A dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp one. That statement surprises a lot of people until they use a blade that slips instead of cuts and realize how quickly a loss of control turns into a serious injury. Whether you are deep in the backcountry, dealing with a grid-down situation, or simply nowhere […]
The post How to Sharpen a Knife Without a Sharpener (7 Survival Methods) appeared first on Ask a Prepper.
If We Have a War: 6 Outside Cooking Products Every Household Needs. War, whether it arrives on our shores or disrupts the fragile systems we depend on, has a way of reminding us how thin the line is between comfort and crisis. Fuel pipelines, electrical grids, and supply chains are all targets, and they have all failed before during times of conflict.
The single most urgent skill your household can develop right now is the ability to cook a hot, nourishing meal outside, without electricity, without natural gas, and without a trip to the grocery store. The good news is that the right outside cooking products make this not only possible but surprisingly straightforward. Below are six tools that belong in every serious family preparedness plan, each proven and capable of feeding your family when everything else breaks down.
Of all the outside cooking products available to the preparedness-minded household, the Sun Oven stands alone in one critical respect: it requires no fuel whatsoever. Harnessing direct sunlight through a series of reflective panels, a quality Sun Oven, such as the flagship All American Sun Oven, reaches temperatures between 360°F and 400°F, hot enough to bake bread, roast meat, cook rice, and even pasteurize water. In a war scenario where fuel becomes scarce, rationed, or weaponized, the sun remains the one resource that no enemy can cut off. Please note that where I live, I can only get mine to reach 350°F.
The cooking process with a Sun Oven is slower than conventional methods, generally running about the same time as a conventional oven, but it requires little attention once positioned. You may have to adjust the unit’s position slightly as the sun moves across the sky, but that’s an easy step. You place your pot or baking dish inside the insulated cooking chamber, angle the reflectors toward the sun, and step away. The oven holds heat remarkably well, and because it uses no open flame, it produces no smoke — a meaningful tactical advantage if you need to avoid drawing attention to yourself or your location.
Sun Ovens are also extraordinarily durable. The All American model is built with a heavy-gauge anodized aluminum interior and a tempered glass door that can withstand years of outdoor use. For long-term outside cooking, particularly in sunny climates across the American West and South, this is the cornerstone tool around which the rest of your cooking kit can be built.
The prices got up to $750.00, and now you can’t even get one. Check garage sales, eBay, or Google the phrase “All American Sun Oven”. I asked people for years to get one; those who did are sleeping well at night, trust me, I know. Keep in mind that in some locations, this product doesn’t work due to limited sunshine, so you’ll have to go a different route. They may have gone out of business. It’s a real shame, it’s a great product.
The cast-iron Dutch Oven is arguably one of the oldest and most battle-tested outside cooking products in human history. Armies, pioneers, and homesteaders have cooked with these heavy, lidded pots for decades, and for good reason: they are essentially indestructible, they distribute heat with extraordinary evenness, and they can do virtually anything; bake, braise, fry, simmer, boil, and roast, over any heat source available, including an open wood fire, charcoal, propane, or even coals dug directly from the ground.
The camp Dutch Oven differs slightly from its kitchen counterpart in one important way: it has legs. Those three short legs allow it to sit directly over a bed of coals, and the flanged lid, flat with a rim around the edge, lets you pile additional coals on top, effectively turning the pot into a two-zone oven capable of producing biscuits, cobblers, casseroles, and stews that would be at home on any restaurant table. A 12-inch Dutch Oven will comfortably feed a family of four to six people.
For emergency outside cooking, the Dutch Oven pairs beautifully with whatever fuel source you have available. It works with firewood you scavenge, charcoal briquettes stored in your garage, or the wood fire in a Volcano Stove. Its weight, typically 10 to 15 pounds, is its only real drawback, making it less suited to bugging out on foot, but for sheltering in place, there is no more versatile or reliable outside cooking vessel on this list.
I prefer the 6-quart cast-iron Dutch oven with the rim around the lid with legs. Great for stacking other Dutch ovens on top to cook at the same time outdoors. 6-Quart Dutch Oven
The Volcano Stove is one of those outside cooking products that, once you understand what it does, you wonder how you ever planned an emergency kit without it. It’s a collapsible, three-fuel cooking system that burns wood, charcoal, or propane interchangeably; switching between fuels takes only a few seconds and a simple adjustment to the fuel feed. In a wartime scenario where one fuel type may become unavailable at any given moment, that flexibility is worth more than almost any other single feature.
