The red (sometimes orangey) sap from this natural mosquito repellant has been useful in many ways. Some Native American tribes mixed bloodroot sap with animal fat and used it as face paint. It was also used to dye clothing, wool and baskets. Some people have used this to stain wooden furniture.

The rhizomes contain alkaloids that are responsible for many medicinal properties. Although bloodroot has been used to treat ulcers, ringworm, skin cancer, cramps, vomiting, coughs and sore throats this is something that only a health professional should use when treating a person. Some people have made a paste with the sap and some water and use it every day for thirty days to eliminate warts and moles. It has also been used for decades to repel insects.

This natural mosquito repellant worked wonders for my family last night when we were in the bush collecting fiddleheads. The mosquitoes were out in full force so we decided to test the power of this plant by rubbing the red sap on our skin – mosquitoes buzzed around us, but they never landed. We were thrilled to experience that the bloodroot worked for us. NEVER use this on your skin unless you have tested it first to ensure you do not have any allergic reaction. Some people find that contact with bloodroot causes skin irritation similar to poison ivy. Always test a small area first!

Bloodroot is a beautiful plant that has one single flower that has eight to twelve petals and a bright yellow center.

Be sure to take note that this is NOT an edible plant.

I was totally thrilled to find stinging nettle on a recent hike but they were too small to take – but at least I feel reassured that I have a local supply to replace last year’s harvest stored in mason jars.  So, away I went exploring a brand new soup.

I had some fresh-picked dandelions and decided to use these. Another great ingredient in this soup is dulce. I was fortunate to have a fabulous vacation last summer on Canada’s east coast and while there discovered the amazing health benefits of dulce.  I bought several bags of it and dehydrated it. Dulce can be purchased in most health food stores.

My eyes went from jar-to-jar trying to decide what else to toss into this soup and I decided on red clover flowers for two reasons. Number one – they added colour; and second there is no shortage of nutrients in these as well as health benefits. Although whole in my jars, I rubbed them together between my hands to make them almost powder-like.

What I came up with was a nutrient-filled, healthy soup… and it tasted too much like it as well. I refused to add more salt so when all else fails, add cayenne pepper. Mine is relatively hot coming in at 90,000 Scoville heat units, more than enough to be exceedingly good for the blood flow and heart health! So, when something I make is “good for me” and tastes on the bland side, I heat it up.

While the leek and nettle soup was simmering, I made zucchini bread with buckwheat flour and organic can sugar… and with this soup, it was an amazing lunch!

Some people consider dandelions a weed, yet categorically dandelions are no more a weed than grass. Many corporations have influenced and convinced us over several decades that our lawns must look lush and green, yet this is an ongoing losing battle. The cost of this battle has been polluted groundwater and the use of these chemical sprays has been linked to ill-health effects. Fighting for a perfect lawn is stress that is guaranteed year-after-year.

The long and short of grass is that the roots are very shallow; therefore they are unable to grow deep to where the abundance of water and nutrients are.  All other weeds have long roots; therefore they remain green, many even through a drought.  Fighting the mighty dandelion takes time, energy and for some money (employing companies that eradicate weeds).

If you can’t beat them – eat them. So long as your lawn has not been poisoned by chemicals, pick your dandelions – and use them. After all, they are free food and collecting them is a great form of exercise not to mention getting fresh air!

Dandelion flowers are not just a source of food; they are known to have medicinal properties. These pretty flowers are an excellent source of lecithin, a nutrient that elevates the brain’s acetylcholine, a substance that helps maintain brain function and may play a role in slowing or even stopping the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Lecithin helps the body maintain good liver function, so there is no surprise that dandelion is widely recommended by herbalists and naturopathic physicians for liver detoxification. In addition, in a report written to the French Academy of Medicine in 1956, Dr. Remy Chauvin discovered that the dandelion’s pollen had antibacterial effects (helps to prevent boils, skin infections, tuberculosis, edema and promotes blood circulation).

Are you now convinced that these “pesky” weeds are nature’s way of saying – free nutritious food for the taking?

If so – the culinary world becomes a creative world to enjoy! Here is one recipe that will allow you to enjoy an all-time favourite baked good that is loaded with nutrition: Dandelion Banana Bread (or Muffins) Recipe.

Those beautiful forsythia ornamental bushes are not just another bush. The brilliant yellow forsythia bush can grow to 3 metres (10’) tall and can get as wide as 3.5 metres (12’). The flowers have four lobes and appear mostly in clusters of two to six. Forsythia bark is yellowish brown in colour and has raised lenticels (bumps).

Forsythia (Forsythia intermedia) was named after the British royal gardener William Forsyth (1737-1804) who brought the forsythia to England from China.

The most common components in Chinese herbal formulas for treating the common cold, influenza, and allergies is the forsythia fruit. With at least three thousand years of use and documentation, it is traditionally considered a detoxicant for treating so-called “toxic” and “hot” conditions. These conditions correlate with modern inflammatory and infectious diseases, including viral and bacterial infections, as well as allergies. The properties and uses of forsythia fruit now appear to have considerable scientific support.

Forsythia Properties

Forsythia fruit is used in Chinese medications as it contains several properties. It is a proven diuretic; skin tonic; emmenagogue (herbs which stimulate blood flow in the pelvic area and uterus); antiscrofulous (Scrofula is a tuberculous infection of the skin on the neck); febrifuge (reduces fever); and it is a vermifuge (expels intestinal worms).

