1 00:00:00,520 --> 00:00:03,239 Speaker 1: Brought to you by the two thousand twelve Toyota Cameray. 2 00:00:03,440 --> 00:00:11,000 Speaker 1: It's ready. Are you welcome to stuff to Blow your Mind? 3 00:00:11,160 --> 00:00:18,000 Speaker 1: From how Stuff Works dot Com? Hey, you welcome to 4 00:00:18,040 --> 00:00:20,120 Speaker 1: stuff to Blow your Mind. My name is Robert Lamb 5 00:00:20,160 --> 00:00:23,040 Speaker 1: and I'm Julie Douglas, and we are just coming off 6 00:00:23,079 --> 00:00:27,360 Speaker 1: of the holidays here in which we all, to our shame, 7 00:00:28,120 --> 00:00:29,680 Speaker 1: had a little bit too much of all the various 8 00:00:29,720 --> 00:00:34,919 Speaker 1: holiday things. Uh, the holiday foods, the holiday visits with family, um, 9 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:38,600 Speaker 1: the holiday travel, the listening to the holiday music at 10 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:42,240 Speaker 1: the train station as it's piped in to fill everyone 11 00:00:42,280 --> 00:00:45,760 Speaker 1: with holiday cheer and reduce gang violence. It seems like 12 00:00:45,880 --> 00:00:51,080 Speaker 1: Christmas last for several months, just forever. But one of 13 00:00:51,080 --> 00:00:53,400 Speaker 1: the things that's reassuring is when we can find some 14 00:00:53,479 --> 00:00:56,160 Speaker 1: little bit of Christmas that also has a dark side 15 00:00:56,160 --> 00:00:58,639 Speaker 1: to it, or I don't reassuring to me, be at 16 00:00:58,680 --> 00:01:01,880 Speaker 1: Crampus in his his relationship with St. Nick, or in 17 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:06,160 Speaker 1: this case, a little something called nutmeg, which, as you say, 18 00:01:06,200 --> 00:01:07,880 Speaker 1: it's a little bit of Christmas that you can find 19 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:10,880 Speaker 1: all year long. Yeah, I mean it basically is the 20 00:01:10,920 --> 00:01:14,319 Speaker 1: smell of Christmas, right it is, and and people love it. 21 00:01:14,360 --> 00:01:18,360 Speaker 1: They love it on their eggnog, on their fancy coffee drinks, 22 00:01:18,959 --> 00:01:22,959 Speaker 1: and in some savory dishes. Um. It's probably something that 23 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:26,040 Speaker 1: you've never considered before as having an evil side, but 24 00:01:26,200 --> 00:01:30,480 Speaker 1: in fact it does. You also have it insiders. Um, 25 00:01:30,600 --> 00:01:33,120 Speaker 1: I don't like him. Inside. I love cider, but but 26 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:35,680 Speaker 1: there's something about either if it's hard side or a 27 00:01:35,720 --> 00:01:37,319 Speaker 1: soft side, or it's got the nutmeg, and I don't 28 00:01:37,360 --> 00:01:39,960 Speaker 1: really go for it. But but in other things, like 29 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:43,160 Speaker 1: a little bit of of nutmeg on top of some eggnog, 30 00:01:43,160 --> 00:01:45,000 Speaker 1: a little bit of nutmeg on top of even like 31 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:47,840 Speaker 1: a vanilla milkshake. It gives it just a little a 32 00:01:47,880 --> 00:01:50,040 Speaker 1: little punch, right, there's a little just some heat to it, 33 00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:53,400 Speaker 1: like a dry heat. Yes. And it's actually that's app 34 00:01:53,440 --> 00:01:55,640 Speaker 1: that you say that's a dry heat, because it's explained 35 00:01:55,640 --> 00:01:58,000 Speaker 1: that way in what we say, or what we call 36 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:00,920 Speaker 1: the four temperaments. Um. And we talked about this before, 37 00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:03,120 Speaker 1: this idea that there are four different tomperaments that rule 38 00:02:03,200 --> 00:02:07,640 Speaker 1: the human body. This is a very old idea, dry, cold, hot, 39 00:02:07,720 --> 00:02:11,520 Speaker 1: and wet. So Um. This spice is actually thought to 40 00:02:11,720 --> 00:02:15,160 Speaker 1: help with various ailments because the idea is that you 41 00:02:15,200 --> 00:02:18,000 Speaker 1: have to balance these four temperaments. So when you have 42 00:02:18,160 --> 00:02:21,760 Speaker 1: this spice, which is kind of like a bitter cinnamon um, 43 00:02:21,800 --> 00:02:26,400 Speaker 1: it is thought, at least in some ancient civilizations and cultures, 44 00:02:26,440 --> 00:02:30,639 Speaker 1: that it could actually have a myriad effects on your body, 45 00:02:30,800 --> 00:02:34,320 Speaker 1: which we will explore a bit. Yeah, I mean it's 46 00:02:34,360 --> 00:02:36,919 Speaker 1: in it's in a lot of cool Indian dishes. It's 47 00:02:37,040 --> 00:02:40,760 Speaker 1: it's in coca cola. Uh, you find it all over 48 00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:42,799 Speaker 1: the place, but it is. It is, like we said, 49 00:02:42,800 --> 00:02:46,560 Speaker 1: it's a very old thing using the nutmeg, But some 50 00:02:46,680 --> 00:02:49,280 Speaker 1: of the more ancient uses of it really relate more 51 00:02:49,400 --> 00:02:53,400 Speaker 1: to medicinal purposes and folk medicine purposes, in addition to 52 00:02:53,760 --> 00:02:56,880 Speaker 1: in some cases culinary sources as well. So it has 53 00:02:56,919 --> 00:02:59,040 Speaker 1: a very interesting history which we're going to get into, 54 00:02:59,080 --> 00:03:00,880 Speaker 1: and then it has a very arresting effect on the 55 00:03:00,919 --> 00:03:03,960 Speaker 1: human body, depending on how much you're taking in. Well, 56 00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:06,160 Speaker 1: let's get to the nut of it, as it were. Yes, 57 00:03:06,240 --> 00:03:09,960 Speaker 1: what is the nutmeg? Right? Is it some fancy spice 58 00:03:10,040 --> 00:03:12,639 Speaker 1: that I don't know comes out of a dead sand worm? 59 00:03:12,880 --> 00:03:15,440 Speaker 1: Is it? Is it carved out of the earth. No, 60 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:18,480 Speaker 1: it's it's like you said, it's from this nut right, Yes, 61 00:03:18,600 --> 00:03:21,600 Speaker 1: And it comes actually from the nutmeg tree which has 62 00:03:21,600 --> 00:03:26,760 Speaker 1: grown commercially in Indonesia, Penang Island, Malaysia, and the West Indies. 63 00:03:26,880 --> 00:03:30,160 Speaker 1: It's an evergreen with thick, dark green leaves and reaches 64 00:03:30,240 --> 00:03:33,360 Speaker 1: a maximum height of forty feet um and in some 65 00:03:33,840 --> 00:03:37,160 Speaker 1: cases or some areas that actually shrub like, and it 66 00:03:37,200 --> 00:03:41,120 Speaker 1: has fragrant yellow flowers that produce yellow fruit about the 67 00:03:41,120 --> 00:03:43,000 Speaker 1: size and the shape of apricots. And a lot of 68 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:45,880 Speaker 1: people don't realize that it's actually coming from this fruit 69 00:03:45,920 --> 00:03:48,960 Speaker 1: bearing tree. And so you get you have the fruit, 70 00:03:49,240 --> 00:03:52,560 Speaker 1: and if you peel away the fruit, or if you're 71 00:03:52,720 --> 00:03:54,680 Speaker 1: like a two can, two cans apparently love to eat 72 00:03:54,720 --> 00:03:57,480 Speaker 1: the fruit, peel away the fruit and you'll find basically 73 00:03:57,560 --> 00:03:59,760 Speaker 1: you'll find in here the nutmegs seed and the nutmegs 74 00:03:59,800 --> 00:04:03,440 Speaker 1: seed itself is wrapped up in these flaps of of 75 00:04:03,520 --> 00:04:07,040 Speaker 1: what is called mace, which is another spice derivative is 76 00:04:07,400 --> 00:04:09,840 Speaker 1: obtained from the mace. So that kind of netting on it. Yeah, 77 00:04:09,880 --> 00:04:11,280 Speaker 1: it's kind of like this netting kind of like an 78 00:04:11,280 --> 00:04:14,120 Speaker 1: outer uh well not an outer skin, but peel a 79 00:04:14,160 --> 00:04:15,880 Speaker 1: way the first layer of fruit and then there'll be 80 00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:19,039 Speaker 1: another small layer of mace, and then in the very 81 00:04:19,080 --> 00:04:23,880 Speaker 1: center that's your nut that's your nutmeg seed, and that's 82 00:04:23,920 --> 00:04:26,760 Speaker 1: what's dried by sunlight for about one to two months. 