The stove itself is engineered as a truncated cone, hence the name, with an opening at the base for fuel and a grated cooking platform at the top. The conical shape creates a natural draft that draws air upward through the fire, producing a highly efficient burn that uses significantly less fuel than an open campfire while generating more concentrated, usable heat. This efficiency matters enormously when supplies are limited or when wood must be gathered by hand.
Beyond its triple-fuel design, the Volcano is remarkably versatile as an outside cooking platform. Its top grate accommodates a standard Dutch Oven, a cast-iron skillet, a stockpot, or a griddle plate, making it a true outdoor kitchen hub. A dedicated Volcano Grill attachment transforms it into a full BBQ grill capable of cooking everything from burgers to fish. The stove breaks down flat for storage and is made from heavy-gauge steel with a powder-coat finish that resists rust. For a family sheltering in place through an extended crisis, the Volcano Stove may be the single most important outside cooking purchase on this entire list.
The Volcano Stove is awesome. You can use charcoal, wood, and propane.
Speed, simplicity, and convenience are the hallmarks of the butane stove, and in an emergency outside cooking situation, those qualities have real value. When you need to boil water fast, heat up a meal for a sick family member, or cook something quickly before dusk, a butane stove delivers instant, controllable flame at the turn of a knob, no kindling, no lighter fluid, no waiting for coals to ash over. For outside cooking in the immediate aftermath of a crisis, butane stoves bridge the gap while longer-burning systems are set up.
A standard single-burner butane camp stove uses butane canisters that are inexpensive, widely available, and store for years without degrading. A single canister typically provides between 1 and 3 hours of cooking time, depending on the heat setting, so storing a case of 12 to 24 canisters gives you meaningful cooking capacity over an extended period. Butane performs best in mild temperatures; however, below 32°F, it begins to struggle, so in cold-weather emergencies or winter conflict scenarios, propane or multi-fuel options should take precedence.
The butane stove shines as a precision outdoor cooking tool for small meals and tasks that require precise heat control: sautéing vegetables, making sauces, simmering soups, or scrambling eggs. Some companies produce compact, wind-resistant models built for serious outdoor use that feel far more substantial than budget camp stoves sold in discount stores. Stock several spare burner heads along with your canisters, and include a butane stove in every outside cooking kit as the quick-response workhorse of your setup.
Every family needs a Butane Stove with Butane Fuel stocked.
The thermal cooker, sometimes called a wonder cooker or fireless cooker, is perhaps the least well-known outside cooking product on this list, and that’s a genuine oversight in the preparedness community. The concept is simple and nearly magical: you bring your food to a boil or a vigorous simmer on any heat source, then transfer the cooking pot into a heavily insulated outer container that traps the heat inside. The food continues cooking entirely on retained thermal energy for the next two to eight hours, with no additional fuel required whatsoever.
In practice, this means you can prepare a pot of beans, stew, soup, or whole grains in the morning using your Volcano Stove or butane burner, seal it in the thermal cooker, and return to a fully cooked, piping-hot meal at lunchtime or dinner without spending a single additional BTU. For outside cooking in a fuel-scarce environment, that is a transformative capability. It effectively multiplies the productive output of every other fuel-burning stove in your kit.
High-quality thermal cookers are built with stainless steel inner pots that are dishwasher safe and designed for tens of thousands of cooking cycles. The outer insulated cases are typically hard-sided, with secure-latching lids that prevent heat loss and make the entire unit portable. A thermal cooker is also silent and produces no light, smoke, or detectable output after the initial cooking phase, another quiet tactical advantage for households that need to maintain a low profile during civil unrest. Every outside cooking system should include one.
Every family should have a Thermal Cooker, trust me, I use mine a lot.
Hot water is the foundation of survival cooking. It makes instant meals safe to eat, rehydrates freeze-dried food storage, sterilizes wounds, purifies drinking water, and provides the psychological comfort of a hot cup of tea, hot chocolate, or coffee in genuinely miserable circumstances. The Kelly Kettle, an Irish-designed, chimney-style water boiler manufactured since the 1890s, is the fastest and most fuel-efficient outdoor cooking tool ever devised for the sole purpose of boiling water quickly from virtually any biomass fuel.
The design is a double-walled aluminum or stainless steel kettle with a hollow fire chamber running up through its center. You build a small fire in the base using twigs, pine cones, dry leaves, bark, or any small dry biomass you can gather, then place the kettle over it. The chimney effect draws air up through the hollow core at high velocity, intensifying the burn and directing heat directly into the water surrounding the chamber. The result is that a 1.6-liter Kelly Kettle boils water in three to five minutes using only a small handful of sticks, no purchased fuel required.
