Tara: [00:00:00] Hi everyone. Welcome to Herb Mentor Radio. I'm Tara Ruth. I recorded this episode solo with Rebecca Fils-Aime a few months ago. Since then, it's been an intense time for the LearningHerbs and Herb Mentor team. I am deeply saddened and shocked to say that my dear co-host and mentor John Gallagher passed away on June 19th after a long struggle with insomnia, anxiety, and depression.
John was a visionary who dedicated his life to helping people connect with nature. He loved this planet and especially the plants with total devotion. John was committed to making herbal learning accessible, creative and empowering, and he touched countless lives through his work. I first met John five years ago when I applied for a job at LearningHerbs.
I submitted my application on a Saturday, and the next day I got a call from an unknown number. I picked it up and it was drawn on the other line. We chatted for an [00:01:00] hour and immediately hit it off. We talked about being Geminis, our favorite tea, the plants growing around us, and so much more. I was immediately struck by how easy and fun it was to chat with John.
I left that conversation feeling like I'd met a new friend and mentor. A few days later, I got the job and John mentioned that he thought we should reboot Herb Mentor Radio together. He had taken a hiatus on podcasting for several years and thought it would be fun for us to collaborate on the podcast, and after some time working on other projects, we did just that.
In January 2022, we relaunched Herb Mentor Radio. I was so nervous to do the first interview and John patiently guided me through the process. I learned how to edit the audio. I remember thinking it was absolutely torturous to hear my own voice for that many hours, but I got over that and I loved making this [00:02:00] podcast with John, getting to collaborate with him, interview incredible herbalists, and share these interviews with you, has been a dream come true.
I'm so grateful for the time I got to spend with John on this podcast and many other projects. As we continue forward as a LearningHerbs team, it may take us a little time to find our footing, but I wanna assure you that John's spirit and values will remain at the heart of LearningHerbs. Your HerbMentor memberships will stay active and our team will honor John's legacy by continuing to curate beautiful and easy to follow herbal information just for you.
Whether it's this podcast, our HerbMentor site, or our herbal recipe blog, it has been an absolute joy getting to make this podcast for the last few years with John and to share these episodes with you. I already deeply miss getting to collaborate with John, and I feel the great responsibility and privilege to continue Herb Mentor Radio in his honor.
Thank you [00:03:00] for being with us as we move through this intense time at LearningHerbs. And I'm so grateful for all of you who have been listening over the years. Grief is a challenging one who greets us in waves and stages. We are moving through big times right now with major political upheaval, ecological devastation, and whatever losses may arise in your immediate circles.
Our grief invites us to feel how much we love what we have lost or in the process of losing, and to be so very present in our bodies. It's not easy to grieve, especially with how our current society is set up, but it is deeply beautiful, humbling, and human to do so. There are so many resources that can help us navigate grief, and herbs are one of them. So in the wake of John's passing, I've created an Herbs for Grief article on the LearningHerbs Blog, which offers some simple herbal allies and remedies to help support your mind, body, spirit as [00:04:00] you navigate grief. In the day since John's death, I have felt my heart crack wide open, and I've reached for so many of the herbs he and I have chatted about on this podcast for years.
I've been making big cups of dandelion root tea, which was his favorite plant, and offering them to the earth in his honor. I've been drinking rose petal tea every morning to tend my heart. I've been massaging my heart with a yarrow infused oil, and I even planted a bunch of calendula seeds because I want to watch another one of his favorite plants sprout and grow.
So if you need a little extra herbal nourishment in the wake of this news and/or other grief you're experiencing in your life, I encourage you to check out the Herbs for Grief resource on the LearningHerbs blog and be super gentle and kind with yourself. You are absolutely precious and hearing news like this can be very shocking and distressing.
So if you or someone you know is struggling. Please know that you are [00:05:00] not alone. Support is available and there are many resources that may help. Two of which include the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline in the US with phone number nine eight eight or URL 988lifeline.org. Or you can text the Crisis Text line by texting home HOME to 7 4 1 7 4 1.
Okay, I'm gonna take a deep breath now, and I invite you to do the same. Breathing in through your nose, feeling the air fill up your lungs as you inhale and letting it slowly exhale through your pursed lips. Now inhaling again slowly through your nose. This time letting out a big exhale with a wide open mouth, [00:06:00] maybe even with some noise.
And one more time, breathing in through your nose and letting out a big exhale through your mouth and remembering that your breath is always available to you as a sacred tool for self-regulation and emotional release. How fortunate we are to have this breath, always willing to help us connect and ground.
Thank you for taking those deep breaths with me and for listening to this intro. We're going to dive into the interview now with Rebecca Fils-Aime, which I recorded solo before John's passing. I know John would've wanted us to share this interview with you now because it offers so much nourishing and comforting herbal information, which is exactly what we need in a time like this.
In this interview, Rebecca shares all about gentle, yet powerful herbs like hibiscus and lemongrass, and how to practice [00:07:00] bioregional herbalism, which John cared deeply about. So you're listening to Herb Mentor Radio by learningherbs.com. I'm Tara Ruth, and today my guest is Rebecca Fils-Aime. Rebecca is a community herbalist, socio-behavioral scientist and a certified health and wellness coach.
Her mission is to educate about plants that originate in or are commonly used across the African diaspora. She has a passion for using herbs and food as medicine, seasonal living, and accessible, bioregional herbalism. Welcome to HerbMentor Radio, Rebecca.
Rebecca: Thank you so much. I'm so happy to be here with you today.
Tara: Yeah, thank you for joining me. You know, we first got acquainted a few months ago 'cause you wrote this incredible lemongrass monograph for Learning Herbs. Yes, yes. Which will be published soon. I'm very excited about it. I was so inspired by it. I've been cooking with lemongrass so much more after reading it.
Rebecca: Oh, that makes me so happy. [00:08:00]
Tara: Yes. And I just, you know, anytime we get a new monograph, I love not only learning more about the specific plant, but learning about the person who wrote the monograph and how they relate to this plant and yeah, how it's a part of their apothecary. So I just really enjoyed how you wove in your own stories and experiences with lemongrass.
Rebecca: Thank you. I can't wait for everyone to read it.
Tara: Yes. And so I figured to get started, I was wondering if you could share a little bit about your relationship with this plant and why you were excited to write about it in the first place.
Rebecca: Sure. You know, lemongrass is a plant that I'm really familiar with.
