Recipe for Natural Heating Pads

Heating pads are an essential part of natural healing. Whether you're nursing an injury, soothing menstrual cramps or even warming your feet on a chilly night, heating pads are a welcome solution. Natural heating pads are an easy-to-make, fragrant alternative to electric heating pads or a hot water bottle.

Choose a Heating Pad Vessel

• Any container made of 100 percent cotton will work as a heating pad vessel. If you have a sewing machine, you can use something as large as a pillow case as a heating pad, and stitch the opening closed after you've finished it. If you don't have a sewing machine or needle and thread, consider making a smaller heating pad out of a sock. You can tie the opening in a knot when you're finished with the recipe, or use a stick-on Velcro, available in any craft store.

Choose a Grain

• Select a grain for your heating pad. The most commonly used grain for natural heating pads is uncooked rice. The grains retain heat well and they're inexpensive to purchase in bulk, making it easy and cheap to refill your natural heating pad as needed. White or brown rice is equally useful. You will fill your heating pad vessel between half and two-thirds of the way with rice, so keep this in mind when purchasing rice in the supermarket. If you prefer to use a grain other than rice, any hulled grain will do.

Choose a Scent

• One of the best parts of making your own natural heating pad is choosing a scent for it. One of the most common scents people mix in with the rice is lavender. It is believed that the scent of lavender is a natural soother and relaxant. Rosemary, cloves and marjoram are other common herbs and spices that one could mix into a heating pad. For every cup of rice used, mix in half a teaspoon of the dried herb, spice or flower of your choosing.

Seal and Use

• Add all the rice and scents to your cotton heating pad container, and close up the open end with a sewing machine, needle and thread, Velcro or a tight knot. The natural heating pad is now ready to use, so put it in the microwave on high for one to three minutes, and use.

Caution

• Just like anything that gets overheated in a microwave, your natural heating pad can get too hot for comfort. Test the heating pad carefully when you take it out of the microwave. If it's too hot, give it a couple of minutes to cool off before using it, especially on bare skin.