Some people may remember being sent off to search for wild herbs by elderly relatives who referred to the hospital as the 'horse-spital' and then said: "I ain't goan daan der."

Those were the days when the art of growing, searching for and then using herbs to cure illnesses were still alive and commonplace.

Now those forgotton skills are being resurrected in a new course being given by Dr. Kuni Frith Black, a classical naturopath and auricular acupuncturist. Her course will look at herbs, their benefits and uses in both cooking and remedies.

"I am offering a five-week course on medicinal and culinary herbs," she told The Royal Gazette.

"People will have a lot of hands on activity and there will be a part of the course that is a nature walk when we will go out and identify herbs in the wild and do some wild harvesting.

"Thank goodness that we still have some pockets of green in Bermuda that we can actually go out and find these herbs, not in abundance as it was years ago, but certainly people will get a feeling of how to pick the herbs."

On the use of herbs and their benefits in cooking, she said: "Lots of people don't know how to use fresh herbs in their meals and with the epidemic of diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol and other issues that we have many of these herbs help to reduce many of these illnesses.

"For instance parsley is a diuretic, and also not just adding flavour for the food, but deriving some medicinal benefits as well."

Reacquainting the public to Bermuda's folk medicine is another aspect of the course.

"I thought it would be nice to reintroduce people to folk medicine in Bermuda, because that was a very big part of our heritage," said Dr. Frith Black.

"During cold and flu season Match Me If You can leaves were packed on your chest and not only that, older people would soak it in white rum and use it for their rheumatism.

"Cochineal was used to cool your blood and periwinkle for high blood pressure and you can just go on and on.

"Also Bermuda mulberry was used to regulate your blood sugar level, so you can dry the leaves and make it into a tea."

Her aim is not to discourage people from using traditional medicine, but to introduce an alternative.

"I am not discouraging people from using pharmaceuticals certainly, but let's use some other preventive measures, and help the food to taste good and learn different ways of cooking as well. Let's learn how to make herbal teas and what you would to put in a home herb garden.

"So you are not just flavouring or spicing up your foods, but also growing something that you can actually go out and use that has medicinal properties, as all herbs do. It is just knowing which one is for what as Nature's pharmacy offers many solutions to common illnesses.

"It is like maintenance, if you have a car, you need the air filter and the oil and spark plugs changed, you need to do that with the body too — we have an engine too.

"And certainly herbs eliminate using heavy sauces and high sodium content in food, because they have their own aromatic flavours."

The course begins on September 26 and it runs for five Saturdays. It is from 11 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. A light lunch will be provided. Ring Dr. Frith-Black on 238-1227.