It is most commonly used in Chinese medicine for colds, bronchitis, strep throat and it clears the body of toxic heat (sore throats, fever, chills, chronic skin eruptions, acne or dermatitis.

Extracts of forsythia fruit are now used in numerous types of cosmetic products, including hair care (e.g., hair growth liniments and antidandruff shampoos), skin care (e.g., acne cream) and foot care (e.g., athlete’s foot) products for their antimicrobial and traditional detoxifying properties.

How to Use Forsythia Flowers

These beautiful flowers can be steamed and dried, used in decoctions and infusions, and made as a tea. In addition, tossing a few of these springtime beauties on a salad will impress any guest.

If you collect 750 ml (three cups) of these flowers, you can transform them into syrup! Here is an easy recipe for forsythia syrup.

The forsythia, another reason for us all to enjoy springtime foraging! So next time you’re out there pruning the forsythia bush, save the flowers – you’ll be glad you did!

The March 31, 2012 story makes this edible plant sound like a wanted suspect. “DNR plant specialists say people should especially keep an eye out for garlic mustard, a plant that smells like garlic and has four small white petals. The plant can completely take over entire forest floors, displacing trilliums and other wildflowers.” So, the obvious solution to this is for all of us to get out there are start gathering!

Garlic mustard greens are very nutritious as they have substantial amounts of vitamins A, C, E and some of the B vitamins. In addition this wild weed contains potassium, calcium, magnesium, selenium, copper, iron and manganese as well as omega-3 fatty acids.

Alliaria petiolata (garlic mustard) has European ‘roots’ and was inevitably introduced to the U.S. by early settlers. It was used as a vegetable for its high vitamin A and C content.  This garlic-flavored plant was widely used in cooking, and was also used to prevent erosion.  This versatile wild edible was once used for medicinal purposes, treating gangrene and ulcers.

Check out the health benefits from eating this amazing wild edible:

• Excellent for controlling weight
• Improves the health of your heart
• Lowers cholesterol
• Thins the blood
• May help prevent cancer
• Strengthens the immune system

The flowers (will not appear until late May depending where you live), leaves, roots and seeds (these appear in autumn) are all edible. Leaves in any season can be eaten but once the weather gets hot, the leaves will taste bitter. Flowers can be chopped and tossed into salads. The roots can be collected in early spring and again in late fall, when no flower stalks are present.

First year growth and new spring leaves are basal and have a somewhat scalloped edge. Once the stalk grows, the leaves tend to become smaller, triangular in shape and you know for sure it is garlic mustard when you detect the scent of garlic when crushing a leaf.

Make the garlic mustard on your most wanted list! Here are some creative ideas to use this nutritious plant:

• Toss some into a batch of mashed potatoes
• Put some in any salad you enjoy
• Add to stews or soups
• Finely chop some garlic mustard, grate a carrot and add both to your favourite gelatin
• Add some finely chopped leaves to quinoa or another favourite grain
• Fill a glass jar with leaves and add organic apple cider vinegar; seal with a non-metal lid and let sit for 4-6 weeks to make a vinaigrette (let sit in an area in which there is no direct sunlight)

Be sure to check out the Garlic Mustard dip recipe!

So let’s end off by taking that DNR quote and make it sound positive! Be sure to keep an eye out for garlic mustard, full of vitamin A and C and other nutrients. It smells like garlic and can turn your culinary delights into nutritious culinary experiences! Be warned though – your health will thank-you!

Many items are approved by government agencies, yet whether these items act alone or synergistically with other chemical additives in foods, something is seriously wrong. If everything on the market is totally safe for human consumption, why are 2 out 3 cancers food-related? In addition, why is it that we (especially in Canada and the U.S.) have a pandemic of poor nutrition?

Every day, far too many people are either under-the-weather, fatigued, are ill, or have serious health issues. Obesity is a serious problem.  If all the food additives and preservatives are legal to use then why are so many people always ill?

We have a serious problem – nutritionally-depleted foods are sold on grocery store shelves, foods that are irradiated, and foods full of chemical additives and preservatives; simply stated, we are not getting the food nutrition our bodies need.  And if we are getting nutrient-rich produce some of that goodness is offset with the pesticides used while being grown – or it may be genetically modified. Eating nutrient-rich produce grown with chemical pesticides puts our body into a serious battle for wellness or for illness. For those who are barely winning the battle for wellness, if they have lifestyle choices that include smoking or drinking alcohol, then they are furthering the cause for illness.

There are really no surprises why so many people suffer from countless ailments. Food – rather the lack of food nutrition is the root cause of far too many health ailments according to many professionals. Never before has it become so crucial to learn how to win this battle for wellness.

Adding wild edibles to your daily meals will certainly help boost your body’s battle for wellness. Even if consumed as a tea, wild edibles not only provide nutrients, many are immune boosters.

Education is so important. If you do not know where to begin, watching FOODMATTERS^® is a fabulous start. From FOODMATTERS^®:

FOODMATTERS^® is a hard hitting, fast paced look at our current state of health. Despite the billions of dollars of funding and research into new so-called cures we continue to suffer from a raft of chronic ills and every day maladies.