83 00:04:26,760 --> 00:04:29,279 Speaker 1: And then when it's dried, it's pretty much like oval 84 00:04:29,320 --> 00:04:32,680 Speaker 1: in shape and about an inch long, has a wrinkled surface, 85 00:04:32,760 --> 00:04:35,560 Speaker 1: and it's got fragrant oil contained in the veins of 86 00:04:35,560 --> 00:04:38,719 Speaker 1: the seed and that's what gives it that nice scent um, 87 00:04:38,800 --> 00:04:43,400 Speaker 1: that that that aroma that we associate with the holidays. Yeah, now, 88 00:04:43,760 --> 00:04:46,920 Speaker 1: how long have people been using nutmeg and things. It's 89 00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:49,679 Speaker 1: really hard to say, certainly millennia, just to be vague 90 00:04:49,720 --> 00:04:51,520 Speaker 1: about it. We know that it's been used in Asia 91 00:04:52,040 --> 00:04:55,120 Speaker 1: for just ages. We know that the ancient Romans used it, 92 00:04:55,200 --> 00:04:59,320 Speaker 1: but mainly to sprinkle into alcoholic drinks, which which we 93 00:04:59,360 --> 00:05:01,320 Speaker 1: still do to some agree today. I was looking around 94 00:05:01,400 --> 00:05:03,200 Speaker 1: and uh, there were none of the drinks or anything 95 00:05:03,240 --> 00:05:05,840 Speaker 1: I was particularly familiar with. But there are drinks, mixed 96 00:05:05,880 --> 00:05:08,400 Speaker 1: drinks and cocktails that call for nutmeg. That's far to 97 00:05:08,480 --> 00:05:12,080 Speaker 1: Medieval Renaissance banquets and mason nutmeg were both very popular, 98 00:05:12,120 --> 00:05:14,320 Speaker 1: along with things like cinnamon, which they would just throw 99 00:05:14,480 --> 00:05:17,560 Speaker 1: into dishes, just large amounts, because I guess at that 100 00:05:17,600 --> 00:05:20,520 Speaker 1: time maybe the more you could cover up, the better. Right, 101 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:23,880 Speaker 1: and then and then in the centuries to follow it 102 00:05:24,160 --> 00:05:27,159 Speaker 1: became so fashionable among French courmets that you'd actually bring 103 00:05:27,200 --> 00:05:30,240 Speaker 1: your own nutmeg to a banquet so that you could 104 00:05:30,279 --> 00:05:32,600 Speaker 1: add nutmeg to your to your own dish, to your 105 00:05:32,640 --> 00:05:35,919 Speaker 1: own particular taste. Well. And that was absolutely a sign 106 00:05:35,920 --> 00:05:38,240 Speaker 1: of wealth too at that time, right, because then this 107 00:05:38,320 --> 00:05:41,200 Speaker 1: became the spice of the upper classes because it was 108 00:05:41,320 --> 00:05:45,400 Speaker 1: so highly coveted at that time the seventeenth century um 109 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:48,640 Speaker 1: and onward into the eighteenth century that European traders were 110 00:05:48,680 --> 00:05:52,040 Speaker 1: selling it at nearly a six thousand percent mark up. Yeah, 111 00:05:52,040 --> 00:05:55,320 Speaker 1: this stuff was just like gold. It was. We saw 112 00:05:55,400 --> 00:05:57,400 Speaker 1: one historian who's referring to it as the iPhone of 113 00:05:57,480 --> 00:06:00,200 Speaker 1: the time too. It's just like so popular. Everybody had 114 00:06:00,200 --> 00:06:02,279 Speaker 1: to have it, I mean to the point where people 115 00:06:02,360 --> 00:06:07,000 Speaker 1: had to have it nearly because it was a status symbol. Yeah. Absolutely, 116 00:06:07,040 --> 00:06:08,840 Speaker 1: if you were carrying it, that meant that you were 117 00:06:08,880 --> 00:06:11,440 Speaker 1: a player. Yeah, you're a player at the table. Like 118 00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:15,240 Speaker 1: they had like rap videos back back in the sixteenth century. 119 00:06:15,240 --> 00:06:19,080 Speaker 1: You can totally imagine like guys leaning back, uh, you know, 120 00:06:19,080 --> 00:06:23,240 Speaker 1: showing off their their nutmeg shaker or grinder or whatever. 121 00:06:23,320 --> 00:06:25,520 Speaker 1: Method you would you would choose to to really show 122 00:06:25,560 --> 00:06:29,280 Speaker 1: off your nutmegitude. Yeah, I know, I'm just trying. I'm 123 00:06:29,279 --> 00:06:31,640 Speaker 1: putting the wrap is now like coming together. I'm thinking 124 00:06:31,640 --> 00:06:34,680 Speaker 1: like Tico Brahy kind of a dude, you know, just 125 00:06:34,720 --> 00:06:37,760 Speaker 1: really you know, with a total gangster lean kind of 126 00:06:37,800 --> 00:06:40,760 Speaker 1: going on with a nutmeg shaker. No, I'm seeing a 127 00:06:40,760 --> 00:06:45,279 Speaker 1: tricorn hat perhaps. Yeah. Um. So obviously this becomes a 128 00:06:45,360 --> 00:06:48,520 Speaker 1: really big deal in the spice trade, along with clothes 129 00:06:48,560 --> 00:06:51,479 Speaker 1: and cinnamon. Um. But what you began to see is 130 00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:54,520 Speaker 1: that there are two different countries that are trying to 131 00:06:54,560 --> 00:06:59,240 Speaker 1: have some sort of dominancy over this particular nutmeg spice trade, 132 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:03,480 Speaker 1: and that is Britain and um in the Netherlands. And 133 00:07:03,520 --> 00:07:05,240 Speaker 1: they're both trying to push each other out because again 134 00:07:05,279 --> 00:07:08,000 Speaker 1: we're talking about a six thousand percent markup right, like 135 00:07:08,240 --> 00:07:11,160 Speaker 1: this is yielding great results. I mean, they've got crops 136 00:07:11,200 --> 00:07:14,160 Speaker 1: that aren't doing nearly as well. Um, They've got you know, 137 00:07:14,600 --> 00:07:16,680 Speaker 1: various livestock that's not going to bring in this kind 138 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:19,800 Speaker 1: of money. So it becomes a really big deal. Yeah. 139 00:07:19,840 --> 00:07:21,400 Speaker 1: And at the time, the other thing that makes it 140 00:07:21,440 --> 00:07:23,920 Speaker 1: really crazy is that as far as anyone knew, there 141 00:07:23,960 --> 00:07:26,080 Speaker 1: was really only one place to get it, despite you 142 00:07:26,080 --> 00:07:28,040 Speaker 1: know the fact we mentioned earlier, it was it was, 143 00:07:28,360 --> 00:07:30,040 Speaker 1: it was in India. You see it popping up in 144 00:07:30,080 --> 00:07:32,760 Speaker 1: the aer vedic traditions, you see it popping up in 145 00:07:32,800 --> 00:07:34,800 Speaker 1: Asia the ancient Romans. So we're able to get their 146 00:07:34,840 --> 00:07:36,720 Speaker 1: hands on it. But as far as the Dutch and 147 00:07:36,760 --> 00:07:39,560 Speaker 1: the English knew, the only place to get it was 148 00:07:39,600 --> 00:07:42,880 Speaker 1: to sail out to the Run Islands in the Banda Sea, 149 00:07:43,080 --> 00:07:45,200 Speaker 1: which is now eastern Indonesia. And there were a few 150 00:07:45,200 --> 00:07:48,680 Speaker 1: islands there, and that's where you went to get the nut. Well, 151 00:07:48,720 --> 00:07:50,720 Speaker 1: and you know, this is um this is the part 152 00:07:50,720 --> 00:07:53,960 Speaker 1: of eastern Indonesia. And what you have going on here 153 00:07:54,000 --> 00:07:56,800 Speaker 1: is you've got the Dutch again trying to be dominant here. 154 00:07:57,000 --> 00:08:01,400 Speaker 1: And unfortunately, what they're doing at this time in the 155 00:08:01,520 --> 