When our founder Jena discovered herbalist Melanie Vitally, she had to share her wealth of knowledge. Most know Melanie online for her ancestral and alternative-based health practices, herbalism, ingredient literacy, root cause-focused healing, teachings about the US food system, and more.

Here, we spoke to Melanie about some of the top misconceptions around health, why we should question the safety of certain products on the market, baby products and the reason to be wary of some of these companies, and why FDA approval is not a trustful safety measure.

You have built an amazing Instagram following based on health education and the quality of products on the market. What inspired you to take this path?

My passion for health, like many other natural health advocates, stemmed from my own personal battle with chronic health issues. I dove headfirst into my passion for healthy eating and fitness throughout my high school years, which was fueled by my competitiveness to be the best athlete I could possibly be.

I took my passion for health and eventually got a college scholarship, where I decided to pursue a medical degree. It was early on when I realized that my core beliefs did not mesh well with the medical world. I often bumped heads with my professors, even though I excelled in my classes. I took time to study herbalism and functional medicine alongside my regular classes, which acted as an escape from the looming feeling that I was not where I belonged.

When the pandemic hit, I realized my journey in traditional schooling was over. My state made it mandatory for students doing their clinical rotations to take the covid vaccine, and when I was repeatedly denied an exemption, I made the decision to leave. This was around the time my Instagram started to gain traction. I shared my unique outlook on health with the background I had from both the allopathic and holistic world. I shared my victory stories about how I reversed my health issues naturally and continued to better my health by learning how to be “my own doctor.”

I became passionate about regenerative farming and dreamed of someday having my own farm. I find this ironic, considering my mother and her family moved to the US, and left their farms behind in order to give us a better life.

Also, I found peace in no longer having to filter my views to appease a system of thinking that clearly didn’t fit my outlook on health. As a result, I connected with a community of like-minded people that got to witness, in real-time, my dreams of owning my own farm come true. It's a small step towards impacting a food system I am so passionate about changing.

Why do you think most Americans are chronically ill?

In my mind, it’s simple: everything that is meant to support our health is largely controlled by money-hungry entities that are unapologetically putting profit margins before the well-being of the people they are supposed to be supporting. Food, water, seeds, farmland, medicine, healthcare, you name it; most of the big corporations controlling these sectors do not care about you. In a capitalistic society, this became possible as the masses started relying on convenience and significantly shifted from being producers to almost entirely consumers.

Luckily, in a capitalistic society, we have the opportunity to vote with our dollar and shift the displacement of power from large, money-hungry corporations to small, high-quality companies and people.

What are some common misconceptions in regard to our health and wellbeing?

I could go on and on about this! But I’ll keep it short:

1. You do not need to spend a ton of money to start your health journey. Connecting with traditional diets and medicinal practices of your ancestors is one of the most fulfilling and insightful ways to understand how to support your body on a daily basis. Every culture has its own set of traditional dishes, its own natural remedies, and its own special connection to the natural world. Take what resonates with you and run with it!
2. You do not need to subscribe to a diet label, ever. Instead, do everything you can to support your local farmers. They produce the highest quality foods, and usually at the best prices. This pushes you to eat locally and seasonally, which will help support your microbiome, and overall health no matter what diet you choose. This also helps shift the food system and puts the power back in the hands of the people rather than corporations. This not only benefits your health by having more access to high-quality food, but it also ensures food security for yourself and your community.
3. As technology and social media continue to engulf our everyday lives, remember that you need to be diligent about what you consume mentally and emotionally. It is not natural to be scrolling on social media, where one moment you’re laughing at a funny video, the next you’re listening to a sad story, and right after that, you watch something that makes you mad. It’s not natural to turn on the news and hear about every tragedy that is taking place around the world. Prioritize in-person connections that feel soothing to your nervous system. Often, the best medicine is the people you surround yourself with and the community you have.

Why should we question the baby products currently on the market?

I am a firm believer that we should always be on alert when it comes to baby exposure, primarily because what they are exposed to shapes their development. It is our job to give them the best environment and developmental building blocks possible.

Secondly, many big-name companies that create baby products have horrible track records. From high levels of heavy metals in baby foods to baby powder contaminated with asbestos, to baby bottles containing high levels of BPA, to companies illegally conspiring together to raise the prices of their products, and companies unapologetically making false claims about their products, these are just a few examples of why we cannot blindly trust these companies. It is our job to protect children, and unfortunately, we cannot rely on companies and government regulatory agencies to be proactive about these issues.

What are some of the common ingredients in baby products that we should look out for?

