran. It contains: vinegar, honey and herb(s) and is prepared by mixing vinegar (one unit), honey (two units) and water (four units). This mixture should be boiled until one-fourth of it remains and then the froth is removed.
This sweet and sour taste is great for pungent herbs like garlic and onions. Take oxymels by the spoonful, as needed, for sore throats, thick congested coughs or as a general treatment to combat cold and respiratory symptoms.
Oxymel: a medicinal drink