This groundbreaking documentary sets about uncovering the trillion dollar worldwide ‘Sickness Industry’ and exposes a growing body of scientific evidence proving that nutritional therapy can be more effective, more economical, less harmful and less invasive than most conventional medical treatments.

FOODMATTERS^® features interviews with leading medical experts from around the world who discuss natural approaches to preventing and reversing Cancer, Obesity, Heart Disease, Depression, Mental Illness and many other chronic conditions.

Find out what works, what doesn’t and what’s killing you.  Becoming informed about the choices you have for you and your family’s health could save your life.

If you are in the York Region area, on Sunday, March 25, 2012 at 1:30 p.m. EdibleWildFood.com presents a public screening of this fact-filled, 80 minute documentary.  The screening is being held at:

Newmarket Public Library
438 Park Avenue
Newmarket

An admission fee of $2.50 is required to help offset the cost of the venue rental. Copies of Free Food from Foraging will be available for $4. Free Food from Foraging is an information–packed 20-page book that addresses soil nutrients, pesticide use, buyer-beware when it comes to vitamins (some contain aspartame), food miles, foraging  and so much more.

If you are unable to join us for this screening, be sure to go to FOODMATTERS^® and purchase your copy.

If you have any questions, please email Karen at k.stephenson@ediblewildfood.com.

Two out of three cancers are linked to diet. There are more “food-like” choices available, yet less real food in terms of nutrition. There is a zeitgeist that organic food is the way to go for real nutrition – organic food one generation ago was simply called food.

It isn’t just food choices that have changed; there’s been a massive advertising scheme that is wrong on all accounts. Have you ever looked at the “vitamin enriched blueberry bagels” offered by some advertisers? Sounds pretty good doesn’t it? Read the ingredients – there are no blueberries in many “blueberry products” such as muffins, waffles or bagels. What they do contain is something called “blueberry bits” – this is actually a legal name for a man-made product that consists of nothing more than chemicals – there are no blueberries. The food industry is hard at work making us feel full – full of food-like products that contribute to poor nutrition and in some cases, cancer.

Free Food from Foraging takes the reader into an in-depth look at the food “system” and how to improve on daily nutrition intake by simply looking at the ground they walk on. In addition, this 5×7 book contains valuable information that will help the reader make some life-altering food choices including information about:

• Soil nutrients
• How to identify your soil type for gardening by looking at what weeds grow in your garden
• Vitamins – buyer beware
• Vitamins and Supplements May Be Banned?
• Food Prices Rising
• Food Miles

Free Food from Foraging also looks at one of the main reasons why our weather is changing; the Arctic ice is melting and there is no going back – nuclear detonations and radiation dumping in the Arctic Circle has caused massive changes and this is why weather patterns are changing. This is important information to have because it will affect what foods can be grown where.

Information is shock resistance and although Free Food from Foraging is only twenty pages – they are packed with valuable information that can help better your nutrition intake.

Free Food from Foraging is only $4 and is available at EdibleWildFood.com. Once you know what to look for, free food is out there – all you have to do is go get it!

Nutrition from fresh produce is vital to help all our body systems work at maximum capacity. However, if you’re purchasing “fresh” produce from a grocery store, how fresh do you think it really is?

In celebration of Nutrition Month, two grocery chains in Brampton, Ontario, are offering customers a chance to walk through their grocery aisles with a registered dietitian. This is truly wonderful for public relations, but I wonder if these dietitians are telling customers the truth about the ‘fresh’ produce – or if they even are aware themselves about just how nutrient-deficient produce is nowadays.

When produce arrives from (let’s say) California to the US northeast or into Canada, chances are it is at least one week old. Produce loses nutrients as soon as it is picked. Also, unless certified organic, chances are it is laced with pesticides, fungicides and it has been irradiated. Irradiation means your fresh produce has had vitamins and vital enzymes removed; how much? This depends on the dose of irradiation and the length of time in storage.

Irradiation damages the natural digestive enzymes found in raw foods. This means our body has to work much harder to digest that food. Irradiated raw foods look like fresh foods, but nutritionally they are like cooked foods, having decreased vitamins and enzymes. The F.D.A. allows these foods to be labeled “fresh”.

In addition to this, many vegetables are grown in nutrient-depleted soils; this means it can only grow nutrient-depleted vegetables.

Nutrition levels in edible wild plants are by far more superior than in just about most of what you can buy in a standard grocery store. Eating wild edibles, organic produce and locally-grown vegetables are important. In addition, growing your own garden is fun. Don’t have much space? No worries! Google or YouTube “vertical gardening” and the brilliant ideas will ignite your creativity! (This space saving link I discovered today and this is certainly an amazing idea!)

Most importantly, eating as much uncooked produce as possible every day – and remember, cooking further depletes nutrients.

There are so many other reasons why to consider complimenting your daily diet with wild plants. Free Food from Foraging delves into these reasons and these may or may not shock you.

Free Food from Foraging is only $3.99 at Amazon. You can also order a PDF or hardcopy at EdibleWildFood.com.

This blog article is written by Lorraine Crowston.

I was first introduced to the idea of sumac jelly through my sister Louise, a plant biologist. She and I would often walk through the local and not so local woods and Louise would often point out local edible plants. My first exposure to her doing this was when she showed me wild ginger. However, she only pointed it out and mentioned that the roots were quite small but the plant still smelled like the ginger roots we find in our grocery stores.