This matters in a wartime, outdoor cooking scenario because it means your hot water supply depends on nothing more than your ability to gather small, dry debris from your surroundings. Forests, parks, backyards, and rural properties provide a continuous supply of natural fuel at no cost. The Kelly Kettle also supports a small pot attachment for its chimney top, allowing you to cook a simple meal or warm food simultaneously while boiling water below, a true two-course capability from a device that weighs less than two pounds. It’s the outside cooking tool that should live in every bug-out bag, every shelter-in-place kit, and every vehicle emergency bin in your household.
A Kelly Kettle is awesome for boiling water or cooking a small pan of soup. It uses free fuel, such as dried leaves, pine cones, and dried small branches from bushes or small trees.
If We Have A War: 30 OTC Medications To Stock
If We Have a War: What Skills Will Homemakers Need?
If We Have A War: Stock These Ten Foods Now
If We Have A War: 25 Personal Hygiene Products
If We Have A War: Stock These Cast-Iron Pans
If We Have A War: Stock Paper Products Now
War, grid failure, or societal disruption doesn’t announce itself with enough lead time to improvise. The households that’ll feed themselves and their neighbors during the next major crisis are the ones building their outside cooking capability today, stocking the Sun Oven, seasoning the Dutch Oven, staging the Volcano Stove, changing the butane canisters, filling the thermal cooker, and keeping the Kelly Kettle dry and ready to light.
These six outside cooking products are not luxuries. At the wrong moment, they are the difference between eating and not eating. Start acquiring them now, learn to use each one before you need it, and rotate your fuel supplies regularly. The time to prepare is always before the emergency arrives. May God bless this world, Linda
The post If We Have A War: 6 Outside Cooking Products appeared first on Food Storage Moms.
You don’t need a real collapse to understand where things are going. Right now, the grid is being pushed harder than it should be. In fact, that pressure is coming from decisions that are already in motion. According to recent reports, production is moving back inside the country. It sounds like progress, but it also […]
The post The Federal Government Creates Blackouts on Purpose. When Will It Hit You? appeared first on Ask a Prepper.
Estimated reading time: 12 minutes
Planting a survival garden requires you to foresee and prepare for a number of possible scenarios that could kill your plants and leave you without a source of food. One of the most dreaded of these scenarios is an extended drought. Many plants are unable to survive more than a few days without water.
In a survival scenario where no rain is falling, providing water to them can be a real struggle. While it's important to devise a plan for watering your plants during a drought, it's also beneficial to have plants that you can rely on to survive drought when the weather turns hot and water is scarce.
The plants listed below are all able to survive without water longer than the average plant and can handle the heat quite well. If you live in a part of the country where drought is a possibility (which is most of the country), consider including these plants in your survival garden.
Want to save this post for later? Click Here to Pin It On Pinterest!
Most every variety of beans, from bush beans to pole beans and beyond, are able to handle the heat and drought incredibly well. The best part is that you’ve got a lot of options considering all the different varieties of beans that are available, meaning that planting several different types of beans in your garden will add plenty of variety to your drought-time cuisine.
One of the main sources of sugar aside from sugarcane, beets handle the heat and drought quite well. The deep purple tubers grow and are harvested much like potatoes. If you don’t wish to make processed sugar, though, don’t worry; beets are quite tasty in salads, pickled, or mixed into other dishes.
Like most plants native to the Southwest, black-eyed peas are plenty capable of surviving a drought and hot weather. The peas themselves contain very little moisture, meaning that little water is required to produce them.
Combine this with a relatively deep root system and black-eyed peas are plenty capable of producing food when the weather turns hot and the rain stops falling.
Simply looking at a carrot and understanding how the plant functions will let you know why carrots are more drought-resistant than most vegetables. The part of the carrot that you eat is the plant’s root, meaning that the carrot is able to extend deep down into the soil and collect water that other plants can't.
Once the plant has been established, eggplants are able to survive droughts better than most vegetables. Eggplants are a heat-loving plant and won’t begin to wilt until daytime temperatures exceed 95 degrees for an extended period of time. Eggplants will also still set fruit in temperatures exceeding 100 degrees so long as they have some moisture and nutrients.
Fig trees need ample sun in order to thrive, but they aren’t particularly picky about the soil they grow in or the high temperatures they're exposed to. Come time to harvest, fig trees will yield a bounty of sweet, sticky fruit.