I grew up using it. It's something that my family uses very often. And so my family is from the country of Haiti in the Caribbean, and it's a plant that they are very used to and they grew it back in Haiti. They also grew it back in Florida where I was raised, so it really just gave me a lot of warm feelings.
We were talking about, you know, different [00:09:00] plants and that one really just stuck out to me. It reminded me of warm South Florida nights in my great uncle's backyard and he had like lemon grass plants all around his backyard to help with insects. And so just, it's just, you know, between that and using it in tea, anytime I smell it or hear it, it just really brings me back to my childhood.
Tara: Ah. That's, I didn't know that. So even just having it growing around you helps with insects too.
Rebecca: It helps a little bit. It really does mostly work best when you crush it or smash it or use the oils. And so sometimes he would, he would go into the store and like buy the actual like insect repellent things that you could light on fire.
But sometimes he would just use the lemongrass that his brother, my grandfather, was growing and figure out a way to like smash it and then put 'em around the edges of his backyard. It wasn't a very big backyard, but very much a, a very, [00:10:00] um, not lazy because it took more effort, but just instead of having to go out and buy something, sometimes he'd just use what was around him.
Tara: Yeah, exactly. I feel like so much, what's the word? Just like experimentation with plants happens because you know, oh, what can we do with the things we have on hand around us?
Rebecca: Mm-hmm. Exactly. Exactly.
Tara: Ah, well, for folks who are new to working with lemon grass, how would you suggest they get started working with this beautiful plant?
Rebecca: Good question. I think there are probably two ways that you could really get started working with lemongrass. The first way is the way I'm most familiar with so as an infusion or an herbal tea. And so you can try it by itself. It has a really beautiful citrusy flavor and so if not doing it that way you could add other things to it.
You can try it with ginger and cinnamon, um, and lemongrass, ginger, cinnamon, maybe star anise, and that would be a really nice herbal tea. And [00:11:00] that's a common blend that you might see back in Haiti too. I think the other way that's really good is using it in food. It's really common to be used in that way, especially when we're talking about southeast Asian cuisine, some Caribbean cuisine.
But really the way that you can use it in Southeast Asian food, I think is one of my favorite ways to eat and use lemongrass in that way, especially in like stir fries or something. I think it just adds a lot of flavor without having to use too much.
Tara: Yeah. There's something about it. I mean, every plant has their own unique flavor, but something about it, it's so bright in its citrusy flavor.
Mm-hmm. You know, and light in the same way. It's so, I love it.
Rebecca: Yeah. And it has a very, I don't know, floral or grassy background because it doesn't taste just like a lemon or just like citrus. And I find that it's really just aromatic in a food in a way that you smell it, but also you taste it and it really just brightens you [00:12:00] up.It's very uplifting in that way.
Tara: Ah, and that tea blend you mentioned too, sounds incredible. I'm curious, is that drinking mostly as just like a beverage tea or is it used more in a medicinal context? That blend you were sharing earlier?
Rebecca: Oh yeah, both actually, the biggest difference is probably the amount of sugar added.
Tara: Totally.
Rebecca: If you're not feeling well, probably not adding as much of that. I know some folks will also add a little bit of nutmeg to that. It really just depends on how you're feeling and adding some, if you want to add more of those like antimicrobial spices to really boost that action in the lemongrass.
Tara: Right. Okay. So you said uplifting earlier about lemongrass and then you're saying antimicrobial. Yeah. What are some of the, like either specific indications or ailments that folks tend to work with lemongrass for?
Rebecca: So, with lemongrass, it's really well known for its ability to support the [00:13:00] body through a fever to the point where, in some places, like I believe in Guyana, for example, they call it fever grass.
Tara: Wow.
Rebecca: 'Cause it's known for its ability to support the body through that. So, um, it's also been used in Ayurvedic medicine in a lot of different ways and, you know, that's not exactly my specialty, but I, you know, I couldn't not mention that because it's something that they use as a tea. And you know, a lot of times they use a lot of different things in their blends.
And so adding lemongrass in addition to its actions, help mask the taste sometimes of less pleasant, you know, herbs, right, in terms of how it tastes. So I like it for that too. And then insects repellent, like I mentioned earlier. Yeah, I feel like it's also really well known for that as well. And like I mentioned, it works best when you somehow crush the plant or expose like the natural oils in the plant.
Some people prefer to use the essential oil and [00:14:00] use it in that way. So really just, you know, what you have available to you. But I like it fresh. If I have the option, I prefer it fresh.
Tara: Yeah. Oh wow. It's so good. It's so nice like you were saying, when just when a plant tastes good, you know? Mm-hmm. You're like, wow, this is so healing.
And also it's nice when the medicine tastes good, you know?
Rebecca: Yeah. Because there's some plants that, you know, I love, my body loves, but the flavor is not that great. And lemongrass, thankfully is not one of those plants.
Tara: Totally. I, this morning I was drinking this tea that's a big blend of a lot of different herbs.
I took a, I chugged it 'cause it's an interesting flavor that I had to get down. And I just let out the most involuntary look of like disgust and revulsion in front of my housemate and they're like, oh my God, are you okay?
Yep. Just the tea. It's fine.
Rebecca: And you know, I get that, 'cause for [00:15:00] me, that's how I am with nettle.
Like it's great for me, but the flavor, especially in an infusion can be interesting. Yeah. Really strong for me. And I find that using lemongrass with nettle is actually a really good way to, to mask some of that nettle flavor in a way that doesn't hide it completely. Because I do like that grassy flavor.
Tara: Mm-hmm.
Rebecca: Um, but you know, I like to drink it as an overnight infusion and so it's really, really strong in the morning. So sometimes...
Tara: Little swamp water.
Rebecca: Right. Exactly. Which is great, but you know, the taste not so much for me.
Tara: Yes. Yeah.
Rebecca: So, so, um, adding lemon grass really helps with that.
Tara: Oh, I've never combined the two. I love that idea. I'm like taking notes during this. Okay. I wanna make this kind of tea. I wanna add lemongrass to my nettle tea.
Rebecca: Let me know what you think, please.
Tara: Yes, I will. You know, I've, I've added just fresh lemon or lemon peel, but I can see how the more like floral notes and the grassy notes too.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: Um, of the [00:16:00] lemongrass would be so nice with the nettle.
Rebecca: You can try lemon and lemongrass. I do pairing lemon flavors together too.
