🌿 Folk Prescriptions

My American classmate Amy caught a chill while dancing at an outdoor party and developed a fever the next day, lying in bed unable to attend class. Since Amy is a very popular girl, everyone agreed after school to visit her. As soon as we walked in, we saw her French boyfriend Jacques sitting beside her, tenderly advising: "No, Amy, you can't be so stubborn. Listen to me—drink a little red wine from France to warm your blood, drive out the cold from your body, then place an ice pack on your forehead—your temperature will quickly return to normal."But flushed-faced Amy kept shaking her head, insisting that Americans treat fever by "drinking cold things and eating ice cream," so she wanted ice cream. Her reasoning was that since her body temperature was too high, she should use something icy to cool down.The outspoken Indian girl Dasha immediately voiced her objection: "Eating ice cream when you have a fever? I've never heard of such a thing! I think you should eat curry—it's the most health-promoting. Add plenty of curry to the patient's food, and they'll recover quickly."At this moment, Amy's landlady brought over a box of ice cream: "Poor girl is so stubborn! But strangely enough, last time she had a cold and fever, it was actually the ice cream that helped. We British have a saying: 'For a cold, fill your belly; for diarrhea, starve your belly. For colds and fevers, eat heartily and drink freely to strengthen resistance and recover quickly.'"It turned out the landlady wasn’t a local New Zealander but an immigrant from England. This made me unable to resist replying: "Really? In China, when we catch a cold or fever, our diet should be light and avoid greasy foods. We must drink more water, cover up warmly to sweat, and..."The quiet Japanese classmate couldn’t hold back any longer: "Actually, in Japan, there are many ways to treat colds and fevers. For example, placing a fresh radish leaf on the patient’s forehead can help absorb heat and reduce fever; also..."The African classmate dismissed this with disdain: "What good are radish leaves? You should drink coconut juice instead..."Then everyone started arguing passionately yet politely about how to cure colds and fevers from physiological, hygienic, medical, environmental, and other perspectives. Amy happily ate her ice cream, listening intently to our debate. Finally, she interrupted us: "Thank you all, esteemed doctors from around the world, for your brilliant prescriptions. But remember—I’m the one suffering from this American cold, so you must follow my advice. This ice cream feels wonderful, so much so that I’ve forgotten another important thing: patients need sufficient oxygen—please open all the windows for me. Thank you!"Soon, Amy’s illness miraculously healed according to her American prescription. But that fascinating debate remains unforgettable. <Folk Remedy>