We were camping in New Brunswick in early spring when she excitedly cried “Fiddleheads!” and proceeded to pick some and nibble on them. My first thought? “Oh my God! She’s eating something that she has picked from the ground. I may have to drive her to the hospital.” I was wrong about having to drive her to the hospital. That evening we had sautéed fiddleheads with our steak dinner cooked over an open fire. I discovered that fiddleheads are delicious and I look forward to fiddlehead season every spring.

After a few more similar situations, delicate mushrooms growing in my other sister’s backyard – really outstanding with Hollandaise sauce – I certainly didn’t hesitate to try the sumac jelly she made. She explained the recipe. I tried it. Then I modified it by adding some spices with this recipe as a result. I hope you enjoy it.

Sumac Jelly:

• One plastic shopping bag’s worth of sumac “heads”
• 3 cups water
• 1 box Certo crystals
• 4 cups sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon cardamom (optional)

Recipe Instructions:

1. Pick and wash the sumac. I pick the sumac “heads” or tips when they are fairly deep red – usually early to mid-August.
2. Hold the sumac by the stem, and use a fork to comb out the red fruit into a large bowl. Remove as much of these as possible. The stems can go into the compost bin.
3. Cover the fruit with water and let stand overnight. Place a plate or large flat object to make sure the sumac is covered with water, otherwise they fruit floats on the surface.
4. With a strainer, lift out the sumac berries. Press out excess water using the bottom of a glass, cup or the back of a spoon. The berries can go into the compost.
5. Strain the liquid through a piece of fine 100% cotton. Check that the liquid is clear and without spices or berry pieces. Strain the liquid again if there are still impurities.
6. Measure 3 cups of strained infusion into a large pot.
7. Add the sugar and lemon juice and bring to full rolling boil on high heat.
8. Boil for 1 minute stirring constantly.
   Remove from heat. Immediately stir in pectin. Stir and skim foam for 5 minutes.
9. Pour immediately into warm sterilized jars, filling to within 1/4 inch / 6 mm from the rim.
10. Seal while hot with sterilized two-piece lids with new centres. Do not over-tighten.
11. Leave at room temperature until set.

About Lorraine Crowston:

Lorraine Crowston is a graduate of George Brown College – Culinary Management program where she learned the intricacies of classical French cuisine. After working in hospitality for several years she returned to school and took the Information Technology Professional program at Lambton College. She worked for over 10 years in Information Technology as a trainer and manager.

Her passion is teaching in its many forms and she is now pursuing a Bachelor in Adult Education. It is because of this passion and her food background that Lorraine launched an on-line magazine Eating Evolution where there are great recipes that are easy to make and are matched to medical conditions. From her work on this magazine, she then went on to publish her first e-cookbook – 7 Dinners for Busy Moms and Dads available at http://www.smashwords.com. Her next cookbook venture will continue on the theme of 7s.

If you haven’t signed up for the free newsletter yet here is a sneak peak at what you are missing out on:

February is Heart & Stroke Month – There are some edible weeds that contain the vitamins and minerals your heart needs to stay healthy and you’ll discover what they are when you subscribe.

Keeping your skin healthy using an exfoliation recipe that is so simple it can actually help reduce the signs of premature aging. In addition, this recipe leaves your skin feeling better than probably most anything you can spend a fortune on in the stores and it uses only two simple ingredients.

And of course being Heart Month, the “Weed of the Month” is purslane! Purslane contains a very high content of Omega-3 fatty acids and this helps to keep your heart healthy!

It’s never too late to sign up. Click here, fill in the form and you’re done!
Nutrition – Nature’s Way, yours to discover!

Why not capture all the amazing nutrients your tree has to offer? Yes, you can eat or drink your tree and your health will benefit from it!

Nutrients in Coniferous Trees

Pine needles are loaded with vitamins A and C, and it doesn’t end there. The vitamin C levels are so high (on average 5 times greater than lemons) who needs oranges! We’ve all heard about the power of resveratrol – pine needles have it! They also have quercetin, flavonoids, tannins, pine oils, anthocyanins, proanthocyanin and much more.

• Vitamin C and proanthocyanin are considered to be important in preventing cancer.
• Pine oils, according to Russian studies, is useful to control the weight, lower cholesterol and in lowering the blood pressure.
• Proanthocyanin and resveratrol are potent anti-aging compounds.

Making Coniferous Teas

It was once believed that vitamin C will be destroyed if extracted into boiling water – this is not true. Vitamin C boils at over 500 degrees centigrade and this is a temperature that cannot be reached from boiling water on the stove or in a kettle – therefore you will benefit from all that vitamin C!

Fir, Pine or Spruce Tree Powder

Take the dried needles and powder them in your blender. Store the final product in a mason jar. Use this powder to add a lemony taste (yes, there is a lemon-taste to these) to your cooking – fish, chicken, and even in some of your desserts! To make tea, use one teaspoon of powder per cup of boiling water and infuse twenty minutes.

Infused Oil

Place some needles into a mason jar one quarter full; add olive oil until all the needles are covered. Let infuse for 3 weeks (out of direct sunlight), then strain.  You can use this to make salad dressings or to cook with.