Tara: Yeah. Why am I limiting myself? You're so right. I'm gonna do both. That sounds great. Uh, wow. One of my favorite things I've made with lemongrass was, I think it was last year, I got some fresh lemongrass at the farmer's market.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: And I infused it into honey. Ooh. Yes. That was so good.
Rebecca: That's one of my favorite plants to infuse in honey. I have some infusing right now actually on my kitchen counter. I think that lemongrass has such a, um, and you know, I mentioned the aromatic earlier, but I find that even amongst other plants, especially when it's fresh, it just does so well in like water or honey based preparations.
Tara: Mm-hmm.
Rebecca: Um, and you get such strong flavor without having to use a whole lot of plant material. And I love that about lemongrass.
Tara: Yeah. I was amazed. I [00:17:00] think I only used part of a stalk, you know? Mm-hmm. In this infused honey. And then for it to have such a vibrant flavor. Oh, good.
Rebecca: I love it. I'm excited to have mine now.
Tara: Yes. What do you like to do with your lemongrass infused honey? Do you just take it by the spoonful or do you like drizzle it over things? What's your vibe?
Rebecca: I like to use honey in general a lot with breakfast. So it could be oatmeal. I definitely, I like to add a lot of toppings, make sure I get my fiber and then finish it off with drizzling some honey.
Tara: Yum.
Rebecca: And similar with, you know, a yogurt bowl, same thing, yogurt, granola, whatever else I want to add. And then topping it off with honey. And I think really just any way that I use honey, I do wanna try it in a savory preparation, like in food. Yeah, I like using honey by itself in food with that sweet and salty flavor, but I've never tried it with a lemongrass honey.
So I [00:18:00] think that would be interesting.
Tara: That sounds really nice.
Wow. I just made a rose petal oxygen this last weekend. Mm-hmm. And, well, I just started infusing it and now I'm thinking maybe I should add in some lemongrass to it.
Rebecca: Ooh.
Tara: Because I feel like, I think that would be great. Right. Like with the, yeah.
That tartness already of the oxygen, but then adding like a little bit of the citrusy, uplifting flavor of lemongrass.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: Sounds so good. Oh my gosh. Well, another herb I've also seen you write about is hibiscus. Mm-hmm. And you shared this incredible hibiscus, chamomile body butter recipe with me and I, I love working with hibiscus.
I've mostly worked with it internally, and so I loved seeing this topical remedy that you made with it. And I'd love to hear more from you about hibiscus as a skincare herb.
Rebecca: Yeah, so I think, you know, a lot of people know hibiscus [00:19:00] for having a lot of vitamin C. It's a diuretic, it has a lot of antioxidants, but a lot of people don't realize that it has a lot of actions that make it very, you know, make it well suited for skincare.
So it's soothing to the mucus membrane, it's cooling, you know, think about places where hibiscus grows usually in very warm places. So it's a plant that when you drink it, it really helps the body cool down as a, it acts as a refrigerant in those very warm, tropical places.
Tara: Right.
Rebecca: Um. The fresh plant especially is very mucilaginous.
Tara:Yeah!
Rebecca: And so, you know, all those properties put together very soothing for tissues. They're very soothing to the mucus membrane and so you can use it to moisturize dry skin, but also you can use it for to, you know, to support the healing process too, not just for cosmetic uses. It's very restorative and moistening to the skin, which can be helpful when you're supporting wound healing in the body as well.
Tara: Right. So would you do [00:20:00] that, would you do a wash with hibiscus or would you do um, a salve? What would be your kind of approach with how to extract the constituents of this beautiful plant?
Rebecca: I think you can do a water-based preparation if you wanna do like a hair rinse. Something like that, but just being mindful of the red color, it might stain a little bit.
And because of that, I actually prefer it in oil. I like it in oil because you know everything that it does for the skin, you know, and oil can help support that. But also you can use it in the hair as well, I should say, your scalp. So everything it does for the skin, it does, you know, on your scalp. Nice. Um, and so I sometimes make a hair oil with hibiscus and nettle and you know, use it to moisturize my scalp a little bit or you know, do it right before.
Tara: That's incredible.
Rebecca: Yeah. I've been experimenting with it from, you know, over the last couple of months or so, and I, I really like it and I think it really balances out the very, very [00:21:00] drying nature of nettle. Yeah. And so it's working well so far. Still testing it out.
Tara: Wow. Oh, so cool. Wow. Okay. What, we're like 15 minutes in, and you've already taught me about two awesome herbs to combine with nettle.
Rebecca: You know, there's a theme here. Maybe I should do something about nettle. I don't know.
Tara: You're like, I like this one, but what if we added a little bit of you too?
Rebecca: Right, right. Oh, and for skincare, I've also seen people do, um, powdered hibiscus and mix it up with maybe aloe vera gel or some other, you know, clay powders or something and make a face mask with it.
Tara: Oh yeah.
Rebecca: I have not tried that, but it looks like it's very beautiful.
Tara: You know, you're jogging my memory and now I totally forgot that I've actually done that before.
Rebecca: Oh yeah. That's awesome.
Tara: Yeah, it was really nice. I had some, wow. I totally forgot. I had some powdered rose petals, or I powdered them in a coffee grinder. Mm-hmm. And then, uh, powdered some [00:22:00] hibiscus and it powders really easily, like even more easily than rose petals. I was really surprised.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Tara: Um, yeah. And added it with some clay. I think I maybe added hibiscus tea as the water base.
Rebecca: Ooh, that would be, yeah. That's nice.
Tara: Yeah, it was. Oh, wow. That was so nice. I need to do that again. Yeah.
Rebecca: I'm writing that down right now.
Tara: Look at us go. I love it. I, you know, you're saying that the fresh hibiscus is even more like demulcent or mucilaginous than the dried hibiscus. And I, I had never really seen fresh hibiscus until a few years ago, and I was just shocked by, you know, how big and plump it was, I was so used to just seeing these tiny dried, you know, petals. It was so cool to get to see it in that form.
Rebecca: Yeah. It's such a juicy plant. I love it. Yeah, I love that.
Tara: And just the, I mean, the color I'm thinking about like with lemongrass, there's this just incredible scent we get to experience. Mm-hmm. And then the taste is so [00:23:00] nice and with hibiscus it's so beautiful and then it shares this vibrant color with us too. It's really nice to work with these plants that, you know, teach us so much about beauty and the medicine of that too.
Rebecca: And you know, that's what I really love about plants. Just being able to take the time to appreciate that. I find that especially in like a really busy world, especially just, you know, if you have a nine to five or if you work for yourself and it's just, you know, working all day every day. Sometimes practicing herbalism for me anyway, reminds me to take a step back and be more present and just appreciate everything around me, including the beautiful plants that I'm working with at the time.