00:08:04,280 Speaker 1: Run Islands is that they're telling the inhabitants, if you 156 00:08:04,360 --> 00:08:07,520 Speaker 1: share any of these seeds with anyone, we will kill you. 157 00:08:07,720 --> 00:08:10,320 Speaker 1: And they do. Actually, they actually conduct a bit of 158 00:08:10,320 --> 00:08:14,000 Speaker 1: a genocide on this island, really straight up horrible, like 159 00:08:14,080 --> 00:08:17,200 Speaker 1: running people off of cliffs, beheading people. And then if 160 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:19,920 Speaker 1: you if you weren't actually killed out right, you ran 161 00:08:19,960 --> 00:08:23,160 Speaker 1: the risk of being deported under horrifying conditions that you 162 00:08:23,640 --> 00:08:27,720 Speaker 1: probably would not survive. Uh. And in upwards of of 163 00:08:27,760 --> 00:08:30,280 Speaker 1: the native population was just wiped out in the name 164 00:08:30,360 --> 00:08:35,360 Speaker 1: of this super fashionable spice which everyone was into. I 165 00:08:35,360 --> 00:08:38,040 Speaker 1: mean maybe on some level because of the flavor. Sure, 166 00:08:38,080 --> 00:08:40,760 Speaker 1: it does add a unique punch to anything you sprinkle 167 00:08:40,760 --> 00:08:43,000 Speaker 1: it on, but then so much of it was prestige 168 00:08:43,280 --> 00:08:45,640 Speaker 1: and then these various ideas about what it can do 169 00:08:45,720 --> 00:08:48,440 Speaker 1: for you healthwise, which we'll get into in a little bit. Right. Right, So, 170 00:08:48,480 --> 00:08:51,280 Speaker 1: there are various reasons why the Dutch wanted to try 171 00:08:51,320 --> 00:08:54,680 Speaker 1: to clamp down on the islanders and make sure that 172 00:08:54,720 --> 00:08:57,480 Speaker 1: they didn't trade these seeds or sell these seats. And yeah, 173 00:08:57,520 --> 00:09:01,200 Speaker 1: I mean they're absolutely vicious, very bloody. Um. But that 174 00:09:01,320 --> 00:09:04,680 Speaker 1: didn't obviously stop the trade because you have some British 175 00:09:04,679 --> 00:09:06,800 Speaker 1: people who would come and they would grab the plants 176 00:09:06,840 --> 00:09:09,760 Speaker 1: and then they would just plant them elsewhere. Um. India's 177 00:09:09,760 --> 00:09:13,240 Speaker 1: when of the places that they transported Brazil eventually as 178 00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:17,640 Speaker 1: Sri Lanka. Yeah, and then you have birds, birds eating 179 00:09:17,640 --> 00:09:20,480 Speaker 1: the fruit and then poving out the seeds in various 180 00:09:20,520 --> 00:09:24,160 Speaker 1: places along the way. Um, you can't stop the birds. Right. 181 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:27,680 Speaker 1: It reminds me of Monsanto, which is the seed company 182 00:09:27,800 --> 00:09:30,400 Speaker 1: here in the United States that has a patent on 183 00:09:30,520 --> 00:09:33,840 Speaker 1: certain seeds, and every once in a while they will 184 00:09:33,840 --> 00:09:37,520 Speaker 1: try to prosecute farmers who they say are growing their 185 00:09:37,520 --> 00:09:40,880 Speaker 1: seeds without having actually purchased the seeds, when in fact 186 00:09:40,880 --> 00:09:43,200 Speaker 1: those seeds actually were blown by the wind over to 187 00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:45,120 Speaker 1: their land. So it's sort of you know, you get 188 00:09:45,120 --> 00:09:47,200 Speaker 1: into this situation where it's kind of futile to try 189 00:09:47,200 --> 00:09:50,280 Speaker 1: to control nature like this. But that's what the Dutch did. Yeah, 190 00:09:50,320 --> 00:09:54,480 Speaker 1: you see commercialism and imperialism, uh, smashing head on with 191 00:09:55,000 --> 00:09:59,760 Speaker 1: natural cycles of biology. Yeah. So it's it's crazy and 192 00:09:59,840 --> 00:10:02,240 Speaker 1: all simately tragic though that it ends in so much bloodshed. 193 00:10:02,320 --> 00:10:04,559 Speaker 1: And of course this is where Manhattan comes in. Yes, 194 00:10:04,640 --> 00:10:09,439 Speaker 1: Manhattan New Amsterdam as some of our older listeners but 195 00:10:09,559 --> 00:10:12,920 Speaker 1: I guess, uh but but yeah, so that the Dutch 196 00:10:13,440 --> 00:10:16,880 Speaker 1: had their little slice of New York here and uh, 197 00:10:17,000 --> 00:10:19,520 Speaker 1: eventually this goes to British hands, right, But but but 198 00:10:19,640 --> 00:10:22,280 Speaker 1: what was the trade? What? What was what was valuable 199 00:10:22,400 --> 00:10:24,600 Speaker 1: enough that they would give up the city that what 200 00:10:24,679 --> 00:10:26,920 Speaker 1: would become the city that never sleeps? Well, okay, the 201 00:10:26,960 --> 00:10:29,079 Speaker 1: Dutch are looking at New Amsterdam. They're saying Okay, there's 202 00:10:29,120 --> 00:10:31,560 Speaker 1: a fur trade, fur trade going on here, but it's 203 00:10:31,600 --> 00:10:34,480 Speaker 1: not nearly as lucrative as this nutmeg thing. And we've 204 00:10:34,480 --> 00:10:36,680 Speaker 1: got to shut this down. Yeah, because they wanted a 205 00:10:36,720 --> 00:10:39,040 Speaker 1: monopoly on nutmeg, like that was the whole thing. That's 206 00:10:39,040 --> 00:10:42,480 Speaker 1: why they were vicious enough to wipe out the whole populations. 207 00:10:42,520 --> 00:10:45,360 Speaker 1: They wanted just to lock down all of it. Nobody 208 00:10:45,360 --> 00:10:48,000 Speaker 1: gets nutmeg except through the Dutch. But then there's this 209 00:10:48,080 --> 00:10:50,000 Speaker 1: one island out there, what was thought to be the 210 00:10:50,000 --> 00:10:53,480 Speaker 1: only place in the world to obtain nutmeg. One island 211 00:10:53,520 --> 00:10:56,600 Speaker 1: is in British hands. So this becomes the trade. This 212 00:10:56,640 --> 00:10:58,760 Speaker 1: is that, this is what they have that the Dutch 213 00:10:58,800 --> 00:11:02,160 Speaker 1: want more than anything. Yeah, and here's the thing. They say, Okay, look, 214 00:11:02,240 --> 00:11:05,280 Speaker 1: we will give you this entire island, all the fur 215 00:11:05,440 --> 00:11:07,600 Speaker 1: trading that you could ever want, if we can just 216 00:11:07,640 --> 00:11:10,480 Speaker 1: go ahead and close this loophole on run Island and 217 00:11:10,520 --> 00:11:12,560 Speaker 1: just go ahead and give it to us officially. And 218 00:11:12,600 --> 00:11:15,839 Speaker 1: the British do acquiesce. They're not very excited by the trade, 219 00:11:15,840 --> 00:11:17,520 Speaker 1: by the way, like, I don't know really what to 220 00:11:17,559 --> 00:11:21,679 Speaker 1: do about this, um, But this is how how Manhattan 221 00:11:21,720 --> 00:11:27,080 Speaker 1: actually changed hands via nutmeg. All right, all that history 222 00:11:27,120 --> 00:11:29,199 Speaker 1: stuff will push it to the side because we want 223 00:11:29,200 --> 00:11:32,560 Speaker 1: to start talking about nutmeg itself and what it does 224 00:11:32,640 --> 00:11:34,680 Speaker 1: to the human body. Yes, now I do want to 225 00:11:34,679 --> 00:11:38,119 Speaker 1: mention real quick. I was I was reading and apparently 226 00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:41,000 Speaker 1: nutmeg is still a big deal if you're Dutch, like 227 00:11:41,080 --> 00:11:44,679 Speaker 1: Dutch cuisine, it like does call for a lot of nutmeg, 228 00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:47,480 Speaker 1: a lot of cinnamon, a lot of clothes, you know, 229 00:11:47,520 --> 00:11:49,280 Speaker 1: in any of these things that used to be a 230 00:11:49,320 --> 00:11:51,720 Speaker 1: really exotic and powerful spices. I mean, they were so 231 00:11:51,760 --> 00:11:54,880 Speaker 1: important at the time. They've remained in an essential part 232 00:11:54,920 --> 00:11:58,800 Speaker 1: of their culinary tradition. So even even