Balsamic Vinegar

Fill a mason jar with (preferably) white pine needles. Douglas fir, balsam pine or spruce will work as well.  Fill the jar with apple cider vinegar and let infuse minimum six weeks in a dark location.  Strain and decant. (Important – do NOT use a metal lid from the mason jar as the vinegar can cause it to corrode. Use plastic wrap or a sandwich baggie to seal the jar.)

Pine Needle Syrup

Fill a mason jar with finely cut up organic lemon with the peel and pine needles.  Pour honey into the mason jar until the jar is filled.  Cover and let sit for 3 weeks.  Strain and decant.  This is am amazing syrup which can be used as a beverage, poured over ice cream and it tastes great. Some people use this as a cough syrup due to the healing power in honey and the high content of vitamin C in the pine needles.

Let’s Not Forget About Cedar

Take a fresh sprig of cedar and place it in your mug – add water and let infuse twenty minutes. Cedar can also be dried and powdered and stored to be used for tea.

Still thinking about tossing your Christmas tree to the curb?

Many people are approaching 2012 with some apprehension as there is no shortage of evidence that the world as we know it, is about to see some drastic changes. There are a plethora of predictions from another false flag attack on the U.S. to aliens making their appearance at the Olympics in London – and everything else in between.  Regardless of what you may feel is coming up in 2012 there are several things to keep in mind that are most important.

1. As Scott Owen from Believers Underground always says, “Be maximum for love.” Helping one another and loving one not only makes this world a better place, it actually reduces stress.
2. Another quote from Scott is, “Information is shock resistance.” Whatever is going to happen in 2012 is going to happen and many events will occur no matter who ‘Occupys’ what. Some protests will help to make changes, but some will not.
3. Lord Robert Baden-Powell (1857-1941), best known as the father of the Boy Scouts coined the motto “Be prepared” in 1907. Being prepared means different things to different people, but given the political times we are living in, EdibleWildFood feels this means to have minimum two weeks emergency supplies (food, water, toilet paper, first aid supplies, source of heat if living in colder climates, etc.), and in the growing season, know what you can eat in the wild.

Lord Baden-Powell once stated, “The wonder to me of all wonders is how some teachers have neglected nature study,” and this included eating wild food, or as some will state, weeds.

2011 was an amazing year for me as I have learned so much, and not just from reading books or researching on the Internet, but also from many of you. Sharing knowledge is important and it is my hope that what I have learned has helped others.

There are many exciting things happening in 2012 for EdibleWildFood, including attending festivals, conducting workshops and hitting the great outdoors to teach others how to forage and wildcraft. Those who take the time to learn about what is out there to eat will not only benefit from nutrition that by far exceeds what most grocery stores sell, but they will have great health.

The wisest physician that ever walked our planet once stated, “Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food.” Hippocrates (460 BC -370 BC), had it right.

Thank-you everyone for your amazing support – May you all have a safe, happy and healthy 2012. Peace to all.

Between 1339 and 1351, a pandemic known as the Bubonic Plague or the Black Death traveled from China to Europe killing one third of the world’s population. In Marseilles, France, four individuals took advantage of the Black Death and ransacked homes of those who lost their life to the plague. These four men stole many possessions from the deceased and got away with their crime for quite some time.

Eventually police caught up with the thieves and they were brought in front of French judges. In the body of the court, the judges expressed bewilderment. They asked the thieves how is it they went into so many plague-infested homes and did not take ill. The reply was simple – throughout the day, every day, the thieves drank and washed with special vinegar.

The judges were in awe and made a deal – in return for the recipe of this vinegar, they could have their freedom. This was a deal the thieves could not pass on so they accepted.

There is some controversy as to what the original recipe is but many experts believe that the Vinegar of the Four Thieves is the original. Over the years, this antibacterial and aromatic vinegar was used for washing sinks, walls, bathrooms, and so on, to help sterilize a home in which the flu bug exists. Original recipe or not, many people seem to feel this is a great remedy – and house cleaner.

Externally this vinegar has been used in small proportions in a bath or diluted as a body wash. The reason it is diluted is because the combination of herbs is powerful for most people’s skin. Internally, those with a cold or flu take one teaspoon diluted in a cup of water, never exceeding three teaspoons in one hour.  If anyone nowadays wants to try this, it is strongly recommended that they speak to a health practitioner before self-medicating.

And there you have it! A very interesting piece of history that just might cure the common cold and keep away flu!

Last night I spent over two hours listening to Dr. Cass Ingram at a local venue. His knowledge of what is going on in the world politically, especially as it pertains to our health, is right on the mark. He started off the evening by stating, “It’s almost abnormal to be FULLY healthy and to feel good.”

He shared a lot of information including that the #1 cause of death in Canada and the United States is modern medicine. There is no debate that modern medicine has saved countless lives, but it is also taking lives. This includes prescription drugs (even when taken according to directions), drugs prescribed incorrectly, incorrect drugs used in hospitals, errors made in surgery, over-the-counter medications and sample drugs often given to patients in the doctor’s office. Combine the deaths of all these sources and there are well over 1 million people losing their life every year.

Dr. Ingram stated that some top officials in the pharmaceutical industry refer to their vaccines as being nothing more than “the bargain basement of healthcare.”  He says that fortunately, many people have become aware about the heavy metals added into vaccines, but what many are not aware of is that they are “teeming with germs” and contain aspartame.