Tara: Oh, that's so true. They can be. They really gently remind us and invite us into a different mode of being or a different pacing.
Hi all, it's Tara. I am hopping in midstream of [00:24:00] this interview to just take a little break and say, first of all, I really appreciate just how creative and adaptable Rebecca is as an herbalist, right? She's talking about working with hibiscus, for example, as a skincare herb, and also internally. And I love that when we really understand the plants, we can play around so much with them.
We get to have fun, get to be our best kitchen witch selves, and experiment and make all sorts of herbal potions for ourselves and our loved ones. And one of the best ways to really build your confidence as an herbalist and get more comfortable with experimenting and having fun in the kitchen is to understand herbal energetics.
Herbal energetics are a foundational principle of herbalism. They help us move beyond the initial, take this herb for that thing and really give us a deeper understanding of every herb. When we know, for example, that hibiscus is [00:25:00] cooling and moistening, we then can move beyond, say the top three uses for hibiscus, and then know that we can use this for any condition that could really use a little bit of moistening and cooling energy from this plant.
So you can learn all of this and more in Jim McDonald's foundational Herb Craft course on HerbMentor. In this foundational series, he talks all about herbal energetics. He talks about things being hot and cold, damp and dry, tense and lax, which are a little bit lesser known forms of herbal energetics, really breaks all of this down into simple terms so that you can have the tools you need to experiment with herbs confidently in your own kitchen.
And if you wanna take this class, all you gotta do is go to herbmentorradio.com and sign up for HerbMentor. HerbMentor is our online herbal learning platform [00:26:00] that has so many classes in addition to this. There is different Culinary Herbalism classes. There's a great course series with Rosemary Gladstar, a course on Wildcrafting Foundations.
Really the world's your oyster when you sign up for HerbMentor. I'm also on there teaching live classes with Kimberly, our co-founder of LearningHerbs. It's super fun. I love getting to see your faces there and if you're not already on HerbMentor, I'd love to have you join us there and you can sign up for HerbMentor again on herbmentorradio.com for a really great discount. I was gonna say a little discount, but actually that's not true. It's a great discount. So head on over to HerbMentorRadio.com, sign up for HerbMentor. I'm really excited to see you there. And in the meantime, let's get back to this interview with Rebecca, shall we?
You know, [00:27:00] this is making me think about where one of your areas of focus is on seasonality and how living in sync with the seasons can really just foster our greater wellness and vitality. And this episode is going to release in June, just as summer kicks off. So I'd love to hear from you if you have some tips for welcoming in the season and how we can live in harmony with the hottest months of the year.
Rebecca: Oh, this is one of my favorite things to talk about.
Tara: Let's get into it!
Rebecca: I'm such a big proponent of seasonal living and you know, for me personally, it has really helped me get acclimated to where I live now. I was, as I mentioned earlier, raised in South Florida where, you know, we don't experience too many variations in season.
And so when I first left and started experiencing other seasons, I think it took me a while to get adjusted to it. I really, it wasn't until I really started embracing the colder months and embracing the seasons and the [00:28:00] things that make fall, fall, the things that make winter, you know, winter, that I really started enjoying and embracing where I am and being, you know, more present and not just hoping or waiting until I might move somewhere else.
Tara: Right?
Rebecca: Or move back home, you know? And so I think with summertime, it's one of my favorite seasons to embrace, and there are a lot of different ways you can do that. I love making sun teas instead of making teas inside, especially if you're using like a summer herb or summer produce in that sun tea, like a chamomile or lavender, roses.
I love calendula. I think it's such a beautiful flower and it's one of my favorite flowers to work with during the summer, so I'm always trying to find a reason to put it in tea. And I think a sun tea would be really beautiful for that plant.
Tara: With a sun tea, are you just, yeah, will you describe a little bit for folks who maybe have never made that before, how you would approach making a sun tea?
Rebecca: So I [00:29:00] would get a jar, uh, a heat safe jar, preferably. Um, and I would fill it up with whatever plants or even fruits, um, if you'd like, um, that you wanna put in your tea, fill it up with water, um, and you set it down outside and you let the heat of the sun, so you want it to be a sunny day, preferably, um, essentially slowly brew that, that tea or slowly infuse what's in those plants into that water that the plants are sitting in, inside that jar. I know some people do that, but they might want to cover it with a paper bag so it doesn't get too warm or too hot, depending on how strong the sun is in your area. Right. So that might be, you know, that might be something you want to think about. If it's way too hot some folks will just put it in a window sill or in front of a window that gets a lot of sun, and I think that also works very well. And so basically just using the power of the sun or embracing the power of the sun to help make your tea for the day. [00:30:00]
Tara: Oh, what a great way to just be in harmony with the elements around you.You know? Feels like drinking liquid sunshine.
Rebecca: Oh yes, exactly. It really does. And it's fun, I think, and it's beautiful to watch the tea slowly change colors over time. At least for me. It is fun.
Tara: I agree. As a fellow herb nerd, I agree. Yeah. Hibiscus is one of my favorite ones to do this with. Slowly watch the red take over the water.
Rebecca: Yeah. Another way to embrace the summer season is embracing the power of fire, you know, and it represents the sun. And so whether that be a bonfire or you know, lighting a few candles with intention or just sitting and thinking about, you know, the energy that comes with summer.
Some people think of it as a season of busyness, so maybe we're, you know, having a moment to ourselves and just trying to be the calm before the [00:31:00] storm. Or maybe not. Maybe you light candles and you like to start your day very loudly and embrace that energy with the candles as well. You know, it really is up to you and how you want to embrace the sun.
I like using incense as well. I think incense is a great way to enhance your energy in the area. You know, make it smell very nice while also embracing some of that fire energy.
Tara: I love this balance of just when we have awareness about what element is really showing up in a season, be really intentional with how we work with it, you know, the ways in which we want to amplify it, and the ways in which we might wanna bring some balance or, you know, rest or whatever it may be.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: Exactly. Cool.
Rebecca: Exactly.
Tara: Do you like to make your own incense at all?
Rebecca: I do, I do. Um, I have not experimented enough with any like summertime plants other than rose, but I don't [00:32:00] remember the ratio right now. But I use marshmallow root powder as like the binder, so to speak, and then any other powdered plant and you can shape it however you want.
