Page 68 - Panama City Living Magazine

HERBS AND THEIR BENEFITS
Are there any disadvantages to trying
natural remedies? They obviously also have side effects....
One disadvantage of trying natural remedies is that if the person doesn’t take into consideration the energy of the herbs and the constitution of the person and their illness, the herbs may not work or they could potentiate a problem. A trained herbalist can help with choosing appropriate herbs and dosing. Sometimes, it takes a few tries to get the appropriate formula. There are some herbs that can cause adverse effects when taken with medication. This is not something to fear, but caution and knowledge of these interactions is crucial and important when taking an integrative approach with Western medicine.
How time-intense is the growing of your
plants and which plants do you grow?
I have a tough-love policy around my yard. My plants thrive on neglect. I have some perennials I’ve planted over the years like rosemary, bananas, Meyer lemon, bay, and vitex, but I also keep a small bed of a few veggies and culinary herbs. I love to see what comes up in my yard that’s
wild and discover what I could potentially use it for.
Here in Northwest Florida, there are plants that come up in spring that are great medicinals, like plantain, chickweed, cleavers, wild geranium, and Spanish needle. Some might consider them as weeds.
What are your thoughts on store-bought
supplements vs. home-grown remedies?
We all want convenience now. We want that one thing that’s going
to cure what ails us and not have to do any of the work of changing
our diet or lifestyle. Chronic illnesses usually take years to develop and they can’t be undone in a single day. I think supplements have a place if you have a specific deficiency that you can’t get from food, but ideally, we should be getting our nourishment for healing in a whole form like food or herbs. Herbalism is the people’s medicine. I like to remind people that they need to be their own health advocate. We have the power to take control of our own health and we have the ability to make our own natural remedies. This knowledge has been passed down for thousands of years. I believe there is added value and benefit to making your own herbal remedies or using remedies that are made with intention by an herbalist. Healing comes with the mindfulness and intention of what one creates and consumes.
What are your thoughts on vitamins and supplements in general?
I think they have their place if for some reason a person isn’t able to get the nutrients they need from foods and herbs. I think this just depends on the specifics of each vitamin and
supplement and the manufacturer. In general, I think the quality is questionable for a lot of products. Certain things like herbs ground up into capsules that have been sitting on a shelf have probably lost a lot of their properties over time. Even with dry bulk herbs, they need to be rotated regularly and protected from heat and light. Once most herbs are ground up, they are more exposed
to oxygen and their potency starts to decline.
68 • March—April 2020 • www.PanamaCityLiving.com