There is no denying that the industrialization of western food keeps a steady stream of patients in hospitals and at medical clinics every day. Dr. Ingram spoke about food and that we must be diligent about being very careful about what we eat, and the sources of which our food choices come from.

Dr. Cass Ingram spoke in length about the amazing health benefits and healing abilities that are in oil of oregano and chaga. Before running out and buying any type of oil of oregano, be sure you read the label on this as well – not all natural health care products are the same. There have been some recent studies in which many mainstream vitamins contain petrochemicals and coal tar. You may appear to be healthier – but your life is being shortened. He stressed that anyone taking supplements needs to be vigilant in finding out if the vitamins and minerals being taken are 100% food grade. (On a side note, some of Shopper Drug Mart’s Life Brand vitamins contain food colouring that has been proven to cause illness and ADHD in many children and adults.)

Chaga is truly a super-nutrient. The human body must have a healthy PH level otherwise it can succumb to disease and part of maintaining a healthy PH is to ensure you have a lot of oxygen in every cell of your body. Water ionizers can add oxygen to water and there is O2 water that can be purchased in health food stores – and there is chaga. Here are some fast facts about chaga:

• It supplies an extremely rare and powerful enzyme that is oxygen-rich, superoxide dismustase (SOD)
• SOD halts the toxicity of free radicals
• Chaga supports the healthy function of all glands
• It also supports energy mechanisms in all our organs

Dr. Cass Ingram has a great video on YouTube that tells you where to find chaga.  Chaga, along with wild edibles is surely the best way to take your health into your own hands.

So many credible books on native North American flora often share the same story about Joe Pye yet seldom provide sourced information. Was Joe Pye a real person and if so, who was he?

Many websites and books refer to Joe Pye as being a Native medicine man from Salem, Massachusetts who earned his fame from curing colonial settlers of typhus using his eponymous healing herb. Some sources state that Joe Pye was a phonetic translation of jopi or jopai.

The first known use of the term Joe Pye as a common name for a plant was in 1818.  Joe Pye appeared in Manual of Botany, for the Northern and Middle States of America: 2nd edition, a widely distributed publication authored by the famous New England geologist and botanist, Amos Eaton.

Eaton directly stated that Joe Pye is taken from the “name of an Indian,” not a white man posing as one.  He understood that the use of the plant was that of a diaphoretic (sweat inducer) in western Massachusetts—not in Salem on the eastern seaboard as the Joe Pye legend of today states.

In the Manual of Botany, Eaton wrote that President Zephaniah Swift Moore of Williams College used an herbal tea made from one or both of the Eupatorium species listed by Eaton to treat his own fever. Moore was president of the college from 1815 to 1821.  In 1817, Amos Eaton delivered a series of lectures there on botany and geology. Likely, it was during this time that Eaton learned of Moore’s success in treating fever with the liberal use of Joe Pye weed.

Before Eaton’s Manual of Botany, and for a time afterward, the popular names for Empatorium purpureum were Trumpet Weed, Gravel Root, Gravelweed, Purple Boneset, Purple Thoroughwort, and Queen of the Meadow. Today these names are rarely in use and Joe Pye has become the preferred common term.

There’s so much more information about the legend behind the name of Joe Pye weed. If you’re interested in learning more, then please visit the Prairie Works article entitled Joe Pye – The Name Behind the Legend.

As an aromatherapist, I have a natural affiliation with plants and the variety of benefits that they can give us.  Although you might be familiar with several plants as food sources, you might not necessarily be as familiar with the benefits that those same plants can have, when used externally.

Vegetable Oils in Aromatherapy

Plants can be used in a variety of ways for therapeutic purposes, such as herbal medicine, homeopathy and aromatherapy.  In aromatherapy, essential oils are usually the most familiar extract associated with plants; essential oils are extracted from the leaves, roots, flowers, grasses and seeds of plants and used for the therapeutic benefit of many health problems.  However, vegetable oils, which are often used as a medium for essential oils in aromatherapy, have therapeutic benefits too.  And those vegetable oils which you use in the kitchen are often extracted from the same plants that can be used in aromatherapy too – albeit in a slightly different format.

Types of Vegetable Oils

The following list gives examples of some of the plants that are used as a vegetable oil both in the kitchen and in aromatherapy:

• avocado (Persea gratissima)
• borage (Borago officinalis)
• calendula (Calendula officinalis)
• grapeseed (Vitis vinifera)
• olive (Olea europaea)
• peanut (Arachis hypogaea)
• sunflower (Helianthus annuus)
• sesame (Sesamum indicum)

The Difference Between a Culinary Vegetable Oil and an Aromatherapy Vegetable Oil

Although you might be tempted to use the vegetable oil that you have in your kitchen cupboard in aromatherapy too, it is not advisable to do so!  Vegetable oils are processed differently depending on what they are going to be used for.  Culinary vegetable oils are usually cheaper to buy than aromatherapy vegetable oils (although there are different grades of culinary vegetable oils too, for example extra virgin vs. virgin olive oil).