Some people like the cones, some people like the smaller pieces. Some people like to wrap them around the sticks, and so that long thin incense stick, but you know, sometimes you can really shape it however you want and let it dry. It does take maybe like about a week or so to dry, and it's a way that I like to embrace the season as well, or to preserve a plant that might grow in that current season so that I can still embrace that or have that energy in the beginning of the next season.
Tara: Yeah, it's so, I remember when the first time I made incense, I was amazed. I was like, that's all I have to do. I only have to do these few steps.
Rebecca: So yeah, it really is as simple as mixing, you know, things together and it's like almost clay sometimes the way that it starts to form after you're mixing things together.
And I know there [00:33:00] are other things other than marshmallow root that you can use as a binder. I haven't used them, but I know there are other options out there.
Tara: Yeah, yeah. I've mostly used marshmallow too. And then I, I love to add dried ground up tulsi to it.
Rebecca: Yes, yes. Tulsi and rose together smells really good.
Tara: Yeah. Wow. For folks who are wanting to learn more, I'll just plug, we have a, uh, incense, like making how to blog post on the LearningHerbs blog that's free. So it's a marshmallow base and I think it has some rose in it. And it also talks about working with like local quote unquote weeds and things around you.
So yeah, it's um, a great resource for people who are excited about learning more about making incense at home. And again, I'm just, every time I do it, I'm amazed by how simple it is.
Rebecca: Yeah. The trickiest part is just making sure you're not using too much water.
Tara: Exactly.
Rebecca: So it doesn't take too long to dry, but it'll dry at [00:34:00] some point.
Tara: Yeah, yeah. Right. Okay. Three months later, no. Oh, that's great. Um, there's just something about working with smoke medicine that's so powerful too. You know, we're working with fire, we're getting to see alchemy happening right in front of us, you know?
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: Things changing their form and smoke in so many cultures around the world traditionally and continues to be this really powerful medium for carrying medicine.
Rebecca: Yes. And smoke medicine is fascinating to me, 'cause you know, it's something that's been done for thousands and thousands of years by all kinds of cultures all over the world. And it's been used for so many different purposes. Right? We've, we have religious purposes, you know, rituals, recreational use, medicinal ceremonies even.
And even with all those different uses in terms of space and time, [00:35:00] we always see it being used in a similar way in terms of protection or to cleanse the energy in a space. There have been, there were some points in history where they thought, you know, they didn't have the quote unquote evidence yet, but they figured somehow that using smoke medicine could help slow the spread of infectious disease in the air depending on the herb.
You know, there are a lot of historical accounts that we, when we see things, or I should say, there are a lot of historical accounts that talk about plants in ways like plants like rosemary or chamomile being used to, you know, prevent sickness or being used to hopefully ward off potential incoming sickness.
And now we see that modern medicine backs up a lot of those claims, especially with a plant like rosemary and thyme. You know, I had a doctor a few years ago tell me, oh, do a steam, you know, do a steam with thyme and that might help in addition to all these other things. There's [00:36:00] definitely the evidence there now, but even before we had that, you know, scientific evidence it's been used in these ways for a very long time.
Tara: It's, I feel like a, a really interesting part of herbalism is, you know, so many of the beautiful plants we work with, I mean, all of them have been used for so many years and they have a huge catalog of, of uses and history backing up those usages. And it's always interesting when science intersects with that and it's like, oh, like look it, we have used modern science to also like back up, you know, these, um, this traditional usage. And it can be interesting to kind of move between those two worlds, right? And I feel like you're someone, based on the little I know about you, who moves between these two worlds of, you know, with your background and like scientific research and then yeah, just, and in public health. And I'd love to learn more about that intersection, like [00:37:00] how you navigate that and how also you found yourself in the public health field.
Rebecca: Yeah, I think there's a lot that they have in common. And to me, one of the biggest things is that, you know, there are a couple of core like pillars that I think are essential to both herbalism and public health, which are, you know, lifestyle behavior change and diet are really important for anything that you're gonna do that in addition to, right? So in addition to the lifestyle and behavior change, we might also say that these herbs may, you know, support your body back to balance and vice versa with public health. It might be a specific program, it might be a specific medication.
But either way, when you're practicing those things or doing it, you know, approaching it the way that we should be thinking about it holistically, right? Both of them have those just core missions of, you know, we want folks to get to this type of, you know, maybe health state or [00:38:00] health status. But we recognize that there has to be some of those day-to-day things that you do, the things that you eat, your habits that you have, that will mostly contribute to that, and the herbs or the medication or this public health program will be a nice compliment to it.
Tara: Right, right. Yeah, I completely agree. I've found, I was surprised the more I've gotten interested in herbalism, and the more I Yeah, just dive into this path, the more and more reverence I have felt for, you know, quote unquote allopathic medicine too.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: Like, I get to see, you know, I'm like, oh, I get to see kind of the limitations of both and where they can really compliment each other. And it makes me so excited, like to get closer to the plants and then feel more and more respect too for, you know, this other field of medicine too, and how they can work together.
Rebecca: And I love when I see, you know, public health practitioners or doctors or [00:39:00] dieticians also embracing, you know, the herbalism or you know, just at least acknowledging that there are other opportunities for, you know, treatments or ways to, that can complement maybe the more traditional allopathic ways or approaches.
Tara: Mm-hmm.
Rebecca: So I love when I see it on both sides really. And I think everything works best when we collaborate more.
Tara: Yes!
Rebecca: And I think you see that a lot even with research, right? Public health taught me a lot of important skills in evidence-based research. You know, how to read scientific papers, knowing or having an idea of which, which resources to trust for accurate information.
Um, especially right now, like I've, I've seen a lot of people talking about how a lot of herbalism books now are being written by random AIs and things. So I think, you know, it's very helpful in ways that I don't think I had thought about. When I first decided to become, um, an herbalist officially, um, and I use those skills regularly in, in herbalism, I really even [00:40:00] like that what is considered evidence can be, you know, or at least what they think is considered evidence, can be thought of as not just scientific evidence, like being open to traditional uses of things, at least the way I was taught public health. You know, respecting people in community and respecting that they are experts in their lived experience and you know, if they have a plant that has been used by their culture or their community for hundreds or thousands of years, even decades in a certain way.
You know, of course there are instances where maybe research might contradict those claims, but I think for the most part it still gives you at least some type of context or information about a plant in itself.
