HN4U Blog
Rhubarb, oh so mouth watering
Published June 25th, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
This last week I picked up my first CSA (community supported agriculture) box from Big Lick Farms – regular at the Roseburg and area farmers markets. I filled my cooler with heads of lettuce, radishes the size of golf balls, snap peas, chard, bok choy, sweet strawberries and rhubarb.
This [...]
Munching through the Woods
Published June 18th, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
Like many we spend our spring and summer weekends stomping around in the woods of Southern Oregon. This spring I was introduced to the flavorful wild green locally known as Miner Lettuce. As my husband came up to me hunched over a clump of green vegetation, he saw me pluck [...]
Plantain Weed for Health
Published June 8th, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
Plantain is a persistent weed in gardens, on lawns and even in driveway cracks in the Pacific Northwest. But plantain is one of the most medicinally powerful “nuisance” plants in gardens and yards not being taking advantage of for health, perhaps to our detriment. The green leaves and small, stalk-like [...]
The Dreaded Dandelion
Published June 1st, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
It is spring, and along with all the gardening and grass mowing, comes weeding. Americans spend millions on weed killers to eradicate dandelions from yards and ball fields every year. The health challenges of all the chemicals being placed on soils, and eventually into water systems is [...]
Buckwheat – a pioneer food
Published May 31st, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
Buckwheat is not related to wheat, nor grass even a type of grain. Instead, buckwheat is related to sorrel, knotweed, and rhubarb. Because its seeds are eaten, it is referred to as a pseudo-cereal.
Common buckwheat was domesticated and first cultivated in inland Southeast Asia, possibly around 6000 BC, and [...]
Essential Oil Use on the Rise
Published May 19th, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
Over the last year more and more clients are asking me about essential oil use for the prevention of super bugs and illnesses. The use of essential oils for health dates back to beyond the ancient Egyptians. Herbal medicine has been used for more than burial and religious rites, it [...]
Show a Little Leg
Published May 12th, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
Lamb is a staple food throughout the world including Turkey, Greece, New Zealand, Australia, Africa, and countries of the Middle East. In the U.S., per capita consumption of lamb is much lower than in the rest of the world. Half of all lamb consumed in the U.S. is imported, and [...]
Chemophobia & Other Food Nonsense
Published May 5th, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
I’m about to make a confession – There are times I have no clue as to what to write this column on. This week was just one of those times. The clock was ticking, and the deadline was at hand, and still I had no inkling, shimmer or clue. Then [...]
Hawthorn: an Herb Worthy of Consideration
Published April 28th, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
Ms. T, a lady who works in my office swears by hawthorn for anything to do with your heart and circulation. As with many things this inspired me to look into the history and use of hawthorn berry – was it a herb worth adding to my arsenal, and what [...]
Bag’s, Box’s, Can’s and Jar’s
Published April 21st, 2015
by Tammera J. Karr, PhD
For years I have repeated the line to clients about clean the “bags, boxes, cans and jars” out of your diet, and more times than not I hear the response – “but there are healthy foods in those containers”. But are they really what we think they are. Journalist Joanna [...]