It’s recommended that you water figs every five days during the summer months in order to yield the biggest fruit, which isn’t a lot, especially considering that figs are able to survive and yield fruit with even less water.
Add to that the fact that fig trees love the heat and are easy to care for, and you’ve got a plant that is well worth considering as part of your drought-preparedness strategy.
Also common referred to as the horned cucumber. As a general rule, most varieties of cucumber are fairly drought resistant, but this one is even more drought resistant.
This unusual plant is quite different from the melons and cucumbers that most people are familiar with, as the fruit it produces is spiny, bright orange, has a jelly-like texture, and is said to taste like a cross between a lime, a cucumber, and a banana.
Also known as sunchokes, Jerusalem artichokes are a tough, drought-resistant perennial that produces edible tubers underground. Because the tubers form below the surface, the plant is often able to keep going through hot, dry spells better than many shallow-rooted crops. Extension sources also note that sunchokes handle drought well and require relatively little fertilizer once established.
The tubers have a slightly sweet, nutty flavor and can be cooked much like potatoes. In a survival garden, that makes them especially valuable since they give you a dependable source of calories from a plant that doesn’t demand constant attention.
Also known as a red date or Chinese date, jujube trees are a drought-resistant fruit tree native to the Chinese mainland. Originally, jujube fruits were quite sour. Over the past few thousand years, though, growers have tweaked the species to produce a fruit that is much sweeter and more enjoyable.
Jujube trees may not be the most well-known fruit tree. However, their resistance to drought and ability to produce fruit in hot climates make them an option worth considering.
Kei apple trees originate from southwest Africa, which is enough alone to tell you that this fruit tree is able to handle the heat and drought. The Kei apple tree grows up to thirty feet tall and produces smallish, bright yellow apples.
Kei apple trees are also able to grow in high salinity soil. However, they do prefer the dry air of higher climates, meaning that growing them in a humid climate may prove difficult.
Ordinary spinach plants don’t do particularly well in a drought. Malabar spinach, however, which grows on a vine and tastes similar to the spinach you're used to, loves the heat and can survive a drought quite well.
Since you’ll have a hard time getting most leafy greens to produce in a drought, Malabar spinach is definitely a green you should consider planting in order to incorporate leafy greens into your diet during a drought.
Mulberry trees are another excellent choice for a drought-ready survival garden. Once established, they’re known to tolerate drought quite well, and they can also handle poor, sandy soils better than many other fruit trees. That kind of toughness makes them worth considering if you want a fruit tree that doesn’t need pampering.
When harvest time comes, mulberry trees can produce a heavy crop of sweet berries that can be eaten fresh, dried, or turned into preserves. Since the trees grow quickly and produce plenty of fruit, they offer a reliable food source when more delicate crops are struggling with the heat.
Natal plum trees are among the heartiest of all fruit trees. Not only are the trees drought-resistant, they're also able to grow in a wide range of soil conditions and climates.
With a wintertime harvest, natal plums won’t provide any food during the drought. However, they'll be able to survive the drought and provide you with food in the winter that follows.
A southern classic, okra is considerably more drought-resistant than most vegetables and does well in hot, summer weather.
Okra pods can be added to soups and stews, grilled, or battered and fried. The last method is the most popular way to cook okra, as any other method leaves okra quite slimy – an off-putting texture for many.
Prepared correctly, though, okra makes for a delicious dish that you will be able to enjoy when there's not enough rain to keep other plants in your garden alive.
If you’ve ever had the misfortune of tasting a wild persimmon that isn’t quite ripe, just the name persimmon alone might put a bitter taste in your mouth. However, the flavorful oriental persimmons have little in common with their wild-growing namesake.
Oriental persimmon trees produce tomato-sized fruit that is fairly firm and sweet. What makes oriental persimmon trees drought-resistant is the nature of the tree’s root system. Most fruit trees have roots that are shallow and branch out.
Oriental persimmon trees, however, have a tap root that goes deep into the ground, allowing the tree to collect water even when all the water near the surface of the soil has dried up and other trees are struggling.
In addition to having some heat of their own, peppers handle heat and droughts quite well. It doesn’t particularly matter what variety of pepper that you plant, as most all peppers are fairly drought-resistant.
Larger peppers such as bell peppers will naturally provide more sustenance, but there’s certainly nothing wrong with mixing up your pepper plants for more variety – provided, of course, that you can handle the heat yourself!
Pomegranates have gained a lot of popularity recently among natural health enthusiasts thanks to the fruit’s powerful antioxidant properties. Hailing from the Middle East and the Mediterranean, pomegranate trees are used to the heat and are quite drought-resistant.
