When Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England was being painted by the noted artist, Sir Peter Leley, he asked that any imperfections he had not be painted out, but rather he be portrayed "warts and all." While he coined the phrase, many people began to use this phrase worldwide. The phrase has come to mean bearing everything and not hiding things from the world.



This phrase "warts and all," was most likely inspired by a normal, common wart that Oliver Cromwell might have had. Warts are fairly common and can come in many forms and appear on various parts of the body. Plantar warts appear on the feet, genital warts appear on the genitals and other types of warts may appear on other areas of the body. While it is the job of the body's immune system to regulate the spread of these warts, there are times that the body can not handle the situation and a doctor should be seen to take care of the situation.

In treating warts and to prevent them from spreading it is recommended that the patient does not brush, comb, clip or shave the area where warts are located, and a nail clipper or nail file should not be used to pick at the warts. The patient should always wash their hands thoroughly after touching or tending to the wart. Treating warts is done in many ways. Some patients find relief by merely covering the wart with duct tape.

Other treatments are applying Salcyclic Acid, Canthradin or freezing the wart with liquid nitrogen. Doctors sometimes inject Bleomycin or Retinoids, which are derived from vitamin A. As a last resort, surgeons will resort to burning, cutting or using a laser beam to remove the warts. Those who believe in natural cures use aloe vera juice, as well as papaya juice because the papaine contained in this juice is found to be very effective on warts.

Milkweed, a common weed found growing wild in most parts of North America is found to be an effective remedy for warts. The old saying that you can treat anything by what you eat holds true even for warts. An intake of sulfur containing food like asparagus, citrus fruits, eggs, garlic and onions helps relieve and sometimes dry warts quickly and effectively.

Had Oliver Cromwell had all of today's scientific improvements to help remove warts and cure the HPV Virus, the phrase "warts and all" most likely would have never been born. This is because he would have had his warts removed and not had to worry about the unsightly blemishes. Today, unlike in Oliver Cromwell's time, there are many methods to take care of this problem and most of them are available to everyone.