Do you use any herbs in cooking? Many people do but don’t give it much thought. Take sage. Most people use it a couple times a year maybe, when making stuffing. But herbalists use sage a lot more frequently.
Sage is Mediterranean in origin. There are different varieties, and one comes from Central America. The Central American kind is unusual to say the least, as it can cause someone to hallucinate. The native people of the region of Central America where that kind of sage grows use it for religious purposes.
Ancient Romans considered sage to be sacred. They believed this so strongly that they required a ritual be performed before sage was harvested. A food sacrifice had to be given by the person who would do the harvesting, and this person had to be wearing clean clothing.
Further, the person’s feet had to be clean. The harvesting itself required that the person use a special non-iron knife. Iron reacts with sage, which explains the choice of different materials.
Sage has a history in China as well. The Chinese discovered sage tea, right around when the Dutch discovered Chinese tea. This resulted in a lucrative trade system being set up. The Dutch would trade one part of sage for four parts Chinese tea. Clearly, the trade was in the Dutch traders’ favor. They could then sell the tea for a huge profit.
We herbalists are also big fans of sage. For instance, I’ll use sage to help someone who is having a flare up of irritable bowel syndrome. To serve up the sage, I’ll simmer the leaves in beef broth for maybe twenty minutes. Chicken broth works just as well, the broth isn’t therapeutic but is used for flavor because many people don’t enjoy sage tea straight.
Sage has a drying aspect. This is very handy. Herbalists use sage to help women who are weaning children. Sage will help dry up milk flow, but is safe to give to a still-nursing mother because it won’t hurt the child. It is also useful in cases where someone sweats too much, or for women having night sweats from menopause.
You should check with your doctor first before starting any herbal remedy. Use of herbs in cooking is fine and won’t complicate your health, but in treatment amounts you want to make sure that the herb won’t interact with medications you are on or make other conditions worsen.
In addition to herbal remedies, the writer additionally regularly shares writing about catnip toys and the laser cat toy.