though around the 233 00:11:58,800 --> 00:12:02,719 Speaker 1: eighteen hundreds nutmegs ceased to be the super exotic thing, 234 00:12:02,760 --> 00:12:06,319 Speaker 1: people moved on to getting excited about coffee and chocolate, 235 00:12:06,360 --> 00:12:10,120 Speaker 1: tobacco more so than before. So but like you said, 236 00:12:10,880 --> 00:12:12,520 Speaker 1: what is it due to the body? What? What are 237 00:12:12,559 --> 00:12:15,080 Speaker 1: the health benefits? And this was part of the equation 238 00:12:15,120 --> 00:12:17,480 Speaker 1: from early on because when we when we look back 239 00:12:17,640 --> 00:12:21,400 Speaker 1: at references to nutmeg, nutmeg was showing up in medical 240 00:12:21,559 --> 00:12:24,160 Speaker 1: texts and in dietary text before it was showing up 241 00:12:24,240 --> 00:12:27,040 Speaker 1: in culinary text. So it's people were realizing this was 242 00:12:27,080 --> 00:12:28,960 Speaker 1: something useful, this is something that could be used in 243 00:12:28,960 --> 00:12:31,960 Speaker 1: in folk medicine to heal various ailments, and it was, 244 00:12:33,000 --> 00:12:35,840 Speaker 1: and it's a wide array of ailments that it could 245 00:12:35,840 --> 00:12:39,400 Speaker 1: apparently or supposedly deal with. Yeah, and this is why 246 00:12:39,400 --> 00:12:41,880 Speaker 1: I ended up in cookery, right, because people are trying 247 00:12:41,880 --> 00:12:46,360 Speaker 1: to incorporate it into what they ingested. Around the time 248 00:12:46,440 --> 00:12:49,120 Speaker 1: of the Black plague too, people wore bags of the 249 00:12:49,160 --> 00:12:52,680 Speaker 1: spice around their necks as protection against the black plague, 250 00:12:52,920 --> 00:12:55,439 Speaker 1: and that might seem kind of silly, but um, it's 251 00:12:55,480 --> 00:12:59,920 Speaker 1: plausible that nutmeg actually repelled fleece that carried plague cause 252 00:13:00,040 --> 00:13:03,640 Speaker 1: in bacteria, so there was something perhaps to this. Um. 253 00:13:03,679 --> 00:13:06,480 Speaker 1: The smell of nutmeg is actually due to something called 254 00:13:06,520 --> 00:13:09,760 Speaker 1: iso u shun all, a natural pesticide that the plant 255 00:13:09,840 --> 00:13:14,080 Speaker 1: uses to defend itself against um predators like insects and 256 00:13:14,160 --> 00:13:17,320 Speaker 1: fun guy. So it's very possible that this was a 257 00:13:17,360 --> 00:13:20,599 Speaker 1: sort of pesticide that was worn around the neck to 258 00:13:20,679 --> 00:13:25,400 Speaker 1: ward off fleas. Cool and another big one was dysentery 259 00:13:25,520 --> 00:13:28,079 Speaker 1: or is the Brits caught it back then the bloody flux, 260 00:13:28,600 --> 00:13:31,840 Speaker 1: which sounds even more dreadful, but it was believed that 261 00:13:31,840 --> 00:13:35,120 Speaker 1: that nutmeg could help with that. So yeah, and then 262 00:13:35,320 --> 00:13:39,559 Speaker 1: according to Drs. Joseph Pizzorno and Michael Murray, the authors 263 00:13:39,559 --> 00:13:42,800 Speaker 1: of the Encyclopedia of Healing Foods, Nutmeg oil inhibits over 264 00:13:42,840 --> 00:13:46,760 Speaker 1: twenty five species of bacteria, including equal I. As far 265 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:49,920 Speaker 1: as nutrients go, nutmeg is a good source of vitamin A, 266 00:13:50,200 --> 00:13:54,560 Speaker 1: vitamin C, iron copper, also a protein or MAGA six, 267 00:13:54,559 --> 00:13:58,079 Speaker 1: fatty acids, dietary fiber. So there's even if you if 268 00:13:58,120 --> 00:14:00,319 Speaker 1: you discount some of the wilder claim, so there's a 269 00:14:00,360 --> 00:14:03,000 Speaker 1: lot of really good stuff going on in in nutmeg. 270 00:14:03,080 --> 00:14:06,280 Speaker 1: It's good for liver health. Researchers even today have concluded 271 00:14:06,320 --> 00:14:09,400 Speaker 1: that that it has a liver productive actions that were 272 00:14:09,480 --> 00:14:12,280 Speaker 1: that are due to its ability to reduce inflammatory immune 273 00:14:12,360 --> 00:14:16,280 Speaker 1: chemicals in the human body that would otherwise potentially harm 274 00:14:16,320 --> 00:14:19,840 Speaker 1: the liver. And it's also been found to relieve symptoms 275 00:14:19,840 --> 00:14:22,720 Speaker 1: of pain and inflammation, so it could also help with 276 00:14:22,760 --> 00:14:26,040 Speaker 1: other various symptoms, if not even the core ailments. You know. 277 00:14:26,440 --> 00:14:30,520 Speaker 1: So there are some definite health advantages just straight straight 278 00:14:30,600 --> 00:14:32,760 Speaker 1: up on the table that nuting. They can offer whether 279 00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:36,040 Speaker 1: it was actually able to secure any kind of dysentery, 280 00:14:36,160 --> 00:14:38,160 Speaker 1: might ever plague, well maybe not, but it is a 281 00:14:38,160 --> 00:14:41,280 Speaker 1: healthy thing to ingest, at least in small quantities. Ah, 282 00:14:41,280 --> 00:14:43,560 Speaker 1: and that's the key, right. And see that's when if 283 00:14:43,600 --> 00:14:45,640 Speaker 1: we had sound effects, we would have like lightning and 284 00:14:45,720 --> 00:14:50,800 Speaker 1: thunder cracking, and we begin to talk about nutmeg the vice. Yeah, 285 00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:52,720 Speaker 1: and this is this is where the where it really 286 00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:55,520 Speaker 1: gets interesting. And I think this was ultimately what initially 287 00:14:55,640 --> 00:14:58,120 Speaker 1: drew our interest and certainly continues to draw a lot 288 00:14:58,120 --> 00:15:01,000 Speaker 1: of people's interests. The idea of nutmeg as a narcotic 289 00:15:01,480 --> 00:15:05,280 Speaker 1: nutmeg as an illicit substance that can do all sorts 290 00:15:05,280 --> 00:15:08,600 Speaker 1: of strange things to you despite being just right up 291 00:15:08,640 --> 00:15:12,880 Speaker 1: there in the spice rack totally legal and uh and 292 00:15:12,880 --> 00:15:15,760 Speaker 1: and just you know, just glaring at you and I 293 00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:20,160 Speaker 1: guess tempting you to some weird degree um you here 294 00:15:20,160 --> 00:15:22,880 Speaker 1: every time you open the spice cabinet. Now, we do 295 00:15:23,000 --> 00:15:25,280 Speaker 1: need to mention though, before we even get into it, 296 00:15:25,320 --> 00:15:27,800 Speaker 1: just in case someone wants to run off and grab nutmeg, 297 00:15:28,080 --> 00:15:31,960 Speaker 1: do not do it, because because if we're gonna discuss 298 00:15:31,960 --> 00:15:36,520 Speaker 1: your taking nutmeg for some sort of illicit pharmaceutical response 299 00:15:37,160 --> 00:15:41,680 Speaker 1: is for the most part of stupid idea. Because there 300 00:15:41,680 --> 00:15:44,160 Speaker 1: seems to be two categories right right when people take 301 00:15:44,280 --> 00:15:48,640 Speaker 1: nutmeg for recreational purposes. Either it makes them horribly sick, 302 00:15:50,080 --> 00:15:53,320 Speaker 1: or it gives them just a really horrible time for 303 00:15:53,320 --> 00:15:56,640 Speaker 1: about forty eight hours where they're basically just delirious, or 304 00:15:56,760 --> 00:15:58,480 Speaker 1: or there's a third category where you kind of get 305 00:15:58,560 --> 00:16:02,760 Speaker 1: both your delirious and you're just violently ill, uh and 306 00:16:02,800 --> 00:16:06,640 Speaker 1: sometimes even hospitalized. Yeah, I mean they kind of you 307 00:16:06,680 --> 00:16:09,160 Speaker 1: kind of should look at it is like the runs high, right. Yeah. 308 00:16:09,400 --> 00:16:11,280 Speaker 1: The first question comes to mind is when did people 309 00:16:11,280 --> 00:16:13,880 Speaker 1: start figuring this out that if you ingest a lot 