In general, vegetable oils that are used for culinary purposes have been highly refined whereas good quality vegetable oils that are used for therapeutic aromatherapy purposes need to be unrefined.  This means that you should choose cold pressed vegetable oils for the best vegetable oils for therapeutic purposes because they have not been subjected to high temperatures (which removes some of the therapeutic value).  In addition, you can buy culinary vegetable oils in a general store whereas you can only buy therapeutic vegetable oils from a reputable aromatherapy supplier.

How to Use Vegetable Oils in Cooking and Aromatherapy

Vegetable oils are used in cooking for frying, cooking, adding flavor to food and to salads as dressing.  In aromatherapy, vegetable oils are most commonly used in massage as a “carrier” for essential oils.  Vegetable oils have therapeutic benefits in their own rights and are often good emollients for the skin.  They come in a variety of textures (light, medium, heavy) depending on the plant from which they were extracted from.  Vegetable oils do not penetrate the skin in aromatherapy massage but they enable to essential oils to enter the body through the fatty layers of the skin and they help to retain moisture in the top layers of the skin.

Therefore, you can see that there is a difference between choosing a vegetable oil for cooking and choosing a vegetable oil for aromatherapy!  Although both types of vegetable oils are extracted from plants, the same plant might produce an oil that is edible and an oil that is therapeutic.  In short, it pays to know your oil (and its intended purposes) before you buy.

References:

• Price, Len, 1999, Carrier Oils For Aromatherapy and Massage, UK: Riverhead
• Penny Price Academy of Aromatherapy, UK
• Clarke, Sue, 2008, Essential Chemistry for Aromatherapy, UK: Churchill Livingstone
• Author’s own experience and training

About Sharon Falsetto:

Sharon Falsetto is a UK certified clinical aromatherapist who founded the aromatherapy business, Sedona Aromatherapie, in 2007, located in Sedona, Arizona.  She creates custom aromatherapy blends and gifts and is in the process of writing several online aromatherapy courses. She writes her own aromatherapy blog, Aromatherapy Notes, and is a prolific writer for many magazines, blogs and websites on the subject of aromatherapy and plants.

It appears that some research indicates that like ‘greens’, the darker the grape the more power-packed with nutrition it contains. (For example, nutritionally, spinach and kale leaves iceberg lettuce far behind.) Some research indicates that dark purple, red, and black grapes could end up being better choices for colon cancer prevention than green grapes.

Nutritionally, grapes are amazing. They contain resveratrol that increases longevity, antioxidants and antioxidant phytonutrients; and wild edible grapes also contain vitamins B1, B6, C, manganese and potassium.

It’s important to remember that the grape seed and the skin contain the richest concentration of antioxidants.

Eating these small wild grapes requires re-training your taste buds because they are slightly tart. I enjoy them actually, but many people won’t share my love for these.  Good news! You can capture the goodness of these by making juice, and it is very easy.

Homemade Wild Grape Juice:

Take about 4 to 6 cups of grapes and rinse them thoroughly. Place into a large pot and add water until there is about 5 centimetres of water covering the grapes. Bring to a boil and immediately reduce heat. Simmer 30 to 45 minutes.  Remove from heat and let sit for about one to two hours. As it sits, using a masher, occasionally mash the grapes.

Strain the mixture. As it strains, keep mashing until the pulp is as dry as it can be.

Add your sweetener of choice. I purchase organic blueberry syrup to use as a sweetener and this really adds extra nutrients! When this is not possible, I use organic cane sugar.

(As an alternative, you can take some or all of the pulp and put it in a blender and add this to the juice if you don’t mind a little pulp!)

For more information about the nutrient-packed grape I suggest you read Grapes.

B 17 (also known as amydalin) was removed from the American market by the FDA, stating that is contains cyanide. Many foods naturally contain cyanide and eating these in moderation will not cause harm (unless the person ingesting that food has a food allergy). These foods include: almonds, millet sprouts, lima beans, soy, spinach and bamboo shoots.

In Foods Containing Vitamin B17, E-How quotes Dr. Janet Star, a nutritionist and alternative health physician: “According to research from years ago, provided by nutritionists and medical scientists, vitamin B17 is a natural cyanide-containing compound that gives up its cyanide content only in the presence of a particular enzyme group called beta glucosidase or glucuronidase. Miraculously, this enzyme group is found almost exclusively in cancer cells. If found elsewhere in the body, it is accompanied by greater quantities of another enzyme, rhodanese, which has the ability to disable the cyanide and convert it into completely harmless substances. Cancer tissues do not have this protecting enzyme.” In simpler words, vitamin B-17 has ability to identify and eliminate cancer cells – and only cancer cells because of an enzyme that is secreted.

G. Edward Griffin states that there is evidence that cancer is a deficiency disease that’s aggravated by the lack of an essential food compound in modern society’s diet. Griffin, is a world-renowned author and a documentary film producer. His research coincides with what is found in the diets of people who do not get cancer. Recommended reading includes These People Don’t Get Cancer. Patients and doctors alike claim that vitamin B17 is very effective in prevention, treatment and elimination of cancer. (For testimonials visit B17.com).

The food industry has enhanced taste (often artificially) to the point that our taste buds have strayed from many of the bitter foods that are in reality, are full of nutrients. B 17 is bitter to the taste and is naturally found in many foods.

There is a wild edible that contains an abundance of B17 – alfalfa. Alfalfa contains many vitamins, minerals as well as several other beneficial nutrients such as chlorophyll.

