HERBS
Herbs are probably humanities oldest medicinal substances. The first uses of plants for healing are lost in prehistory. Various parts of the world have evolved an herbal tradition that extends down to today. Many alternative healers now incorporate herbs into their practice. Herbs have a variety of benefits in healing. They are generally safe and nontoxic (there are exceptions), gentle, and do not require a visit to a physician. On the downside, herbs may not be effective for an acute and serious condition. They may lack adequate amounts of the active constituents or may contain contaminants. Advanced systems of healing such as Ayurveda or Chinese traditional medicine have developed sophisticated herbal blends that work synergistically to obtain a better result than single herbs.
People want to know how to determine if a particular brand of herb is good or not. If you study the labels on a bottle, you can tell if you are likely to be getting a high quality herbal product. The label should have the plant name (both common and botanical), plant part used (e.g. root, seed, leaf, flower, etc.), extract ratio (weight of the original dried herb to the weight of the finished product), type of product (extract, tincture, powder, tablet), quantity of product, and the identity and quantified active constituent. The best herbal sources test their raw product for purity and amount of active constituents by HPLC (high performance liquid chromatography). It is helpful to know if the company follows GMP (good manufacturing practices) and if they make their products to pharmaceutical standards. Because herbs are not regulated as drugs in America, the buyer must beware. Many herbal products being marketed are of substandard quality and some from Asia have serious levels of dangerous contaminants.
Consulting a reputable herbalist is one way to take the guesswork out of using herbs. They can recommend what herbs to take, which brands, and monitor your response to therapy. Never buy raw herbs unless the seller can guarantee the source and quality. Another way is to only buy from a company that you know makes good products. Another important principal to remember is that herbs generally work best when all the ingredients of the plant are in the final product. The pharmaceutical approach to herbalism is to attempt to identify the active ingredient and throw away the rest of the plant. This assumes that we know why and how herbs work. Since this is not the case, it is prudent to use all the ingredients.
Daniel Blodgett MD