310 00:16:13,920 --> 00:16:15,640 Speaker 1: of nutmeg, and when we say a lot of nutmeg, 311 00:16:16,080 --> 00:16:18,440 Speaker 1: we're talking like spoonfuls of the stuff. We're like a 312 00:16:18,480 --> 00:16:21,160 Speaker 1: whole container of nutmeg. But when did people first getting 313 00:16:21,320 --> 00:16:24,000 Speaker 1: get this idea in their head that they should try 314 00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:25,760 Speaker 1: it or then it or that once they've tried it, 315 00:16:25,760 --> 00:16:27,800 Speaker 1: that it does have some sort of strange effect on 316 00:16:27,840 --> 00:16:32,440 Speaker 1: the human body. Well from Atlantic Magazine article My Nutmeg 317 00:16:32,640 --> 00:16:36,440 Speaker 1: bend Or by Wayne Curtis, he says that the Benedictine 318 00:16:36,480 --> 00:16:41,200 Speaker 1: abbess Hilda Guard of binging Nice Benin noted the mind 319 00:16:41,280 --> 00:16:43,760 Speaker 1: altering effects of nutmeg all the way back to the 320 00:16:43,760 --> 00:16:47,960 Speaker 1: twelfth century. So we've got some documentation that people were 321 00:16:48,040 --> 00:16:51,480 Speaker 1: dabbling around with it. Then apparently in air vadic medicine, 322 00:16:51,520 --> 00:16:55,080 Speaker 1: ancient Indian medicine, it was known as mata shonda or 323 00:16:55,280 --> 00:16:59,360 Speaker 1: narcotic fruit, and it was sometimes chewed with beetle to 324 00:17:00,160 --> 00:17:05,200 Speaker 1: excite one or it was actually consumed orally to excite 325 00:17:05,200 --> 00:17:09,040 Speaker 1: the libido. And this is this is an interesting area, 326 00:17:09,080 --> 00:17:12,360 Speaker 1: the idea that that okay, if you take nutmeg, uh, 327 00:17:12,400 --> 00:17:15,679 Speaker 1: it could potentially enhance your sex life. And again a 328 00:17:15,760 --> 00:17:18,439 Speaker 1: very old idea. We see it in ancient India and 329 00:17:18,440 --> 00:17:20,600 Speaker 1: you see it come up again in various other Texas. 330 00:17:20,600 --> 00:17:22,720 Speaker 1: People set out to try and figure out exactly what 331 00:17:22,840 --> 00:17:24,960 Speaker 1: nutmeg can do for the body when it's taking taken 332 00:17:24,960 --> 00:17:28,000 Speaker 1: in abnormal doses. There was a man by the name 333 00:17:28,080 --> 00:17:30,919 Speaker 1: of Andrew Board, and he had a book called Dietary 334 00:17:30,960 --> 00:17:34,639 Speaker 1: of Health UH in which he says generally nutmegs be 335 00:17:34,680 --> 00:17:36,760 Speaker 1: good for them which have cold in their head and 336 00:17:36,800 --> 00:17:40,160 Speaker 1: does comfort the site and the brain. But he uh, 337 00:17:40,400 --> 00:17:43,800 Speaker 1: interestingly enough, he's a it was a celibate monk, you know, 338 00:17:43,880 --> 00:17:47,560 Speaker 1: valve of chastity. And he also suggested that nutmeg damp 339 00:17:47,560 --> 00:17:51,639 Speaker 1: and sexual desire, which which were reportedly according to some 340 00:17:51,720 --> 00:17:54,000 Speaker 1: of the dirt on this guy, it didn't really work 341 00:17:54,040 --> 00:17:56,040 Speaker 1: all that well for it, or maybe he was trying 342 00:17:56,080 --> 00:17:59,640 Speaker 1: to tap down so much desire that even large quantities 343 00:17:59,680 --> 00:18:02,840 Speaker 1: of nuting meg didn't help. But then there's another interesting 344 00:18:02,880 --> 00:18:06,080 Speaker 1: I guess you would say nutmeg psychonot the Earl of Dorset, 345 00:18:06,480 --> 00:18:10,320 Speaker 1: Charles Sackville. And this guy, this is the late sixteen hundreds, 346 00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:14,640 Speaker 1: and we see a reference to him in Samuel Peep's diary. 347 00:18:14,960 --> 00:18:18,240 Speaker 1: Charles Sackville would would regularly take a spoonful of nutmeg 348 00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:21,080 Speaker 1: before bedtime, and he claimed that this would fill his 349 00:18:21,160 --> 00:18:23,920 Speaker 1: dreams with all manner of illicit scenarios, and then he'd 350 00:18:23,920 --> 00:18:27,200 Speaker 1: wake up in the morning rather excited by it. Uh 351 00:18:27,280 --> 00:18:31,200 Speaker 1: And and according to Samuel Peete's um, Sackville eventually wound 352 00:18:31,320 --> 00:18:33,440 Speaker 1: up in the slammer after a night of quote running 353 00:18:33,520 --> 00:18:36,320 Speaker 1: up and down all night, almost naked through the streets. 354 00:18:36,480 --> 00:18:40,240 Speaker 1: So um, all right, But then again, to what extent 355 00:18:40,359 --> 00:18:44,679 Speaker 1: is this just rather excitable guy anyway? And he takes it, 356 00:18:44,760 --> 00:18:48,240 Speaker 1: you know, the placebo effect could be in full, full effective. Yeah, 357 00:18:48,320 --> 00:18:50,880 Speaker 1: there's no I mean, there's no evidence that it really 358 00:18:51,000 --> 00:18:54,560 Speaker 1: is an aphrodisiac, but researchers have found it to increase 359 00:18:54,640 --> 00:18:58,399 Speaker 1: mating behaviors in mice, and it's known to stimulate the 360 00:18:58,440 --> 00:19:01,560 Speaker 1: circulatory system and increase and flow, so it stands to 361 00:19:01,640 --> 00:19:04,920 Speaker 1: reason that it could help in terms of sexual drive. 362 00:19:05,200 --> 00:19:07,400 Speaker 1: But and then again, we're talking about large doses here, 363 00:19:07,640 --> 00:19:11,639 Speaker 1: because because generally the consensus is small doses of of 364 00:19:11,720 --> 00:19:15,040 Speaker 1: nutmeg on a regular basis, as in the kind of 365 00:19:15,119 --> 00:19:17,760 Speaker 1: nutmeg that you would use in cooking or putting on 366 00:19:17,800 --> 00:19:20,720 Speaker 1: top of your coffee, or the occasionally a mixed drink 367 00:19:20,800 --> 00:19:23,679 Speaker 1: or Christmas side or what have you. All that is 368 00:19:23,680 --> 00:19:26,199 Speaker 1: perfectly fine. It's not gonna hurt you at all, and 369 00:19:26,280 --> 00:19:30,639 Speaker 1: it will probably have beneficial effects. But it's the ingestion 370 00:19:30,800 --> 00:19:34,399 Speaker 1: of let's say, a whole nutmeg seed. Right, this is 371 00:19:34,680 --> 00:19:36,919 Speaker 1: a huge spoonful every night, that kind of right. This 372 00:19:36,960 --> 00:19:38,800 Speaker 1: is where we begin to see some some of the 373 00:19:38,840 --> 00:19:42,560 Speaker 1: hallucinogenic facts of it. And you had already noted some 374 00:19:42,600 --> 00:19:46,120 Speaker 1: of the possible side effects including loose bowels, vomiting, accelerated 375 00:19:46,119 --> 00:19:50,040 Speaker 1: heart rate. But also, according to Wing Curtis in that 376 00:19:50,200 --> 00:19:55,520 Speaker 1: article my Nutmeg Vendor, nutmeg burps at twenty minute intervals. Yeah, 377 00:19:55,560 --> 00:19:58,520 Speaker 1: I mean again, people, this is not sexy stuff here. Um, 378 00:19:58,520 --> 00:19:59,960 Speaker 1: this is probably not something that you want to take 379 00:20:00,040 --> 00:20:02,720 Speaker 1: and then uh, you know, have a date. In fact, 380 00:20:02,720 --> 00:20:05,520 Speaker 1: you don't want to take it at all. Um. Over 381 00:20:05,560 --> 00:20:08,200 Speaker 1: and over again we saw accounts of this, of people saying, 382 00:20:08,320 --> 00:20:12,600 Speaker 1: this is not really um a hallucinatory experience that is 383 00:20:12,680 --> 00:20:16,239 Speaker 1: exalted in any way, This is not desirable experience. This 384 00:20:16,280 --> 00:20:20,520 Speaker 1: is I mean because they're also things like giddiness, laughing fits, yes, fantasies, 385 00:20:20,760 --> 00:20:25,560 Speaker 1: but also nausea, the heart palpitations, hallucinations. Generally speaking, there 386 00:20:25,600 --> 00:20:28,760 Speaker 1: seemed to be two categories of people. The vast majority 387 00:20:28,760 --> 00:20:31,240 Speaker 1: are the people who try it once