Getting the fruit out of a pomegranate’s fleshy outer shell requires a little bit of work. However, the sweet morsels inside are well worth the effort.
Squash is one of the few vegetables where the hotter the temperature is, the bigger the fruit they produce. This goes for all varieties of squash, both summer squash and winter squash alike.
This fact enables you to plant vegetables with both a summertime and a winter harvest and ensure that they will be able to survive any dry, hot weather that comes along.
Most varieties of potatoes don't do well in hot climates and instead prefer cooler soil. This is not the case with sweet potatoes, however, as they do quite well when the weather turns hot. Like any other variety of potato, sweet potatoes are full of carbs that will keep you full and energized in a survival situation, and they have a high yield relative to the amount of area they take up.
Given the amount of water in a watermelon, it may come as a surprise that this fruit grows best in long, hot summers and well-drained soil. While watermelon will naturally need some water to produce fruit, you won’t have to worry about the high heat wilting the plant and killing off its fruit.
Like this post? Don't Forget to Pin It On Pinterest!
You May Also Like:
The post 20 Garden Plants That Can Survive a Drought appeared first on Urban Survival Site.
If we have a war, 30 OTC medications to stock are listed here for you today. If a war breaks out tomorrow, pharmacies will be among the first places to run out of supplies. Long before food shortages hit, medicine shelves go empty, and families are left managing fevers, infections, wounds, and pain with nothing on hand.
The good news is that a single trip to your local drugstore today can change that. We’ve put together 30 over-the-counter medications that every household should have on hand before a crisis arrives. No prescriptions, no medical degree required, just simple, practical preparation that could make all the difference for your family.
A Quick Note: This guide is for informational and preparedness purposes only. It is not medical advice. When in doubt, always consult a doctor or pharmacist. Dosages listed are for healthy adults unless noted otherwise. Please note, I’m not a nurse, a doctor, or anyone in the medical field.
Please order an Oxygen 02 Oximeter if you don’t have one. A pulse oximeter is a simple yet vital tool that measures the oxygen saturation level in your blood, giving you a quick snapshot of how well your lungs and heart are delivering oxygen to your body. Many serious conditions, like pneumonia, heart disease, asthma, sleep apnea, and COVID-19, can cause oxygen levels to drop dangerously low before you even feel noticeably short of breath, a phenomenon sometimes called “silent hypoxia.”
Having an oximeter at home allows people, especially those with chronic respiratory or cardiac conditions, to catch these drops early and seek medical attention before a situation becomes life-threatening. They’re also useful for athletes monitoring performance at altitude, or anyone who simply wants peace of mind about their respiratory health.
PAIN RELIEVERS
Fever reducer and everyday pain reliever. Pain and fever are two of the most common things you’ll deal with in any emergency. Having more than one type of pain reliever matters because they work in different ways.
This is the one medication no family should be without. It brings down fevers, eases headaches, toothaches, and body aches, and it’s gentle on the stomach. Safe for adults and children (in age-appropriate doses). Adults: 325–1,000 mg every 4–6 hours. Never exceed 3,000 mg per day, and watch out for combination cold medicines that already contain it.
Stock up: 500+ tablets. Buy both regular and children’s liquid for young kids.
Anti-inflammatory for injuries, swelling, and fever
Better than Tylenol when swelling is involved, think sprained ankles, sore muscles, dental pain, or infection-related inflammation. Can be alternated with acetaminophen every few hours to better control a stubborn fever. Always take it with food. Adults: 200–400 mg every 4–6 hours. Not for people with kidney issues, ulcers, or during pregnancy.
Stock up: 500+ tablets.
Long-lasting pain relief, one dose lasts 8 to 12 hours
Great for sleeping through pain or managing someone who can’t take medications frequently. Works well for back pain, joint pain, and menstrual cramps. Adults: one 220 mg tablet every 8–12 hours with food. Same cautions as ibuprofen, avoid if you have kidney disease or stomach ulcers.
Stock up: 200–300 tablets.
Pain reliever and a potential lifesaver during a heart attack
Here’s the big reason aspirin is on this list: if someone is having a heart attack and you have no way to call for help, having them chew a regular-strength aspirin (325 mg) right away can slow dangerous clotting and improve their chances of survival. Also works for pain and fever in adults. Never give aspirin to children or teenagers.
Stock up: 300 regular-strength tablets + low-dose 81 mg if anyone in your family takes it daily.
