New Book, "Bush Medicine of the Bahamas," Preserves Knowledge of Bahamian Traditional Medicine and Tropical Plants Used to Treat Common Ailments and Diseases
Ethnobotanist, Jeffrey H. McCormack, Ph.D., announces the release of his new book, “Bush Medicine of the Bahamas.” McCormack says that what makes the book unique is the multi-dimensional approach. It includes a materia medica, pharmacological notes, oral histories, and cross-cultural uses of Bahamian medicinal plants, and it can be used a field guide to medicinal plants.
The residents of the Bahamas practice a form of traditional medicine
using tropical plants for curing diseases and treating ailments. On his
website (http://www.bushmedicine.org)
lead author, Jeffrey H. McCormack, Ph.D., writes that the enslaved
African ancestors of the Bahamian people brought to the New World a
practical knowledge of medicinal plants, and a legacy of "medicinal
plant literacy" that helped them "read" and recognize the potential
healing qualities of the many new and unfamiliar plants of the Bahamas.
Under the influence of European and colonial practices, their diverse
beliefs and healing practices were then simplified, distilled,
transformed, reformulated, and further refined by generations of
experimentation. This distinctive form of medicine is of value today for
what it tells us of a unique culture, traditional healing, and the
therapeutic value of their plants.
This book, a comprehensive treatment of Bahamian bush medicine on San
Salvador Island, is dedicated to the preservation and continued use of
this knowledge before it is lost. Chapters explore the cultural roots,
principles, and practice of bush medicine. The materia medica covers 120
medicinal plants and 22 non-botanical remedies, including details of
administration and dosage, pharmacology, and cross-cultural uses of bush
medicine. Throughout the book, colorful oral histories provide details
of the healers' practices and glimpses of the culture of San Salvador
Island in the Bahamas. What makes the book sing are the oral histories
and personal stories. As internationally-celebrated nature writer, Gary
Paul Nabhan has written, “... what beautiful stories they are, some of
them with healing power in their own right.”
This book can also serve as a field guide to medicinal flora and will
therefore be of interest to nature-minded travelers throughout the
Caribbean. Currently, it is available through several distributors in
the Bahamas and U.S., and online at http://www.bushmedicine.org/orders-retail.html
Published by JHM Designs Publications, Charlottesville, VA, this is a
large hardcover book (9” x 12” x 1”) of nearly 400 pages, including 161
illustrations (104 in color). Additional illustrations include
photographs of bush medicine practitioners and island landscapes where
they harvest their plant medicines. One of the appendices contains a
dictionary of Bahamian dialect.
Excellent advance reviews from Gary Paul Nabhan, James A. Duke,
Rosita Arvigo, and Roy Upton. For example: "This is the most
comprehensive and richest ethnobotanical presentation on traditional
bush medicine that I have seen ..." For additional information see
"Reviews" at http://www.bushmedicine.org/reviews-bush-medicine.html
The lead author, Jeffrey Holt McCormack, Ph.D., is formerly a faculty
member at Middlebury College, and the University of Virginia. Trained
in natural products chemistry and physiological plant ecology he has
worked in the fields of sustainable agriculture, genetic preservation,
plant breeding, and ethnobotany. Co-author, Kathleen Maier, P.A., RH, is
a nationally known herbalist, and recipient of the first Medicinal
Plant Conservation Award bestowed by the United Plant Savers. Co-author,
Patty Wallens, M.A., has a background in child development, family
relations, medical interviewing and home-based counseling.