Herbal medicine, also known as botanical medicine or herbalism, is a medical structure based on the usage of plants or plant extracts, which can be applied to the skin or eaten. Since olden times, herbal medicine has been used by various cultures around the world to heal illness and to support bodily functions.
Herbal medicine is not a licensed profession in the U.S., however, herbal remedies in the form of teas, tinctures, extracts, tablets and capsules may be recommended by doctors of different disciplines as a practical way to treat various medical conditions.
The risks of obtaining unlicensed, substandard, contaminated or fake, medicines are increased by buying herbal medicines by mail order or online.
Unlicensed herbal medicines made outside the U.S. aren’t subject to regulation. They can be replicas of some popular licensed remedies but made in unlicensed manufacturing works with no any quality control. Certain websites can happen to be valid, but are fronted by a pharmacist or bogus doctors.
Herbal medicines sold online can also contain toxic substances and banned ingredients.
Sexual health products and herbal slimming products, for instance, are best avoided because they have been found to have unsafe ingredients, such as pharmaceutical ingredients that are not stated on the label.
However, because of the numerous unproven claims made for herbal medicines and products, and because the market is not well regulated, Your Health Tubers recommend that consumers should follow these guidelines:
Do not buy whole dried herbs from jars or bins in stores, except they have some label with the date that has information about when and how they are dried. These kind of loose herbs are possibly worthless because dried herbs deteriorate upon exposure to light, moisture and air, and the more finely chopped the parts of the plant are - the quicker they lose their desired qualities.
Avoid compressed ground herbs because when plants are powdered, they are exposed to oxidation that causes them to deteriorate.
Purchase reputable brand, who advertises the purity of the ingredients.
Purchase Chinese herbal products just from reputable sources and avoid products that don’t list ingredients. (We mentioned this because certain herbal products from China have been contaminated with some toxic metals.)
Always buy herbal preparations that have been cultivated organically or harvested from wild stands.
We always recommend to grow your own plants – those are definitely the best herbal medicines. Maintaining a personal plant garden can ensure quality and freshness. You can also dry your herbs in an appropriate way.
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This article was republished with permission from yourhealthtube.com