Q. I read that if you soak raisins in gin it might help ease arthritis pain. I have pain in my hands and would like to try this remedy.
I am a school bus driver and we get tested all the time for drugs and alcohol. If I were to try the raisins would the alcohol show up on the Breathalyzer test? They say not to use mouthwash 30 minutes before the test for it will show up. I am afraid that I could lose my job if gin-soaked raisins triggered the alcohol reading on one of my tests.
A. We have had the raisins analyzed and there is only one drop of alcohol in the daily dose of nine raisins. Nevertheless, your concern is justified.
Back in 1995 a North Carolina sheriff got into trouble because of the gin-soaked raisin remedy. According to the Hendersonville (NC) Times-News, “Madison County Sheriff Dedrick Brown was stopped for suspicion of drunken driving…but the charge was thrown out by a magistrate when his Breathalyzer test was lower than the threshold to be considered legally impaired.
“The sheriff had a blood alcohol content of .07 percent, just under the state limit of .08 percent…Brown said he took a home remedy mix of white raisins and gin about 15 minutes before he was stopped. Brown said he was returning from a car auction in Henderson County. The sheriff normally chews tobacco to keep awake when driving…He couldn't find any tobacco in his car that night so he said he instead had about three mouthfuls of the raisins soaked in gin. Brown said he had been using the mixture lately for his arthritic knees.”
We are sending you our Guide to Alternatives for Arthritis, which tells about the gin-soaked raisins and offers other approaches, including a grape juice-apple juice-apple cider vinegar concoction.