Rub-on pain relief for sore joints and muscles
This is a strong anti-inflammatory in gel form. You rub it directly onto the painful area — a sore knee, stiff wrist, or aching elbow, and it works locally without upsetting your stomach or stressing your kidneys. Apply 4 times a day. Wash your hands after. Great for older family members or anyone doing heavy physical work.
Stock up: 2–4 tubes.
Numbs the skin before cleaning a wound or treating a burn
Think of this as a mini local anesthetic. Apply it to the area around a cut or burn about 15–30 minutes before you need to clean it, and it significantly reduces the pain — especially helpful with kids. Bactine also contains an antiseptic, making it a two-in-one product. Don’t use it in deep wounds or near the eyes.
Stock up: 2–3 sprays or tubes.
DIGESTIVE ISSUES
Stomach problems are one of the most common emergencies in a crisis. Contaminated water, stress, and unfamiliar food can all cause serious digestive trouble — and in kids especially, dehydration from diarrhea can become dangerous very quickly.
Stops diarrhea fast — one of the most important items on this list
When diarrhea won’t stop, and clean water is limited, dehydration can become life-threatening. Imodium slows things down so the body can recover. Adults: 2 capsules (4 mg) to start, then 1 capsule after each loose stool, up to 8 capsules per day. Don’t use it if diarrhea has blood in it or comes with a high fever — see a doctor if you can.
Stock up: 200+ capsules. Small, lightweight, and incredibly important.
Handles diarrhea, nausea, heartburn, and upset stomach all in one
Pepto is a family staple for good reason. It coats the stomach, settles nausea, and helps with diarrhea all at once. The chewable tablets are far easier to store than the liquid. Adults: 2 tablets every 30–60 minutes as needed, max 8 doses per day. Don’t give to children or teenagers. It turns the stools dark, that’s normal and harmless.
Stock up: 4–6 boxes of chewable tablets.
The most important thing you can give a dehydrated child or adult
These aren’t a medicine, they’re a special mix of salt and sugar that helps the body absorb water even when someone is very sick. Plain water or sports drinks don’t do the same job. When anyone in your family has severe vomiting or diarrhea, ORS packets dissolved in clean water can prevent a dangerous situation. Safe for all ages.
Stock up: 50+ packets per person. Cheap, lightweight, and potentially life-saving.
Daily heartburn and stomach protection, especially if you’re taking pain relievers
Stress causes the stomach to produce extra acid, which leads to painful heartburn and sometimes ulcers. If your family is relying on ibuprofen or aspirin for pain during a crisis, taking omeprazole once daily with them helps protect the stomach lining from damage. Take one 20 mg tablet every morning before eating. Give it 2–3 days to fully kick in.
Stock up: 3–4 boxes (42 tablets each).
Fast-acting heartburn and indigestion relief
When heartburn hits suddenly, Tums works within minutes by neutralizing stomach acid directly. They also provide a bonus dose of calcium, which is especially good for women and older family members when dairy foods aren’t available. Chew 2–4 tablets as needed. Give other medications a 2-hour gap, since antacids can affect their absorption.
Stock up: 4–6 large bottles.
Quick relief from painful gas and bloating
When your family is eating canned beans, MREs, and foods very different from normal, gas and bloating can possibly follow. Simethicone breaks up gas bubbles so they can pass naturally. Chew 1–2 maximum-strength tablets after meals as needed. Please consult with your medical professional before using this product.
Stock up: 2–3 boxes of chewable tablets.
COLD AND FLU
When families are crowded together in stressful conditions, colds and flu spread fast. Managing symptoms properly keeps everyone functional and reduces the risk of a simple cold worsening.
The real decongestant actually works to clear stuffy noses
This is the original Sudafed kept behind the pharmacy counter. The regular Sudafed on the open shelf is much less effective; studies have shown it barely works. The real one clears stuffy noses within 30 minutes. You’ll need to show ID to buy it. Adults: 30–60 mg every 4–6 hours. Use with caution if anyone in your family has high blood pressure.
Stock up: Buy the maximum allowed each time you go. Rotate your supply.
This thins mucus so the body can clear it from the chest and sinuses
Thick, stuck mucus traps bacteria and can turn a cold into a chest infection. Mucinex thins it out so your body can clear it naturally. The extended-release tablets (every 12 hours) work much better than the regular kind. The most important rule: drink a full glass of water with every dose. Without water, it can’t do its job.
Stock up: 3–4 boxes of 1200 mg extended-release tablets.
