Myths & Misconceptions - herbalism, fitness and nutrition

Bands & Botanicals

Dropping knowledge this week with some myths or misconceptions in fitness and holistic wellness industries! . Protein, fats, and carbs, oh my! Trying to eat healthily might feel like navigating a foreign land where you are unsure who to trust or which road to follow. Danielle discusses why research is necessary but listening to your body is best. . Paula discusses herbalism as a career path, what to expect from an herbalist, how long to store herbs, why green tea makes you jittery, and when foraging herbs or wild foods may become an issue. . An excellent application for foraging in your city is fallingfruit.org, a worldwide app where people list wild foods they have found, kind of like geocaching for herb nerds! . Unsurprisingly, The history of early American anti-foraging laws reveals that supporters of restricting foraging rights typically grounded their efforts in racism, classism, colonialism, imperialism, or some combination of these cruel practices and beliefs. . 1. Anti-Foraging Laws Targeting Native Americans . Native American tribes were probably the earliest victims of anti-foraging laws in the New World. Shortly after English settlers landed in the New World, they began pushing the Powhatan Native American tribe off their traditional hunting and foraging grounds. These settlers defended their newly occupied “property” with arms. As more and more white settlers arrived in America over generations, the foraging practices of many Native Americans—or, more specifically, their status as hunter-gatherers, as opposed to agricultural practitioners—was used to justify driving them from lands they had historically occupied. . 2. Anti-Foraging Laws Targeting African Americans . After the Civil War, plantation owners in the American South moved forcefully and systematically to restrict the foraging rights and practices of newly freed African American slaves. Many slaves freed after the Civil War understandably sought to leave farm work—and the farmers who had enslaved them—behind. As they had before the Civil War, freed slaves earned money by selling foods they foraged and hunted. In addition to income, foraging provided African Americans with some degree of self-sufficiency. . New York City parks officials have long taken a dim view of foragers in city parks. A forager caught in New York City could face fines of up to $250. However, the city has, in most cases, opted in favor of education and discouraging foragers over issuing fines. But there are exceptions, such as the 1986 arrest of Central Park forager Steve Brill. Brill, a New Yorker who goes by the moniker “Wildman,” was arrested in a sting operation carried out by city officials. Brill was arrested for leading paid foraging tours in New York City’s Central Park. Brill’s “crime” was described as “snatching and eating dandelion greens from the meadows of Central Park.” The city’s parks commissioner at the time, Henry Stern, said he “couldn’t stomach the idea of anyone ‘eating our parks.” Brill’s arrest and subsequent trial was “a public relations debacle for the parks department” and made news in more than a dozen national and international newspapers. Ultimately, the city dropped the charges against Brill after he agreed to lead his foraging tours as an employee of the city’s Parks Department, which he did for several years. . IG: Bands and Botanicals @bandsandbotanicals Danielle: @Daniellemcrease Paula: @Botanically_curious --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bandsandbotanicals/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bandsandbotanicals/support