and then realize 388 00:20:31,280 --> 00:20:33,680 Speaker 1: it was a stupid thing they did and they never 389 00:20:33,760 --> 00:20:36,680 Speaker 1: do it again. And then there's a very small category 390 00:20:36,720 --> 00:20:40,280 Speaker 1: of people who were just really maybe there's just a 391 00:20:40,359 --> 00:20:43,560 Speaker 1: there's an obsessive personality about them, or they or they 392 00:20:43,600 --> 00:20:46,240 Speaker 1: have just an inflated idea of what it's doing for them. 393 00:20:46,359 --> 00:20:49,320 Speaker 1: So you see people like Charles Sackville who at least 394 00:20:49,359 --> 00:20:51,520 Speaker 1: claims to have taken in large doses of it in 395 00:20:51,520 --> 00:20:54,800 Speaker 1: a regular basis thinking or to some extent, getting some 396 00:20:54,840 --> 00:20:58,560 Speaker 1: sort of illicit use out of it. Or I was 397 00:20:58,560 --> 00:21:01,760 Speaker 1: looking around on moder earn message boards and I ran 398 00:21:01,800 --> 00:21:04,480 Speaker 1: across one individual who was just really gung ho about 399 00:21:04,520 --> 00:21:06,840 Speaker 1: figuring out a way how to how to break the 400 00:21:06,920 --> 00:21:09,879 Speaker 1: nutmeg code, like how to how to combine nutmeg with 401 00:21:09,920 --> 00:21:12,720 Speaker 1: other substances so that he could get this trippy experience 402 00:21:12,720 --> 00:21:15,200 Speaker 1: without any of the side effects, which it just seems 403 00:21:15,200 --> 00:21:17,399 Speaker 1: like he was putting a lot of work into a 404 00:21:18,720 --> 00:21:22,720 Speaker 1: just an undesirable coal. And I said, so, by and large, 405 00:21:22,760 --> 00:21:24,560 Speaker 1: you see people who take it once and never take 406 00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:26,960 Speaker 1: it again. You can look on YouTube and you'll find 407 00:21:26,960 --> 00:21:31,240 Speaker 1: people who stupidly decide they're going to take the nutmeg challenge, 408 00:21:31,240 --> 00:21:32,879 Speaker 1: because there's a lot of that. Have you ray familiar 409 00:21:32,880 --> 00:21:36,080 Speaker 1: with this scenario? I think there was like a cinnamon challenge, 410 00:21:36,119 --> 00:21:39,000 Speaker 1: and and there's like stuff like Saby challenge where it's 411 00:21:39,040 --> 00:21:42,680 Speaker 1: just idiots taking spoonfuls fulls of things and choking them 412 00:21:42,720 --> 00:21:46,560 Speaker 1: down and generally choking because you're not supposed to have 413 00:21:46,600 --> 00:21:49,560 Speaker 1: a spoonful of with Your body knows a spoonful of 414 00:21:49,600 --> 00:21:51,320 Speaker 1: sabby is a bad idea. Your body knows that a 415 00:21:51,320 --> 00:21:54,000 Speaker 1: spoonful of nutmeg is a bad idea, and that's why 416 00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:57,000 Speaker 1: you literally have to choke it down if you're taking 417 00:21:57,040 --> 00:22:01,280 Speaker 1: large amounts of it. So people inevitably, general eight teenagers 418 00:22:01,320 --> 00:22:04,320 Speaker 1: with a webcam end up doing this and just having 419 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:08,399 Speaker 1: an awful time because you at the very least you're 420 00:22:08,440 --> 00:22:11,760 Speaker 1: gonna it's gonna feel nasty going down. Uh, you're gonna 421 00:22:11,800 --> 00:22:14,600 Speaker 1: and you're gonna feel totally out of sorts for something 422 00:22:14,640 --> 00:22:17,480 Speaker 1: like forty eight hours. Takes about four hours to set in, 423 00:22:17,560 --> 00:22:19,400 Speaker 1: and then you're looking at forty eight hours even three 424 00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:22,720 Speaker 1: days of just feeling weird and awful and zombie like 425 00:22:22,840 --> 00:22:25,359 Speaker 1: and sluggish. You might maybe you'll feel a little bit 426 00:22:25,400 --> 00:22:29,440 Speaker 1: like you're flying, but you'll also have diarrhea. So well, 427 00:22:29,440 --> 00:22:32,000 Speaker 1: and that's what Wayne Curtis details in his article in 428 00:22:32,040 --> 00:22:34,760 Speaker 1: Atlantic Magazine. I mean, he says that you know, it 429 00:22:35,000 --> 00:22:37,040 Speaker 1: took effect on him and for a couple of days 430 00:22:37,160 --> 00:22:40,440 Speaker 1: it took a while to to shake off and um. 431 00:22:40,480 --> 00:22:43,960 Speaker 1: He says that it's hallucinogenic properties are likely from the 432 00:22:44,040 --> 00:22:49,440 Speaker 1: molecules of mistresson and elemison and Mrson is a nutmeg 433 00:22:49,520 --> 00:22:52,879 Speaker 1: and has a chemical structure that shares similarities with mescaline, 434 00:22:53,720 --> 00:22:58,359 Speaker 1: uh amphetamine, and ecstasy. And in the Dictionary of Hallucinations, 435 00:22:58,400 --> 00:23:01,840 Speaker 1: it says that nutmeg has been ported to mediate visual 436 00:23:02,040 --> 00:23:07,800 Speaker 1: auditory tactile and Kinney's kin aesthetic hallucinations, notably the sense 437 00:23:07,840 --> 00:23:11,280 Speaker 1: of floating, as you had already mentioned. So what I 438 00:23:11,320 --> 00:23:14,359 Speaker 1: think is really interesting is that Curtis actually went to 439 00:23:14,400 --> 00:23:17,639 Speaker 1: the trouble of trying this to see what sort of 440 00:23:17,680 --> 00:23:21,080 Speaker 1: effect it would have on him. And before we discussed that, um, 441 00:23:21,119 --> 00:23:25,239 Speaker 1: I wanted to point out that people have resorted to 442 00:23:25,440 --> 00:23:28,040 Speaker 1: using this it looks like in cases where they could 443 00:23:28,040 --> 00:23:31,439 Speaker 1: not obtain other substances, and I'm talking about in prison, 444 00:23:31,600 --> 00:23:34,760 Speaker 1: because there are a lot of rumors that, um, you know, 445 00:23:34,840 --> 00:23:37,840 Speaker 1: people have used it in prisons, uh to to try 446 00:23:37,840 --> 00:23:41,320 Speaker 1: to get high. And in fact, in Malcolm access biography, 447 00:23:41,400 --> 00:23:43,840 Speaker 1: he says that a penny match book full of nutmeg 448 00:23:43,920 --> 00:23:47,280 Speaker 1: had the kick of three or four reefers. Again, you know, 449 00:23:47,359 --> 00:23:49,800 Speaker 1: this experience is going to vary from person to person, 450 00:23:49,960 --> 00:23:54,120 Speaker 1: but largely what people are reporting is that they're not 451 00:23:54,240 --> 00:23:58,040 Speaker 1: having a mellow high or anything like that. We're again 452 00:23:58,040 --> 00:24:01,200 Speaker 1: we're talking vomit and diarrhea here. Yeah. I mean it's 453 00:24:01,240 --> 00:24:04,960 Speaker 1: important that we're talking about prison scenarios because because this 454 00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:07,119 Speaker 1: is also a scenario where individuals are going to be 455 00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:10,040 Speaker 1: kind of desperate for any kind of sensory change. You know, 456 00:24:10,080 --> 00:24:12,920 Speaker 1: they want a different experience and the thing that they're 457 00:24:12,960 --> 00:24:15,720 Speaker 1: having every single day, and if the various other forms 458 00:24:15,760 --> 00:24:19,280 Speaker 1: of stimulation are withheld from them, then they may have 459 00:24:19,359 --> 00:24:23,160 Speaker 1: no other choice in their view, to tries things like nutmeg. 