As I pointed out in a recent post about olive oil, many foods have a wide variety of applications that fall beyond simply filling up our bellies. This is certainly the case with the potato, which is, as the Men's Health article from which this information was sourced suggests, a utility player.

Here are five less common uses the folks at Men's Health mention for this super spud:

1. Heal Injuries. Wrap a cold potato with plastic wrap to make an effective compress. A raw potato will help reduce the swelling around cuts and bruises.

2. Soothe Eczema. Cube and then lightly boil a potato. Next, fold it into a thick gauze and apply it to the affected area. The warm potato poultice can relieve inflammation in some cases.

3. Fight Heartburn. Drop an uncooked, white potato through a juicer and get ready for an awful tasting drink but an effective method of reducing heartburn. Drink a half a cup after dinner for best results.



4. Rescue Recipes. If you're making a sauce or stew and you've accidentally put more salt in it than the Dead Sea, put a raw potato in and let it simmer for 10 minutes. The salt will bind to the potato, hopefully making the meal more edible.

5. Screen Cleaning. Create more of a slick surface on your windscreens by rubbing a cut potato over the surface. Water will bead and run off with greater ease, cutting down on the amount of time you spend cleaning off dirt and grime.