Cough suppressant for that dry, sleep-robbing cough
Some coughs clear mucus and shouldn’t be suppressed. But the dry, barking cough that keeps your family awake all night serves no purpose, and lost sleep makes everything worse. DXM quiets that kind of cough. NyQuil is the classic nighttime option. Just remember that many combination products include acetaminophen, so track your total Tylenol intake carefully.
Stock up: 2 boxes of plain extended-release DXM + 1 bottle of NyQuil.
Shown to shorten colds when started at the very first sign
These actually work — clinical studies show zinc lozenges can shorten a cold by 2–4 days when started within 24 hours of the first scratchy throat or sniffles. The key is to start immediately and let them dissolve in your mouth; swallowing them whole doesn’t help. Don’t use it for more than 10 days in a row. They sometimes cause nausea, so take them after eating.
Stock up: 4–6 boxes. Time is everything — start them the moment you feel something coming on.
A simple saltwater rinse that prevents and relieves congestion
Rinsing the nasal passages with salt water flushes out virus particles, dust, and bacteria before they cause an infection. Regular use in close-quarters living genuinely reduces how often families get sick. It also relieves congestion without any medication — completely safe for all ages, all day, every day. If you run out, mix 1/4 teaspoon of non-iodized salt into 8 oz of boiled, cooled water.
Stock up: 6–8 bottles. Also, keep non-iodized salt on hand for making your own.
Sore throat relief so your family can keep eating and drinking
A bad sore throat can make it nearly impossible to eat or drink, which can lead to dehydration quickly, especially in kids. Cepacol lozenges contain benzocaine, which numbs the throat directly. Halls uses menthol to create a cooling sensation that eases the pain. Use every 2 hours during an active sore throat. Cepacol is for adults and children 5 and older only.
Stock up: 4–6 bags of each type.
ALLERGIES
More dust, more outdoor exposure, more insects, and emergencies bring more allergy triggers. Stock both a fast-acting option and a daily non-drowsy option, and if anyone in your family has severe allergies, an epinephrine auto-injector is non-negotiable.
Fast-acting allergy relief that also helps with sleep and nausea
Benadryl works quickly and treats multiple conditions: allergic reactions, hives, insect-sting swelling, nausea, and sleep trouble. It causes drowsiness, which is a downside during the day but useful at night. Adults: 25–50 mg every 4–6 hours. Safe for children in weight-appropriate doses, check the package for the dosage based on your child’s weight. One of the most versatile medications a family can own.
Stock up: 400+ tablets. Also buy children’s liquid for young kids.
Once-a-day allergy relief that doesn’t make you drowsy
For managing day-to-day allergy symptoms without the foggy feeling of Benadryl, these are the go-to. Zyrtec is slightly stronger; Claritin is the gentlest and safe for kids from age 2. Take one 10 mg tablet daily. They work best when taken consistently, not just when symptoms flare up. No significant side effects for most people.
Stock up: 365 tablets per person, enough for a full year.
The only thing that can stop a life-threatening allergic reaction
If anyone in your family has a known severe allergy to bees, peanuts, shellfish, or anything else, this is the most important item on the entire list. A severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis) can close the airway and cause the heart to fail within minutes. Benadryl is not fast enough. Generic epinephrine auto-injectors are now available without a prescription at some pharmacies. Every adult in your home should know how and where to use it.
Stock up: 2 auto-injectors per person with known severe allergies. Check the expiration date every year.
Stops the itch and redness of rashes, bug bites, and poison ivy
This mild steroid cream calms itchy, inflamed skin caused by bug bites, contact with poison ivy, eczema flare-ups, and rashes. Apply a thin layer to the affected area 2–4 times a day. Don’t put it on infected skin (it suppresses the immune response your body needs to fight infection). Safe for adults and children over 2. Combining it with Benadryl works well for widespread or severe rashes.
Stock up: 4–6 tubes.
SKIN, WOUNDS, AND BANDAGES
Cuts, scrapes, and burns occur much more often when families perform physical work in unfamiliar conditions. A small infected wound that goes untreated can become a serious problem. Clean every wound right away.
Powerful antiseptic that kills germs in and around wounds
Betadine kills bacteria, fungi, and viruses on contact — but it must be diluted before using it on open wounds. First, mix 1 part Betadine with 10–20 parts clean water. Using it at full strength on a wound actually slows healing and damages tissue. Use a syringe or squeeze bottle to flush the diluted solution through the cut. It will stain skin orange-brown temporarily.
Stock up: 2–4 large bottles and irrigation syringes.