Tara: I love what you're saying about collaboration too, and yeah, everything works better together, right when it's, when we're in collaboration and I feel like the plants and just our ecosystems teach us that too. How we see the plants grow together [00:41:00] and collaborate with the animals and you know, how can we be great collaborators with the plants too.
Rebecca: Oh, I love that.
Tara: You mentioned, um, when you decided to become an herbalist. I'd love to hear a little bit more about that and what initially drew you into your herbal studies.
You also talked about, you know, some memories from your childhood with lemongrass.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: So I'd love to hear the herbal through threads that got you to where you are today.
Rebecca: Good question. I think on some level, I was always practicing herbalism in ways that maybe I didn't understand at the moment. You know, especially growing up when I was sick, you know, my grandma would, you know, rub me down in this thing and, you know, make me drink this and, you know, and we're not talking about things that you just go to the store and buy, like she's, you know, going to the backyard and getting, you know, this leaf and this plant and making an what I know now as you know, an infusion or an herbal tea to drink. And along with other things, if I had a fever, she's like wrapping [00:42:00] me up in a blanket and we're sweating it out. Like, you know, all those things.
Tara: Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Rebecca: Um, and so I always carry those things with me in terms of what people from my family or people from the parts of Haiti my family is from, how they used plants as remedies. It wasn't until I really started getting my foot into public health and I, I did that, um, I, I was an undergrad, you know, graduating in pre-med 'cause I thought I wanted to be a doctor and then I did some clinical rotations and I realized I don't think that's what I want to do.
Tara: Mm-hmm.
Rebecca: I didn't have the language for it at the time, but now I know the feeling that I had was, I wanted to help more on a larger scale like medicine in that way, or how it was being practiced in that way was very one-on-one, which is fine. And I think that's, that's great. But I did not want to do that every day.
Tara: That's great to know.
Rebecca: Yeah. Yeah. [00:43:00] So I really sat down and did some research on like, how can I work in health without being a doctor? 'Cause you know, I wasn't really a hundred percent, I didn't know about that. I didn't know about all the options at that time. I think public health was still something that we were still trying to understand as a broad, larger community.
There weren't as many schools that had it as a major, like it was still very much kind of new in that time.
Tara: Mm-hmm.
Rebecca: Um, and so I changed my mind last minute, withdrew all my medical school applications and decided to get my master's in public health. And that really, literally the next semester I started volunteering at the local health department and it's just been uphill from there.
So I went to school, I did a fellowship for a year, and after a while I don't really remember what brought me back, but I just remember I started all of a sudden making like infused vinegars and infused honeys. And it just reminded me of like how my grandma used to make a dish [00:44:00] with the vinegarette on her vegetables. So I would start infusing vinegars and putting them on my vegetables, infusing honeys, putting them on all these different things. And all of a sudden I just found myself researching on how to do more infused vinegars and you know, what other flavors can I do it with? What vinegars can I match other plants with?
And just all the recipes I was seeing at some point it, it connected that you can do it for culinary purposes, but also a lot of these recipes had a medicinal aspect to them.
Tara: Right.
Rebecca: And so I had that. And also, you know, as I mentioned in the lemongrass monograph that I can't wait for everyone to read, um, there was also a conversation I had with my mother about the lemongrass plant where I was so used to hearing it, how it was called in Haitian Creole that I don't remember what the conversation was, but one day somebody in my house said it in English and said, lemongrass. And I was like, [00:45:00] wait, I know that plant.
I'm so used to just, you know, my parents or my family going into the backyard and just ran randomly grabbing what we call, you know, bush tea. So like random plants from a bush, like they know what it is, but you as a person inside the house, just see them go out and come back with a bunch of plant material and then make a tea.
And so I think all those things kind of started putting together this piece of, there's a larger thing here and this way that you know plants right now, there are other ways to know plants from other countries, and there are other people who, you know, have relationships with plants the same way your family has relationships with these plants.
And that just was really interesting to me and that really drew me into learning more about herbalism on a wider scale, like outside of just, you know, how my community might use it, but really understanding it as like a global practice of traditional medicine that differs, you know, based on culture and, and where you are and [00:46:00] when you lived. So I, it really was like a lot of different things between family, personal, and professional life that put all this together.
And I love to cook too. I, as you said in my bio, I, I love, you know, food as medicine, herbs in food as medicine. So I think all my interests just started to collide in a way where it was starting to be very undeniable that they were all linked.
Tara: Yeah.
Rebecca: And so I started really wanting to get into what those links were, but then also what were those things individually. That's how I got here. I kind of just started learning about it. I learned a lot about traditional Chinese medicine. I learned a lot about how other islands in the Caribbean use plants like that are same, the same way that we use them or different ways.
I'm really interested in that. I'm learning a lot about plants that are native to North America. I'm very interested in that. I think we know of a lot of plants that are [00:47:00] common here, but maybe the part of what plants are native and using more of those plants when we can. I'm really interested in that as well. Sorry to go off on a tangent.
Tara: Oh, that wasn't a tangent at all. I'm locked in. This is great. Uh, I love what you said about yeah, learning more about the, you know, the plants that are native here too and how to work with them. And it makes me think about when we tend those native plants too, then the native pollinators are so much happier too.
So, yeah. And I also, there is another thing I wanna tease out from what you said was, um, about just, you know, like a, seeing how a plant, uh, might have different uses in different places even though it's is the same plant. Yes. And that's one of the things I love about herbalism too. You know, I can love it, right?
I can have my narrow vision of what this plant can do, and then it totally expands.
Rebecca: Yeah. Don't you just love reading about something that, you know, [00:48:00] you, it's a plant you're so familiar with and you use it in one way, and then you just see a random statement and it completely opens up your world in terms of that plant.
Like when I realized that nettle could be good for your hair, not just, you know, taking it internally, but you know externally, it was like a light bulb went off. Oh, of course.
Tara: Mm-hmm.
Rebecca: And you know, I have, I feel like I keep talking about nettle. Oh my gosh.
Tara: But keep talking about it. It's such a great one.
Rebecca: But yeah, yeah, yeah.
Tara: Sometimes that happens. I notice that, um, when we're recording it's like all of a sudden we're, this is the plant that we're gonna be talking about, you know.
Rebecca: Yeah. Like what, what's going on with me and nettle? I know I drank it a lot, but I didn't realize I had this like, deep relationship with it.
Tara: Yeah. I had, a few months ago, I taught this class on herbs for the heart, and I was, uh, it was in person [00:49:00] and in the beginning we were talking about how we've all grown up working with plants, whether or not we think that we have, you know, think about the vegetables, right?