460 00:24:23,680 --> 00:24:25,520 Speaker 1: H So in many prisons to this day, it's still 461 00:24:26,480 --> 00:24:29,160 Speaker 1: it's difficult to find nutmeg in the kitchen because they're 462 00:24:29,160 --> 00:24:31,000 Speaker 1: just not gonna stock it because somebody's gonna end up 463 00:24:31,040 --> 00:24:33,320 Speaker 1: taking it. But again, it's it's just not going to 464 00:24:33,400 --> 00:24:36,040 Speaker 1: be a pleasant time. Um. There are also stories that 465 00:24:36,640 --> 00:24:43,040 Speaker 1: jazz musicians, particularly Charlie Parker, reportedly partook of nutmeg. Supposedly, um, 466 00:24:43,760 --> 00:24:46,840 Speaker 1: I mean supposedly nutmeg wasn't the only thing that Charlie 467 00:24:46,840 --> 00:24:49,320 Speaker 1: Parker took. But it's just it's again this this is 468 00:24:49,320 --> 00:24:52,119 Speaker 1: on no one knows for sure. Like I was reading 469 00:24:52,119 --> 00:24:55,199 Speaker 1: a um on one of our articles we're looking after this, 470 00:24:55,280 --> 00:24:57,520 Speaker 1: they were talking about it. It's kind of like a 471 00:24:57,600 --> 00:25:00,080 Speaker 1: mystery that nobody wants to talk about, like the the 472 00:25:00,160 --> 00:25:03,280 Speaker 1: jazz musicians the secret of jazz is nutmeg, which I 473 00:25:03,320 --> 00:25:06,560 Speaker 1: don't buy for a second, you know, Yeah, yeah, um. 474 00:25:06,600 --> 00:25:09,600 Speaker 1: I do think it's interesting that it really didn't even 475 00:25:09,600 --> 00:25:12,680 Speaker 1: become known in the Western world really until I think 476 00:25:12,680 --> 00:25:15,119 Speaker 1: that's sixties and one of the first people to ferret 477 00:25:15,160 --> 00:25:17,440 Speaker 1: it out was Dr Andrew Wild, who at the time 478 00:25:18,040 --> 00:25:21,080 Speaker 1: was submitting his thesis for honors in biology at Harvard University, 479 00:25:21,200 --> 00:25:24,159 Speaker 1: and he was he he wanted to really make an 480 00:25:24,160 --> 00:25:28,600 Speaker 1: inquiry into nutmeg as a narcotic and a hallucinogenic and uh, 481 00:25:28,960 --> 00:25:30,359 Speaker 1: he kind of sort of went through the whole thing. 482 00:25:30,400 --> 00:25:33,240 Speaker 1: And it's very interesting, but because before then, again people 483 00:25:33,280 --> 00:25:35,480 Speaker 1: didn't really think of it as having any sort of 484 00:25:35,520 --> 00:25:39,640 Speaker 1: hallucinogenic properties. But you probably know Dr Andrew Wild now 485 00:25:39,800 --> 00:25:44,080 Speaker 1: is someone who has been at the at the sort 486 00:25:44,119 --> 00:25:48,200 Speaker 1: of forefront of what you would say integrative medicine is 487 00:25:48,520 --> 00:25:54,480 Speaker 1: and really looking at these various natural um herbs implants 488 00:25:54,600 --> 00:25:57,960 Speaker 1: to try to integrate into medicine and get some sort 489 00:25:58,000 --> 00:26:01,119 Speaker 1: of benefit from Yeah, it's a it's a fascinating paper 490 00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:04,840 Speaker 1: a young while put together UM and it's also amusing 491 00:26:04,880 --> 00:26:06,800 Speaker 1: too because there's so many beatnecks in it. He keeps 492 00:26:06,800 --> 00:26:11,840 Speaker 1: talking about UM. One one particular that encounter that he 493 00:26:11,880 --> 00:26:13,760 Speaker 1: mentioned because he mentions talking to this guy and that 494 00:26:13,800 --> 00:26:16,000 Speaker 1: guy that you know it doesn't use any names, but 495 00:26:16,040 --> 00:26:18,399 Speaker 1: particularly is interested in in the At one point in 496 00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:23,200 Speaker 1: the article, he is interested in individuals who normally take marijuana, 497 00:26:23,520 --> 00:26:27,160 Speaker 1: but when they can't obtain marijuana, then supposedly they turned 498 00:26:27,200 --> 00:26:31,359 Speaker 1: a nutmeet, which, as we've already illustrated, clearly nutmeg is 499 00:26:31,400 --> 00:26:35,360 Speaker 1: not equatable with marijuana use. But but he was just 500 00:26:35,400 --> 00:26:37,240 Speaker 1: asking around. It's like, is this true? When you can't 501 00:26:37,400 --> 00:26:40,439 Speaker 1: have marijuana, do you have nutmeg? And there's one Harvard 502 00:26:40,440 --> 00:26:43,359 Speaker 1: graduate in particular that while talked to who answered him 503 00:26:43,400 --> 00:26:45,800 Speaker 1: by saying, oh, here, step over here to your spice cabinet. 504 00:26:45,800 --> 00:26:48,240 Speaker 1: And he opened the spice cabinet and he points at 505 00:26:48,240 --> 00:26:50,200 Speaker 1: all the various things that he is pretty much everything 506 00:26:50,200 --> 00:26:52,640 Speaker 1: in here, but msg if you take enough of it, 507 00:26:52,640 --> 00:26:54,320 Speaker 1: it's going to have some sort of weird effect on 508 00:26:54,400 --> 00:26:57,920 Speaker 1: your body. Uh, you know if you're palpations. Yeah, yeah, 509 00:26:58,040 --> 00:27:01,560 Speaker 1: it could be sentiment, it could be paprika. But if 510 00:27:01,600 --> 00:27:05,120 Speaker 1: you take enough of anything, and certainly a spice, because 511 00:27:05,119 --> 00:27:07,960 Speaker 1: the spice is gonna be a very potent substance that 512 00:27:08,080 --> 00:27:10,760 Speaker 1: it just we don't use in large quantities, but if 513 00:27:10,760 --> 00:27:12,639 Speaker 1: you consume a large quantity of you're gonna get some 514 00:27:12,680 --> 00:27:16,439 Speaker 1: sort of reaction, probably not a good one. Yeah. I 515 00:27:16,480 --> 00:27:18,399 Speaker 1: also like that paper too, because you can see all 516 00:27:18,400 --> 00:27:21,480 Speaker 1: of as handwritten molecular compounds. I'll have all of his 517 00:27:21,600 --> 00:27:25,880 Speaker 1: drawings very quaint. Uh. But yes, so it's I think 518 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:28,840 Speaker 1: that kind of gives you an idea of of how again, 519 00:27:28,920 --> 00:27:32,679 Speaker 1: it's not this uh wonderful high that people are seeking. 520 00:27:32,680 --> 00:27:35,800 Speaker 1: There's probably a reason why it's not something that is 521 00:27:36,680 --> 00:27:40,560 Speaker 1: done in drug culture A lot right, not so great. 522 00:27:41,480 --> 00:27:44,080 Speaker 1: Back to Wing Curtis. In the article, he talks about 523 00:27:44,119 --> 00:27:46,960 Speaker 1: his nutmeg bender. Let me just read a little bit 524 00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:50,400 Speaker 1: of his own experience. He says that, both dubious and intrigued, 525 00:27:50,520 --> 00:27:52,800 Speaker 1: I grated up a whole nutmeg and part of another, 526 00:27:52,920 --> 00:27:55,240 Speaker 1: producing about one and a half table spoonful of powder. 527 00:27:55,600 --> 00:27:57,680 Speaker 1: I swallowed it in one small spoonful at a time, 528 00:27:57,760 --> 00:28:01,000 Speaker 1: chasing each gulp down with water. Um. He says. Consumed 529 00:28:01,000 --> 00:28:04,040 Speaker 1: in that quantity, nutmeg loses its fuel to high goodness 530 00:28:04,160 --> 00:28:08,040 Speaker 1: and tastes like turpentine. Perhaps my dosage was too low 531 00:28:08,200 --> 00:28:11,159 Speaker 1: or my nutmeg too desiccated. I did go through an 532 00:28:11,200 --> 00:28:14,919 Speaker 1: early giddey phase when everything seemed immensely amusing, including the 533 00:28:14,920 --> 00:28:17,600 Speaker 1: shingles on my neighbor's house, and I felt a slight 534 00:28:17,680 --> 00:28:20,879 Speaker 1: floating sensation when walking around the neighborhood. But mostly I 535 00:28:20,960 --> 00:28:22,879 Speaker 1: just felt out of sorts for a couple of days. 536 00:28:23,000 --> 00:28:25,720 Speaker 1: When I tried to write, my words sometimes became unmoored 537 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:28,320 Speaker 1: from my thoughts. Though, to be fair, of this happens 538 00:28:28,359 --> 00:28:32,159 Speaker 1: even without the influence of nutmeg. You know, again, not 539 00:28:32,320 --> 00:28:35,600 Speaker 1: so not so exciting description here, a lot of trouble 540 00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:39,440 Speaker 1: going through trying to get some sort of high out 541 00:28:39,480 --> 00:28:42,120 Speaker 1: of that. Yeah, it's not you don't. You don't encounter 542 00:28:42,200 --> 00:28:46,400 