Prevents infection and keeps wounds healing properly
After cleaning a cut, applying a thin layer of antibiotic ointment before covering it keeps the wound moist (which speeds healing) and prevents bacteria from getting in. Thin layer only; a thick glob actually slows healing. Reapply with each bandage change. Some people are allergic to neomycin in Neosporin. If the area gets more red after a few days, switch to plain Bacitracin. Some families like Polysporin since it doesn’t have as strong an antibiotic.
Stock up: 8–10 tubes.
Close a cut that would normally need stitches, no needle required
These adhesive strips hold the edges of a cut together while it heals, mimicking what stitches do without any needles or medical training. They work best on flat areas like the forehead, forearm, or scalp. The skin must be completely dry before applying. Start from the center of the cut and work outward, pulling the edges gently together. Watch the wound daily for any signs of infection, increased redness, swelling, or discharge.
Stock up: Several boxes in different sizes and benzoin tincture (helps the strips stick much better).
Treat burns the right way to prevent lasting damage
For any burn, start with 10–20 minutes of cool running water, not ice. Then apply burn gel to cool the tissue further and reduce blistering. Cover with a non-stick dressing, never regular gauze, which rips the raw skin off when removed. Change the dressing daily and keep the wound clean. Watch for signs of infection: worsening redness, warmth, pus, or fever in the injured person.
Stock up on: 6 burn gel packets, 2 boxes of non-stick dressings, rolled gauze, and medical tape.
Protect feet during extended walking and physical activity
If your family has to walk long distances in an emergency, blisters can quickly become a real problem, especially for kids. A blister that pops and goes untreated in unsanitary conditions can become infected. Apply moleskin at the first sign of a hot spot (redness or soreness) before a blister forms. Cut it into a donut shape to take pressure off the area. Second Skin pads cover and soothe blisters that have already formed.
Stock up on 4–6 sheets of moleskin and Second Skin blister pads.
These three cover needs that don’t fit neatly into other categories but will almost certainly come up in any extended emergency: trouble sleeping, eye problems, and fungal infections.
Helps the whole family get to sleep despite stress and disruption
Melatonin doesn’t knock you out; it gently signals to the brain that it’s time to sleep. That’s especially helpful when stress, anxiety, noise, or an unusual schedule is keeping everyone awake. Take 3 mg about 30–60 minutes before bedtime. It’s not habit-forming and is safe for most adults. Unlike Benadryl used as a sleep aid, it won’t leave you groggy if you need to wake up quickly for an emergency. I have tried Melatonin, but it doesn’t seem to work for Mark or me. I use Benadryl every night (I know it’s not good), but I would never go to sleep. My mind never stops going, literally.
Stock up: 300 tablets of 3 mg.
Keep eyes comfortable and treat pinkeye at home
Dust, smoke, and poor hygiene make eye irritation and pinkeye (conjunctivitis) very common in crowded emergency settings, and they spread quickly among family members. Artificial tears soothe irritated, dry eyes. Polytrim antibiotic eye drops treat bacterial pinkeye; look for thick discharge and eyelids crusted shut in the morning. Use 1–2 drops 4 times daily for 5–7 days. Viral pinkeye usually resolves on its own within 1–2 weeks. Pink eye is the worst. I really wish I could get something to stock at home.
Stock up: 4 bottles of artificial tears + 2 bottles of Polytrim.
Treats athlete’s foot, ringworm, jock itch, and yeast infections
Fungal infections love warm, moist, cramped conditions, exactly what emergency living looks like. Athlete’s foot, ringworm, and jock itch are all caused by the same type of fungus and are treated with the same cream. Apply twice daily to clean, dry skin for at least 2 full weeks, even after it appears to have gone. Stopping early almost always causes it to come back. Keep your feet dry and change socks daily as your best prevention.
Stock up on: 4 tubes of clotrimazole cream, antifungal foot powder for prevention, and Monistat-7 if relevant for your household.
Store your medications somewhere cool and dry, not in the bathroom, where heat and humidity from showers shorten shelf life. A bedroom closet or a dedicated storage bin works well. Most tablets and capsules remain effective for years beyond their expiration dates when stored properly.
35 OTC Medications You Should Store
Build your stockpile gradually. Each time you buy one, buy two. Rotate older stock to the front. Write the expiration dates on a sticky note inside the lid so you always know what needs replacing soon.
Most importantly, make sure every adult in your household knows where the medications are and what they’re for. A medicine cabinet no one can navigate in the dark isn’t much help. A quick walk-through with your family now could make all the difference later. May God bless this world, Linda
The post If We Have A War: 30 OTC Medications To Stock appeared first on Food Storage Moms.