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: And so I talked about carrots as maybe that was one of the first herbs that someone worked with growing up, whether there's carrot tops or they're just eating carrots as a kid.
And then for whatever reason, I just kept on mentioning carrots for the rest of the day until it became this like joke among everyone in the class. They're like, what about carrots?
Rebecca: You know, I'm with you 'cause I love carrot tops.
Tara: Yes. I was like, the spirit of carrot is with us, and I won't deny it.
Yeah. And I, I love what you were saying about, you know, with nettle, a lot of times that will blow my mind too, where I, I work with a plant internally and then suddenly I'm like, wait a second, what happens if you work with this externally?
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: You know, with hibiscus too, right?
Rebecca: Hibiscus? Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Tara: Yeah. And just even the, the [00:50:00] solvent or the menstruum that we extract an herb into can really make it have different properties or have different specific uses. It's so fun to experiment.
Rebecca: Yeah. Like I, I love that there are some plants, you know, using it as an infusion or an herbal tea gives you one set of properties, of course, 'cause of what the water will help extract from the plant. But you use it as a tincture and it's so much more potent for maybe a completely different, you know, reason or, you know, or action that you want in the body. So I, yeah, I think plants, yeah. Just so amazed by, yeah, by all the wonderful things about plants.
Tara: Totally. And we get to layer in all these different types of medicine into one remedy. You know, we layer in the plant that we're working with, but maybe if we're infusing it into honey, then we're also getting the benefits of the honey.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Tara: Or, you know, with the oil, we're getting the emollient soothing properties of the [00:51:00] oil too.
Rebecca: Right, right.
Tara: Yeah. And I, another thing that I just love about working with herbs is, especially as you deepen your understanding of energetics of an herb and like the herbal actions that an herb has, if it's a nerving, or it's anti-spasmodic or carminative, it's like even if you don't know the specific indications, like the top five most popular specific uses for this herb, it's like, oh, well I know that this herb is helpful for spasm pain in the gut and I know that it also is a circulatory stimulant, I wonder if that will help with the spasming muscle I have in my leg. Yeah. And we get to really play and experiment.
Yeah. Ah, that's so fun.
Rebecca: I think hibiscus is a good example of that. I remember learning that hibiscus is a plant that's good for stagnation 'cause it helps get things moving in the body.
And then I remember thinking about wanting to make a [00:52:00] cough syrup and realizing that between the vitamin C, between the, you know, the mucilage, between it's soothing mucus membranes, this would be great for a cough, especially if it's accompanied by a sore throat or if it's a dry cough. And that's one thing I made around the same time that I made that body butter. I had a lot of hibiscus that year.
Tara: It sounds like it. I love it.
Rebecca: Um, and so, yeah, I think it, a lot of people don't realize that it's very, it's very, I guess I could say it's a very open-minded plant in that, because it has that big action of moving stagnation, tt can definitely support the body in a lot of different ways.
Tara: Wow. Yeah. I've never heard about it for, you know, a respiratory situation, but that makes so much sense. Yeah. You're like stagnation, demulcent, soothing, of course. Ah, that sounds great. And again, it's sometimes it can be so nice to have those plants that we're really familiar with and have such a sweet relationship with to[00:53:00] call on them when we're feeling under the weather. It's like having a familiar friend visit us.
Rebecca: That's such a great analogy. But yes, absolutely.
Tara: Like, oh, thanks. Even though I'm isolating or whatever, I still get to hang out with my friend hibiscus. Yeah, totally. When I got COVID, the last time I had it, like a year ago, the few days before I got it, I had just harvested a bunch of mugwort and I put it into all these bundles to dry it.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: And so it was, I just, and I had to quarantine in my room two days later, you know, and I found out, so I was just in my room, felt like I was just baking in the scent of mugwort drying. Like, my room was covered in bundles and I was so lonely, but I felt so comforted, 'cause I have such a sweet relationship with this plant.
You know, it's like I am surrounded by the, the scent and the love of this, of one of my favorite plant [00:54:00] allies.
Rebecca: And I'm sure that helped you get better a little quicker too.
Tara: Yeah. Yeah, I would say so. Oh my gosh.
Well, one of the last things I wanted to ask you about too is you mentioned that you enjoy working with native plants.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: And I know another focus for you is bioregional herbalism. And I'd love for you to kind of break down what this term is, why it's important and yeah, how you approach bioregional herbalism.
Rebecca: Yeah. So I like to think of bioregionalism as the way herbalism, you know, used to be before we were able to ship things across the globe, you know? It's really about knowing the plants in your area very deeply and primarily trying to incorporate those plants into your daily practice. And there are a lot, there are a lot of different kind of like tenants that support bioregionalism, so like sustainability.
Tara: Mm-hmm.
Rebecca: Which is [00:55:00] another passion of mine living seasonally. Another, another thing that I like to do, and that's how I approach bioregionalism, is by living seasonally. And so what that means is I'm thinking about what's in season specifically in my area, and it can be, you know, in my part of the state, it could be in my state, it could be in my region, especially if it's around the time that I'm traveling a lot between the various states here in the southeast. And with that, I think about that with produce, but also with herbs when I can. I have an amazing farmer's market that I go to where some of the farmers grow herbs and so I have the opportunity sometimes to really experiment with a fresh herb that maybe I haven't experimented with fresh.
Like a few years ago they had African tulsi, um, fresh.
Tara: Wow.
Rebecca: And that was, that was my first time ever experiencing that plant fresh. And I made a beautiful tincture with it that I still have. And I got a chance to talk to the [00:56:00] folks at the market stand about it. Yeah. Like I came back a few weeks later and I was like, I made a tincture with the tulsi and they were so excited and we talked about the tulsi tincture.
Tara: That's so sweet.
Rebecca: I know.
Tara: I feel like, right, that's a part of it too, is building a relationship with the people you know too.
Rebecca: Yes.
Tara: In that area and the people who are, whose hands are tending these plants.
Rebecca: Yes. And I'm very big on building that community where you are. That's also part of bioregionalism, 'cause for me, it looks like trying to shorten the production chain, wherever and whenever I can. And so if I can get this plant that you know is native to here, for example, there are types of echinacea that are actually native to the parts of the southeast where I live.
Tara: Wow.
Rebecca: And so I know there are some farmers, not a lot, but there are some who sell the seeds so that people can grow echinacea on their own.
And so that's one thing that I'm trying this year for the first time. So I'm really excited about that.
