You Go Thai

As the old cartoon’s, Tiger Balm (now in Technicolor), theme tune used to go:

“Tiger Balm
Tiger Balm
Radioactive Tiger Balm”

This article will look at Tiger Balm - Its background, uses, and abuses.

Now, on with the show.

Tiger Balm will save your life. Well, maybe not your life, but it will save at least a small part of your sanity.

Uses

The little jar of balm has 101 uses (well not quite):

• Relief of insect bite (Mosquitoes)
• Decongestant
• Headache relief
• Relief of nausea

That’s four. If anyone knows of other uses let me know and I’ll add them.

The main use I get out of it is as for relief from the countless mosquito bites I endure on a daily basis. Mozzies love me. It’s good to be loved, but not in this way. I am a Mozzie Movable Feast.

But with the help of my trusty jar of Tiger Balm I can at least soothe the itching, burning sensation. It also seems to make the red spot of Mozzie love disappear quickly.

Unfortunately it doesn’t help relieve my headaches. These are not your typical headache though. They are usually self-induced through copious amounts of alcohol consumption. Maybe Tiger Balm is powerless against the might of the Changover?

Apparently Tiger Balm is an effective remedy for morning sickness during pregnancy. At least that’s what my wife claims. She’s usually right though so I’d give her the benefit of the doubt on this one.

Interesting sites

When researching (read: Googling) Tiger Balm I found some interesting sites:

• Tiger Balm’s official site - http://www.tigerbalm.com/
  Nice site. “Works wherever it hurts” apparently. Looks like I’ll need to work on my list!
  
• http://www.ibiblio.org/kelly/tbalm/index.html
  Respect to the balm. The Tiger Balm shout outs are a bit of an eyeopener (not to self: don’t put tiger balm in eye)
• This has me excited, Homemade Tiger Balm! - http://www.care2.com/greenliving/homemade-tiger-balm.html
  I’m gonna try this. Cooking that stuff up probably ensures you’ll never get a stuffed nose again. Ever.

The Tiger Balm family

On a final note I recently had the embarrassing misfortune of slipping on my rear in the wet room(toilet). In the process of falling, looking like an idiot, and providing endless ammo to my family for future jokes at my expense, I also managed to damage my back. A trip to the doctor and several doses of medication later and I was feeling a little better but still quite sore. Then cam Tiger Balm cold patch:

This stuff is amazing. The plaster goes on and you feel a little heat in the area. I was expecting this heat to go away after an hour or so and needing to replace the plaster. Miraculously the heat never went away! When I removed the plaster later that day there was still a strong Tiger Balm smell. Genius!

Where to get it

Tiger Balm can be found in most shops in Thailand. In the West you’ll have to look a bit harder but it can be found in some shops. Try your local pharmacy. If you’re still having trouble finding it you can get it online. EBay and Amazon sell it or you could just Google “Tiger Balm”.