Apricot seeds are believed to contain the highest concentration of B 17 and can be purchased for consumption.

No one should run out and start eating all these items in mass quantities. When trying a new food, eating a very small quantity is advisable should there be an allergic reaction. Always seek the advice of a natural health professional before introducing anything new into your diet.

A one hour documentary by G. Edward Griffin, A World Without Cancer – The Story Of Vitamin B17, is well worth watching as it contains a lot of valuable information.

There is a lot of wisdom in the words that Hippocrates once spoke, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”

Where I live, September brought some amazing temperatures and with it plenty of new growth to take advantage of. Although I may be on borrowed time, my backyard still allows me to collect broadleaf plantain, dandelion, knotgrass, ground ivy (creeping charlie), toadflax and red clover. It was a great feeling to be outside on the first day of October collecting wild edibles to prepare for last night’s meal – and our dinner guests enjoyed every dish!

For the first time ever I have embarked on collecting roots and from what I’ve learned, autumn is the perfect time to wildcraft roots. Many First Nations people believe that autumn root collecting is best because plant energy has returned to the roots.

In addition to all the greens I collected yesterday, I dug up some chicory root. Chicory root contains vitamin C and is known to be a power antioxidant. Some health benefits include:

• Promotes optimal blood sugar levels;
• Provides soluble fibre which helps improve digestion;
• Builds resistance in the body to fight off gallstones and liver stones;
• Helps to create extra bile that aids in breaking down undesirable fats;
• Removes toxins from the urinary tract (and kidneys).

A few people have told me that mixing some ground chicory root with fresh-grated ginger and a dash of cinnamon makes a tasty tea that’s great to serve over the Christmas holidays – or anytime!

This week I’ll be wildcrafting burdock root. When digging these up I’ll be wearing a raincoat because the last thing I want to do is spend time picking burrs off my clothing.

Burdock root contains calcium, potassium, iron, copper, selenium, silicon, chromium, inulin, flavonoids, resin, mucilage and much more. It contains vitamins A, B complex, C, and E. These roots are most frequently used as a natural remedy to many ailments. Notably, burdock root contains a special type of essential oil which facilitates toxin elimination from the body. Traditionally, it was used to treat various viral diseases, like measles, tonsillitis and other respiratory problems. Nowadays the benefits of burdock root are also used for:

• Promoting healthy digestion;
• Stimulate appetite;
• Liver cleansing;
• Urinary infections;
• Skin ulcers;
• Acne.

Using burdock root is generally safe but one should avoid excessive use of it because it may have some unwanted side effects that include dry mouth. It is recommended for pregnant and breastfeeding women to refrain from using burdock root or any product that contains burdock root because of its highly active diuretic action.

(As always though, regardless of what you collect to eat, drink or use in any other form to help with a health issue, check with a qualified health professional who has knowledge with herbs before taking anything.)

So depending on where you live there’s still time to get outdoors and enjoy wildcrafting!

Canadians appear to be no better than Americans when it comes to nutrition. In October 2010, CBC News claimed that “poor eating habits and lack of exercise have been blamed for the deteriorating health of young Canadians.” So how serious is this? According to Statistics Canada’s Health Measures Survey, 17 per cent of children and young people are overweight, and another nine per cent are obese. Adolescents who are overweight have more than doubled in the past 25 years, and obesity rates tripled.

It seems that proper nutrition is not a new problem. Montreal’s The Gazette covered a story on Nov. 3 way back in 1971. In “Ten meals a day but poor nutrition,” an excerpt states: “… the U.S. food industry is doing a rotten job of advertising.” One example that speaks to this is an L.A. Times article that appeared one year prior in July 1970. In “Dry Breakfast Cereals Called Poor Nutrition Buy”, it states, “Dry breakfast cereals are a poor buy nutritionally and their true nutritional value is lost in a mass of sugar-coated claims and advertising come-ons.” Hmmm. Not much has changed over the past forty years.

Is the food industry doing a lousy job? If after four decades the same problem exists in society then I tend to believe that many areas within the food industry are failing miserably at providing bonafide, healthy food choices. I could get into how deceptive the food industry can be, but instead I recommend that you read In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan – it is a real eye opener.

So – what do we have? A food industry that causes more harm than good, food prices going up, and now a food shortage. Earlier this year CBC reported, “A “broken” food system coupled with depleting natural resources and severe climate change will more than double the price of staples such as corn in the next two decades as demand spirals, hitting poor people the hardest.” I am really upset that those on low or fixed incomes are always the ones who have to suffer the hardest. What money low or fixed income people do have is barely enough to purchase the inexpensive processed foods that are sold under the guise of being nutritious.

Enough is enough – an abundance of nutrition is out there to be had and it is free! We all have heard the saying the best things in life are free – and this includes nutrition – but there is a catch. The catch is simple – you have to be willing to learn what is out there that is edible, where to safely collect it, and how to use it. It’s that simple. The best part of all is that by being outdoors you get fresh air and exercise. If you have children, take them along to maximize quality family time.

Now I can answer the original question. Why forage? Free food, free vitamins and minerals, health benefits to help stave off illness and diseases, fresh air, exercise, quality family time – oh yes, and truly eating healthy are more than enough reasons to take your health and the health of your family into your own hands and forage.