Herbs: An Introduction
An introduction to the health benefits of herbs
by Loring A. Windblad
I grew up as a kid during WWII, and we always planted a "Victory
Garden" in the back yard, behind the Rose hedge. It was a goodly
sized plot of ground, probably 30 feet by 40 feet, and over the
years I became intimately acquainted with every spade full of
dirt there.
Why? Well, because it was my job every spring from the time I was
old enough to step on a shovel and plunge it into the ground to
spade up that garden plot and ready it for planting. And I had to
go into the chicken coop and get the chicken manure and spread it
on the ground and spade it in, also. I started doing this by
about 1941, when I was 5.
And over by the house there grew this veritable jungle of weeds.
But, when you broke off a leaf and chewed it up it tasted pretty
good. It was mint. Mint grows wild, in one form or another,
pretty much everywhere. You may have some growing wild in your
back yard right now? Some people call this an herb. I simply call
it "food". It's something we learned to eat and enjoy. And I
learned how, when walking through the woods, to identify licorice
root -- a fern, usually growing on old dead trees -- and enjoy
chewing on it. Also probably classified as an herb, but I simply
called it a "food".
Every year Mom did the canning. She would can tomatoes out of
the garden, carrots and peas out of the garden. And she would
can fruit for the winter, some as whole fruit (peaches and pears
-- apples went into applesauce and apple jelly). She canned
mostly in quart jars for the foods, and in pint jars for jams and
jellies. Apple jelly was special, though, canned in half-pint
jars and it always had a leaf from the wild mint in the back yard
on top of the jelly in every jar. And sometimes, as a special
treat, it might contain a piece of licorice root for flavor.
There was more. We had parsley, sage, sheep sorrel, rhubarb and
a few others growing pretty well cultivated in their own corner
off the garden. Things Mom used to cook with, sprinkle a little
here and there on the meat or vegetables. I guess you might call
them herbs. We just called them "seasonings" or "food".
When I grew up and went off in the world to seek my fortune, such
as it was, I ran across more exotic foods in different countries
I visited. It's been so long I've forgotten most of them, but I
remember from Panama stopping in at a little "lunch counter
buffet" out in the wilds, a place where only the locals usually
stopped. I learned that Yucca, a flowering plant native to the
American southwest and most of Central America, in various types,
is edible. At least the root of some varieties is edible. And I
learned that deep fried Yucca root is not only tastier than
French fries, it's a whole lot better for you, too.
Some people may consider Yucca an herb, others a flower, and
others a food. I'm with both the flower and food groups. There
are many different varieties of Yucca and several different
varieties of Yucca Flowers. Not all Yucca is edible, but some of
them are. And they provide nutritional values for us that we
can't get from other food sources.
What I'm going to be doing in this series of articles is examining
some of these alternate food sources, some legitimately labeled
herbs and some just foods, and explaining just what their
essential food values are, how we use them as "food supplements",
and why we should use them thusly.
My references for this series of articles on alternative and
herb-based foods are personal experience plus resources
available through your local herbalist, at your local library,
and on the internet.
[This article is the introduction to a planned series of at
least 40 articles, covering at least 40 herbs, to be published by
the author on "Herbs, Essential Elements for Good Health". These
articles will be written during April and May 2005 and published
independently. Then, some time in June, 2005, published in the
form of an eBook. This eBook should run to approximately 50,000
words, a full book. It will be available on request from the
author some time in June 2005.
Disclaimer: These articles in no way should be taken as medical
advice on any product or condition, nor do they constitute in any
way medical advice endorsing any specific product, specific
result, nor any possible cure for any condition or problem. They
are meant as a source of information upon which you may base your
decision as to whether or not you should begin using a greens
product as a dietary supplement. If in doubt, or if you have
questions, you should consult your physician and, if possible,
consult a second physician for a possible different opinion. The
author bears no responsibility for your decisions nor for the
outcome of your actions based upon those decisions.]
Copyright © 2005 Loring A. Windblad
Loring Windblad has studied nutrition and exercise
for more than 40 years, is a published author and freelance
writer. His latest business endeavor is at
http://www.organicgreens.us.