Unfortunately, there are a lot. But these are the main ones:

1. Vegetable and seed oils. The most common ones being used are soybean, canola, sunflower, and safflower.
2. Added sugars, including high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup solids, cane sugar, sucrose, dextrose, and rice syrup, anything ending in “-ose”. There are 61 different names for sugar listed on food labels, so they can be sneaky about how they implement sugar into food and baby products.
3. Soy. I say this because the soy being used (in whatever form) is rarely ever organic. It is likely GMO, and/or has been doused in agrochemicals before being processed.
4. Natural and artificial flavors, which can entail a long list of chemicals that these companies do not have to disclose.
5. Fillers, gums, and many thickening/emulsifying agents. The most common ones to look out for are carrageenan, soy lecithin, xanthan gum, maltodextrin, etc.

What if a mother cannot breastfeed and is looking for formula? What are her options?

I highly encourage mothers in this situation to explore breast milk banks, where other mothers donate their extra milk for women who cannot breastfeed. These resources include:

mothersmilk.org

milkbankne.org

themilkbank.org

hmbana.org/find-a-milk-bank

Other options include consulting with a trusted healthcare practitioner about Weston A. Price’s homemade formula recipes, goat milk-based formulas, or opting for European formulas, which tend to be a lot better than US formulas. With that being said, always use filtered water if you decide to utilize the formula option.

As an herbalist and food educator, where should we seek out real food? How do we connect with farmers? What are some of the resources you use, and what advice would you give others?

The best place to start is to attend your local farmer’s markets. You can google “National Farmers Market Directory” or use these resources to find markets near you:

usdalocalfoodportal.com

LocalHarvest.org

Nfmd.org

You can also connect with your local farms directly! These are some great resources to explore:

RegenerationInternational.org

RealMilk.com

RegenerativeFarmsOfAmerica.com

RegenerationCanada.org

RegenOrganic.org

LocalHarvest.org

You quote Charles Simmons, who said, "Sickness is the vengeance of nature for the violation of her laws." Can you explain the meaning behind this?

Whenever an animal violates the laws of nature, injury or disease is inevitable. The best example of this is domesticated pets having similar diseases and chronic ailments as modern-day humans. There is only so far one can deviate from how we were physiologically designed to live and eat before negative consequences start to arise both on a personal and societal level. I personally don't like to refer to nature as vengeful, but unapologetic. Have you ever noticed how our medical system is focused on coming up with band-aid solutions to our health problems rather than getting to the root cause? This all stems from the subconscious belief that humans can outsmart the laws of nature. As our population progressively becomes weaker and more chronically ill despite our medical and technological advancements, more people are starting to make this connection.

 What is your opinion on the FDA?

My discernment does not end where FDA approval begins. Nearly half of the FDA's funding comes from the same companies they are supposed to be regulating. So we know this is a corrupt agency, to begin with. On top of that, 1/3 of all FDA-approved drugs have had negative effects on human health, and one in every five drugs approved by the FDA ends up causing serious harm, even when taken correctly.

Many of my mentors have taught me that any good doctor waits, at minimum, seven years after something has been FDA-approved to ever consider recommending the said product to their patients. That evidence can accumulate about the real harms and benefits of the product in question.

What are some of your diet/lifestyle habits that you integrate daily?

Each day looks a little different, but what usually stays constant is starting my day by exposing my eyes and body to morning light to help set a healthy circadian rhythm. Also, I eat breakfast within an hour of waking up. Each meal is balanced with protein, fats, and healthy carbs in order to keep my energy levels and blood sugar levels stabilized. I like to drink my homemade bone broth in the morning, too. My diet is fairly simple and whole food based. I rarely eat packaged or processed foods, and I source as much as possible from my local farmers. I prioritize organic fruits and vegetables in season, grass-fed and grass-finished beef, pasture-raised chickens and eggs, wild-caught fish, grass-fed butter, and wild game.

At some point during the day, I take my whole food-based supplements, which include beef liver, a multi-organ complex, shilajit, and some form of collagen (capsule or powder form). These are my base supplements, and I often experiment or incorporate other supplements a few times a week depending on what my body needs. I share a lot about this on my Instagram.

If I am not working on the farm, I make sure to be physically active in other ways, such as weight lifting, hiking, surfing, long walks, or calisthenics.

I utilize sauna therapy anywhere from 3 to 5 times a week depending on how much I have already been sweating that day. Keeping my eliminative organs running properly is one of my top priorities when it comes to self-care.

I end my day with some form of stretching, herbal tea, my skincare routine, and a grounding dinner. When I have a heavier meal, I like to incorporate vinegar, whether in a side salad, mixed in water, and taken as a shot, or in the meal itself to aid digestion. Also, I prefer to be in bed by 10 pm. 

*** THE VIEWS EXPRESSED IN THIS INTERVIEW ARE THOSE OF THE INTERVIEWEE AND NOT AGENT NATEUR. THESE STATEMENTS HAVE NOT BEEN APPROVED OR REGULATED BY THE FDA. WE ARE NOT DOCTORS, THEREFORE ALWAYS CONSULT WITH YOUR DOCTOR FIRST AND MAKE SURE YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR RESEARCHING FURTHER IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN THIS SUBJECT***