Speaker 1: romantic descriptions of nutmeg us. It's just it's it's only 543 00:28:46,440 --> 00:28:49,760 Speaker 1: a failure or or a real failure. I mean. And 544 00:28:49,760 --> 00:28:52,360 Speaker 1: then there have been cases where individuals, um, you know, 545 00:28:52,360 --> 00:28:56,360 Speaker 1: I've been hospitalized or in some cases possibly died from 546 00:28:56,440 --> 00:29:00,000 Speaker 1: using it. The chances of dying from nutmeg poisoning or 547 00:29:00,120 --> 00:29:03,400 Speaker 1: are pretty slim, but it's it's always it's always possible, 548 00:29:03,480 --> 00:29:05,840 Speaker 1: and certainly it's also possible to for there to be 549 00:29:05,880 --> 00:29:08,640 Speaker 1: drug gut interactions as well. So, I mean, everybody's body 550 00:29:08,720 --> 00:29:11,320 Speaker 1: is different. It depends on you know, what's going on 551 00:29:11,360 --> 00:29:14,480 Speaker 1: inside you, what other substances you're taking, what your particular 552 00:29:14,680 --> 00:29:18,080 Speaker 1: health situation is. So I think what we're saying is kids, 553 00:29:18,200 --> 00:29:20,040 Speaker 1: just keep it on the top of your coffee. You 554 00:29:20,040 --> 00:29:23,040 Speaker 1: know what I'm saying, Just a couple of sprinkles will do. Yeah, 555 00:29:23,280 --> 00:29:26,680 Speaker 1: or apparently, as the Joy of Cooking says, use it 556 00:29:26,720 --> 00:29:30,400 Speaker 1: sparingly but often so it's probably a good good place 557 00:29:30,440 --> 00:29:32,440 Speaker 1: to leave it. But but still, I will admit, even 558 00:29:32,440 --> 00:29:35,680 Speaker 1: though even though I am I would, I will absolutely 559 00:29:35,760 --> 00:29:38,400 Speaker 1: never try and choke down a whole bunch of nutmeg 560 00:29:38,600 --> 00:29:41,720 Speaker 1: in the hopes of stuff weird happening and to me 561 00:29:41,760 --> 00:29:44,640 Speaker 1: and standing forty eight hours on a toilet, Um, the 562 00:29:44,720 --> 00:29:46,920 Speaker 1: next time I sprinkled nutmeg on it, I will I 563 00:29:46,960 --> 00:29:48,600 Speaker 1: will certainly have that in the back of my mind. 564 00:29:48,640 --> 00:29:51,480 Speaker 1: I'll feel a little cooler using my nutmeg because I'm like, 565 00:29:51,800 --> 00:29:54,880 Speaker 1: look at me, I'm like a I'm like a Dutch aristocrat. See, 566 00:29:54,920 --> 00:29:57,240 Speaker 1: I'll just think about the bathroom thing. My mind will 567 00:29:57,280 --> 00:30:00,400 Speaker 1: go straight to the gutter. All right, So there you go. Um. 568 00:30:00,440 --> 00:30:03,360 Speaker 1: That is actually a nice little precursor for a couple 569 00:30:03,360 --> 00:30:06,120 Speaker 1: of episodes that are coming out. To look for them, 570 00:30:06,120 --> 00:30:10,800 Speaker 1: we were going to talk more specifically about hallucinogen's shamans 571 00:30:10,840 --> 00:30:13,920 Speaker 1: all sorts of good stuff, um, in the various ways 572 00:30:14,000 --> 00:30:17,160 Speaker 1: that we tried to manipulate the mind. All right, Well, 573 00:30:17,360 --> 00:30:19,880 Speaker 1: on that note, let's call over the robit and look 574 00:30:19,920 --> 00:30:26,000 Speaker 1: at the listener mail. Here's one from our listener, Marcio. 575 00:30:26,080 --> 00:30:28,800 Speaker 1: Marcio writes sentences, Hi, Robert and Julie. I'm a listener 576 00:30:28,800 --> 00:30:31,920 Speaker 1: from Portugal who, for obvious reasons doesn't observe Thanksgiving, but 577 00:30:32,240 --> 00:30:34,760 Speaker 1: of course still listen to the Turkey episode. You may 578 00:30:34,800 --> 00:30:37,160 Speaker 1: recall the part about the origin of the bird's name 579 00:30:37,560 --> 00:30:41,200 Speaker 1: and how the British called everything Oriental Turkish, including something 580 00:30:41,240 --> 00:30:44,920 Speaker 1: that was merely traded by Eastern merchants. Interestingly enough, kind 581 00:30:44,960 --> 00:30:47,480 Speaker 1: of the same thing happened with the Portuguese in the 582 00:30:47,520 --> 00:30:51,560 Speaker 1: sixteenth century. Spanish America was properly referred to as Peru. 583 00:30:51,640 --> 00:30:54,200 Speaker 1: When the Spanish first brought that bird to Europe, we 584 00:30:54,320 --> 00:30:56,760 Speaker 1: called it Peru, and it's still that name. It still 585 00:30:56,800 --> 00:30:59,360 Speaker 1: has that name today. At least we got the continent right. 586 00:30:59,400 --> 00:31:02,880 Speaker 1: Thank you for the cast. I'm a fan. Have fun, Marcia, 587 00:31:03,520 --> 00:31:06,000 Speaker 1: so that's in it. Certainly that ties in nicely with 588 00:31:06,160 --> 00:31:09,840 Speaker 1: this episode in which we talked about international trade and 589 00:31:09,880 --> 00:31:13,280 Speaker 1: how it affects our understandings of various products. You know, 590 00:31:13,480 --> 00:31:16,960 Speaker 1: also on the Thanksgiving episode, we we ruminated in that 591 00:31:17,000 --> 00:31:21,000 Speaker 1: particular episode about the possibility of a killer turkey horror 592 00:31:21,080 --> 00:31:25,360 Speaker 1: movie and possible. Yes, and lo and behold it exists. 593 00:31:25,360 --> 00:31:27,040 Speaker 1: A number of you pointed out that there is a 594 00:31:27,040 --> 00:31:31,240 Speaker 1: movie by the name of Thanks Killing, Thanks Killing that 595 00:31:31,400 --> 00:31:35,920 Speaker 1: appears to to star a kind of skexy, light evil 596 00:31:36,040 --> 00:31:39,600 Speaker 1: turkey puppet that goes around killing people, and it's it's 597 00:31:39,640 --> 00:31:42,400 Speaker 1: currently the one Netflix streamings, which is which is pretty cool. 598 00:31:42,400 --> 00:31:44,640 Speaker 1: So yeah, it is out there. You should totally check 599 00:31:44,680 --> 00:31:46,880 Speaker 1: out the trailer at the very least. It's it's very 600 00:31:46,920 --> 00:31:49,320 Speaker 1: funny stuff. So there you have it. A little listener 601 00:31:49,320 --> 00:31:51,239 Speaker 1: mail there. If you would like to write in with 602 00:31:51,280 --> 00:31:54,720 Speaker 1: your thoughts on nutmeg, we would love to hear about them. Again, 603 00:31:54,800 --> 00:31:57,240 Speaker 1: do not actually try and take a bunch of nutmeg 604 00:31:57,360 --> 00:32:00,320 Speaker 1: and then expect that we're gonna read your thoughts about 605 00:32:00,360 --> 00:32:03,280 Speaker 1: it on on on the podcast Taking my Head now. Yeah, 606 00:32:03,320 --> 00:32:05,959 Speaker 1: absolutely not, but we would love I would particularly love 607 00:32:06,000 --> 00:32:08,560 Speaker 1: to hear any of you who are Dutch or who 608 00:32:08,560 --> 00:32:10,800 Speaker 1: have had a lot of Dutch cuisine. I'd love to 609 00:32:10,840 --> 00:32:14,160 Speaker 1: know about the nutmeg in that culinary condition, that kind 610 00:32:14,160 --> 00:32:15,680 Speaker 1: of thing. I would love to hear about anything else 611 00:32:15,800 --> 00:32:18,000 Speaker 1: not related that you may have to share that doesn't 612 00:32:18,040 --> 00:32:20,360 Speaker 1: involve spooning down that man. If you want to share 613 00:32:20,400 --> 00:32:22,040 Speaker 1: this kind of thing with us, you can find us 614 00:32:22,080 --> 00:32:24,800 Speaker 1: on Facebook and tumbler. If we're we are stufforable in 615 00:32:24,800 --> 00:32:27,240 Speaker 1: your mind on both of those, and you can also 616 00:32:27,280 --> 00:32:29,120 Speaker 1: find us on Twitter, where our handles blow the mind. 617 00:32:29,440 --> 00:32:31,240 Speaker 1: And you can always drop us a line at blow 618 00:32:31,320 --> 00:32:40,200 Speaker 1: the Mind at discovery dot com for more on this 619 00:32:40,360 --> 00:32:42,880 Speaker 1: and thousands of other topics. Is it how stuff works 620 00:32:42,880 --> 00:32:49,920 Speaker 1: dot Com brought to you by the two thousand twelve 621 00:32:50,000 --> 00:32:52,400 Speaker 1: Toyota Camera. It's ready, are you