May 9, 2022
This week on the show we’re going to learn about plant medicines from the beautiful islands of French Polynesia. Our guest is Dr. Francois Chassagne; he’s a research group leader at the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development. He works on developing ethnobotanical and pharmacological tools to validate the use of traditional remedies in developing countries and French Overseas territories. We discuss some of his latest research on medicinal plants for treating diarrhea and a form of toxic fish food poisoning, known as ciguatera. Learn more about Dr. Chassagne’s work by following him on Twitter at @chassagne_f
#islands #ethnobotany #ciguatera #FrenchPolynesia #PacificIslanders #diarrhea #MedicinalPlantsa #FoodiePharmacology #Quave
May 2, 2022
Every culture has monsters that eat us, and every culture repels in horror when we eat ourselves. This week on the show, we explore the inhuman acts of consumption found in stories of anthropophagous monsters and cannibals. Our guest is Kevin Wetmore, author of Eaters of the Dead and many other books. Kevin is an actor, director, stage combat choreographer, and professor of Theatre Arts at Loyola Marymount University. We discuss the cultural and environmental conditions that create myths of corpse-eating monsters and examine conditions in modern human societies where cannibalism still occurs.
#myths #monsters #cannibals #Grendel
April 25, 2022
Did you know that an estimated 80% of the world relies on medicinal plants as their main source of medicine? This week, I speak with Amanda Thiel, who is working towards her PhD in Anthropology at Washington State University. She shares insights from her research on medicinal plants and home gardens of the Q’eqchi’ Maya people of Guatemala. We discuss how certain fruit trees are used as food and medicine, and how community relationships and sharing of plant resources fosters health resilience. You can follow Amanda on Twitter @AmandaMThiel1
I also share some info on an upcoming June 2022 expedition to study medicinal plants of the Balkans. Head over to our crowdfunding site to learn more: https://momentum.emory.edu/quave
April 11, 2022
Who’s hungry for meat? How about plant-based meat? Our guest this week is Jody Boyman, co-founder of Hungry Planet, a plant-based meat company that offers a full range of inventive products, from burger patties and chicken to Italian sausage, crab cakes, pork Thai meatballs and more. Jody shares the story of building the company and developing flavorful plant-based products. You can check out more about Hungry Planet products on Instagram @hungryplanetfoods.
#plantbased #vegetarian #foodtech
April 4, 2022
Humans have practiced the art of fasting across cultures and religions over millennia. But its only just in the past few years that the science behind how fasting impacts our health has begun to emerge. This week, I speak with Dr. William Hsu, Chief Medical Officer at L-Nutra. Dr. Hsu walks us through the different modalities of fasting and how this practice can lead to a longer healthspan.
#healthspan #fasting #diet
March 14, 2022
This week, we take a closer look at how technological innovations are changing the landscape of the foods we eat. Not so many years ago, eating a veggie burger was a rather dull, mushy experience. Yet, today, you can find plant-based foods in the meat section of the grocery store that actually make a convincing pass at the flavor and texture of everything from ground meat to chicken nuggets! These techie foods are made with an assortment of plant-derived proteins and flavors… but just how healthy are they for humans and the planet? I speak with Larissa Zimberoff, author of the new book “Technically Food: Inside Silicon Valley’s Mission to Change What We Eat.” You can follow Larissa’s work at her Website, or on social media at Instagram, Twitter, or TikTok.
#TechnicallyFood #FoodScience #techfood #Nuggets
February 28, 2022
Throughout human history, humans have faced periods of intense food shortages and even famines. The cause of famines can differ, and whether it is due to poor economic policy, drought, crop disease, or pests, one thing remains the same: humans seek out alternative food sources to fill the gap. My guest this week is Dr. Paul Minnis, an ethnobiologist and expert on famine foods! We talk about the role of famine foods in history and their importance to the future of food security. To learn more, check out his latest book, Famine Foods: Plants We Eat to Survive.
#Famine #wildfoods #survival
February 21, 2022
This week, we get to the root of things! Literally! I speak with Dr. Eve Emshwiller, ethnobotanist and expert on the Andean tuber crop “Oca” in the genus Oxalis. We dig into the fascinating genetics, chemistry, and morphology of this staple food source. We also discuss how research on crop wild relatives can contribute to food security for the future.
#oca #Andes #crops #eveemshwiller
February 14, 2022
I speak with archeologist and paleobotanist, Dr. Matthew Biwer, about some exciting new research on ancient beer brewing practices in the pre-Columbian Andes. We discuss evidence that Peruvian peppertree (molle, the source of pink peppercorns) was used as a beer ingredient along with a DMT-containing plant (a bean tree locally known as vilca). While vilca was used as a hallucinogenic snuff by other groups, archeological evidence at Quilcapampa indicates that it may have also been used in molle brews. From entheogens to beer and ancient feasting practices, there are a lot of fun concepts to unpack in this episode.
#beer #Wari #hallucinogen #pinkpeppercorn
February 7, 2022
At Foodie Pharmacology, we’re not only fascinated with the incredible pharmacological potential of medicinal plants, but are also eager to learn more about how this translates into integrative medicine. We have a wonderful guest today to discuss this topic: Dr. Stephen Dahmer. Dr. Dahmer is a board-certified family physician whose passion for health and healing has taken him around the globe. A fellow of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine, for over two decades he has studied the relationships between plants and people, working closely with diverse cultures and documenting their uses of plants and other integrative therapies. You can learn more about Dr. Dahmer’s work supporting clinical trials on Cannabis at https://vireohealth.com/ and follow him on social media on Twitter @DrStephenDahmer and Instagram @stephendahmermd .
#cannabis #ClinicalTrials #IntegrativeMedicine