Ear Infection and an Onion

My friend, Amanda, took her daughter to the doctor because she suspected her daughter had an ear infection.  The doctor confirmed that the daughter had an ear infection and my friend expected to get a prescription for an antibiotic.  The doctor said no, the thing to do is cut an onion in half, microwave it and then put it on the infected ear.  Amanda was shocked but mentioned that probably her daughter's ear infection was partly a result of her allergy-caused congestion and maybe she should give her some anti-congestion medicine.  The doctor said "Oh no", heat up some sea salt and put it in her nostrils to clear up the congestion.  Okay. 

Amanda, called her husband at work and told him this story.  He told his coworkers that his daughter had an ear infection and they said "Did you put an onion on her ear?  That always works."

Amanda looked up onion and ear infection online and found out that naturopaths in the US do recommend heating an onion, sqeezing out the juice and mixing it with a little olive oil and then putting the warm solution in the ear.  She tried it and it seemed to relieve her daughter's pain.  I must say I prefer saline solution to sea salt in the nose and onion juice with olive oil to putting a warm onion right on the ear.