Tara: Yes. I wanna hear how it goes. [00:57:00]
Rebecca: Yeah. I'll keep you posted. I will. Yes. But you know, things like that, so you know, can I get it somewhere in town? If not, is there somewhere I can get it? A little? Maybe not you know, down the street or within the town itself. But can I get it relatively close by? If not, can I grow it? I, I live in an apartment, I have a balcony, so I can't grow too many things, but I definitely have taken advantage of what I can grow on my balcony, and I've grown things like peppers, or I've grown like herbs.
This will be my first time trying to grow a flower in a pot. So, fingers crossed.
Tara: Yes. Um, I predict great things.
Rebecca: I'm a little nervous. I don't know why, but, and of course this doesn't apply to everything. I always say, do what you can. Right? It's not always feasible. You know, where I live, my environment is probably, my growing environment is probably very different from someone in the Pacific Northwest.
And so what's native or what's in their region that they have access to might be different. But that's [00:58:00] okay if you also really using a plant that maybe you have a childhood connection to, and maybe it doesn't grow where you are, but maybe there's a way that you can try to grow it at home, or maybe you can find a way to shorten that production chain.
But I just, I don't want people to think that you have to be a hundred percent sustainable or a hundred percent everything I get is from a store down the street. Do what you can. Always do what you can. I'm really lucky that I live in an area where I live in a city, but it's a city and a state that's very much, just mostly like there's a lot of farm, a lot of farmland in and around where I live. I think that I'm really lucky that I, I have that available to me and so when I can, I'll definitely engage in more local production chains, so to speak.
Tara: Thank you for sharing. I feel like these are such helpful principles and tips for getting started with thinking about bioregional herbalism and yeah, for me, one of the ways that I think about it is, [00:59:00] yeah, learning about the native plants that grow around me and then also learning about the native peoples of, of the land where I live and their continued presence in that area too.
Rebecca: Mm-hmm.
Tara: Yeah, just how to like be in right relationship where wherever you're located.
Rebecca: I agree. A lot of these plants are only still here because of the indigenous peoples and a lot of how we use herbalism or I should say a lot of how we use a lot of those native plants in western herbalism comes from in indigenous practices.
Tara: Mm-hmm.
Rebecca: So, you know, totally agree with you there. Always get to know your area, get to know the indigenous peoples who are still there, who have impacted where you've lived.
You know, someone like me, I really enjoy going on like hiking trails and like really doing my research and I love that. That's a really good way to learn about those things as well. A lot of the local trails, especially if they're like a state park or just associated with some [01:00:00] type of like historic preservation, they'll tell you about the indigenous peoples of that area and sometimes also their connection to the land and the plants and which plants did they use and how did they use them.
So I think that's another cool way to, to learn about that while also being in nature and getting outside.
Tara: Yeah, right. Getting that sunshine, that fresh air. So good. Oh, Rebecca, it's been lovely getting to chat with you for this last hour. I've been really looking forward to this for a while and I was just, yeah, so excited to get this opportunity and thank you for taking the time.
Rebecca: Oh yes. This was so amazing. Thank you for asking me. I had a really good time talking to you today.
Tara: Ah, amazing. And for folks who wanna learn more about your work, where can they find you? How can they connect with your amazing offerings out there?
Rebecca: So I am working on a blog that will debut later this year.
Tara: Whoa, cool!
Rebecca: But yeah, I'm really excited about that. In the [01:01:00] meantime, they can connect with me on Instagram. My Instagram is, itsbeccaj, so I, T, S, B as in boy, E, C, C, A, J.
Tara: Great. Ah, yes, folks, go check out Rebecca on Instagram and then yeah, please keep us posted on that blog that's gonna debut. I'd love to share it with more folks on our platform too.
Rebecca: Thank you. I absolutely will keep you posted.
Tara: Yes, and thank you everyone for listening to Herb Mentor Radio. Please stick around for an Herb Note.
Welcome to Herb Notes. I'm Tara Ruth. Oregano, Origanum vulgare, is a bold, aromatic herb that's probably sitting in your kitchen cupboard, but don't let its everyday status fool you. This plant is a potent medicinal herb with a long history of use as a digestive aid, respiratory support, and antimicrobial remedy.
Let's dive [01:02:00] into three key benefits of oregano. One, oregano for healthy digestion. Oregano's warming and carminative properties can help move stagnant digestion and ease mild GI discomfort. Sipping on oregano tea before or after eating can help stimulate the digestive process, relieving tension in the gut, and reduce uncomfortable symptoms like gas or bloating.
Cooking with oregano, whether it's a full on oregano pesto, or just a few sprigs added to your recipe, can also support healthy digestion.
Two, oregano for cold and flu symptoms. Oregano isn't just for pasta sauce. It can also help soothe sore throats and clear sinus congestion during colds and flus.
Gargling oregano tea can ease a sore throat, and sipping on the tea with a spoonful of honey can also soothe the throat.
Three. Oregano as an antimicrobial. Oregano is a natural antimicrobial powerhouse. It can help combat pathogens both internally and externally. Oregano tea when cooled can be used [01:03:00] as an external wash to inhibit pathogens on the skin.
Internally, oregano tea can help address digestive pathogens. And just to note a few oregano contraindications: there are a few important considerations when working with oregano. Oregano essential oil and oil of oregano supplements, which are very popular supplements that you can easily find at a health food store are extremely concentrated.
It's super easy to exceed safe dosages, especially when taking them internally. Overuse can damage mucus membranes and irritate the digestive tract. Always consult a knowledgeable practitioner if you're considering internal use of the oil. And it's also important to properly dilute the oil for topical use.
Medicinal amounts of oregano, especially concentrated forms like tinctures, strong teas and essential oil are contraindicated during pregnancy due to oreganos and emmenagogue effects. Wanna learn more about the benefits of other common herbs? Visit herbnotes.cards to grab a deck of our top 12 [01:04:00] Herb Notes. You'll learn all about herbs like elderberry, chamomile, and more. This has been Herb Notes with me, Tara Ruth.
Catch you next time.
Herb Mentor Radio is a 100% sustainably wildcrafted podcast written, performed, and produced by me, Tara Ruth, with sound engineering by Zach Frank. Visit HerbMentorRadio.com to subscribe on your favorite podcast app and find out how you can be part of HerbMentor, which is a website and community that you gotta see to believe.
Herb Mentor Radio is a production of learningherbs.com LLC. Thank you so much for listening.
