Herbal capsules

Herbal Capsules Capsules contain dried, pulverized powder of the therapeutic material. Some herbal capsules contain oil, soaked herbals, or herbal juices. 

Herbal capsule is another common form of herbal therapy. The herb is dried and pulverized into a powder that is placed inside the capsule. Some herbal capsules contain oil-soaked herbals or herbal juices. 

Herbal tablets are similar to herbal capsules except the dried, pulverized herb is combined with stabilizers and binders and then compressed into a tablet. A stabilizer is an ingredient that assures that the herb maintains its therapeutic effect. A binder is an ingredient that acts like glue to hold together the powdery mixture of herb and stabilizer. 

Zechelius, Brunhild, Dipl. Ecotrophologist, Study of a Juice Fasting Treatment Based on Elderberry Juice, Elderflower Syrup, Elderberry Herbal tablets, Blood Purifying Drops, Diuretic Capsules and Various teas, Empirical Study, 1988. 

Dietary supplements are available in a variety of delivery forms such as capsules, tablets, teas, tinctures, extracts, and bulk herbs. Sixty-eight percent of the herbal products available are in the form of a capsule or tablet. Approximately half of the herbal preparations contain a single herb [3]. An example of a softgel is Saw Palmetto Complex by PhytoPharmica. 

Many preparations of feverfew are available to the general public from health food shops and similar outlets in the U.K. They take the form of herbal or homeopathic preparations. The herbal preparations may contain just dried leaf in tablet or capsule form or indeed the dried whole plant. There are many different dosages on the market ranging from 25 to 390 mg per tablet or capsule. When the platelet antisecretory activity that could be extracted from some of these preparations was compared with that extracted from known amounts of feverfew, the apparent feverfew content of most preparations was found to be lower that that stated on the preparation [70]. In the case of the homeopathic preparation, no antisecretory activity was detected. 

A general disillusionment with conventional medicines, coupled with the desire for a natural lifestyle has resulted in an increasing utilization of herbal medicinal products (HMPs) across the developed world. Sales of botanical products in the United States have increased sharply in recent years, according to industry reports. An estimated 4 billion was spent in health food stores in 2000 for botanical products in bulk, as well as capsules, tablets, extracts, and teas (1 ). A similar trend is noted for European countries (5). 

Agrosi M, Mischiatti S, Harrasser PC, Savio D. Oral bioavailability of active principles from herbal products in humans. A study on Hypericum perforatum extract using the soft gelatin capsule technology. Phytomedicine 2000 7 455-462. 

Pills, tablets and capsules made from powdered herbal extracts... 

Pills, tablets and capsules can be made from the powdered herbal extracts described above. 

Herbal pills, tablets or capsules should generally be taken with warm water. However, an exception is made to these two principles if the patient suffers from an excess heat syndrome in which the heat is so strong that it is impossible to accept any warm drinks. In this case, since the administration of warm fluids may cause vomiting, herbal medicines can be taken cool. 

So does echinacea work One would think that this would be a relatively simple question to answer, but it isn t. The best reply I can come up with is that some echinacea preparations work for some conditions in some people some of the time. I realize that this is not very satisfying, but such is the nature of the herbal beast. First of all there are nine species of echinacea, although manufacturers only use three (E. purpurea, E. angustifolia, and E. pallida) to make supplements. Each of these plants has a different chemical profile. Each contains dozens of compounds some they have in common, some they don t. Furthermore, their leaves, flowers, stems, and roots have different compositions. An alcohol extract of the root will have a very different chemical makeup from a hexane extract of the stem or from capsules filled with dried, powdered leaves. Before we even... 

St. John s wort. The St. John s wort plant (Hypericum perforatum Figure 6.4) is an increasingly popular herbal supplement that proponents claim has the ability to cure a vast array of ailments. St. John s wort appears to boost the release of the neurotransmitter serotonin in the brain, which may be the reason it is able to treat anxiety and depression. The herb contains numerous substances, two of which, hypericin and hyperforin, maybe key active ingredients. St. John s wort appears to be effective in relieving the muscle pain associated with fibromyalgia and the tissue pain associated with hemorrhoids. The herb comes in tablet, capsule, cream, and ointment forms and must be taken for several weeks before it takes full effect. St. John s wort should not be taken with antidepressants such as... 

Originally, herbal remedies were often infusions of herbs, but nowadays they may also be produced in more concentrated form, as capsules for example. The possibility of overdosage is therefore present. Because many herbal remedies are available for people to buy and administer themselves without the involvement of a licensed practitioner, some of them may increase the dose on the grounds that, if the recommended dose works, an increased dose wiU be even better. Herbal remedies may be prescribed by practitioners who may be medical herbalists, Chinese herbalists, or A)airvedic or Unani practitioners, for example. These practitioners tend to use herbs from Europe, China, or the Indian subcontinent. In the case of the latter two the remedies may contain constituents such as minerals (arsenic, for example) and parts of animals. 

Herbs are specifically defined as non-woody, low-growing plants such as basil and parsley. Herbal medicine is considered to be the use of crude drugs of plant origin to treat illness or to promote health. A more correct term for this would be botanical medicine. Phytomedicinals are those common preparations, including capsules, tablets, tinctures, and fluidextracts that have been prepared from plant sources. This should be distinguished from plant-derived drugs that have been isolated, purified, and standardized from plant sources. 

In 2002 the Medicines Safety Authority of the Ministry of Health in New Zealand (Medsafe) ordered the withdrawal of several traditional Chinese medicines sold as herbal remedies (4). The products included Guan Xin Su He capsules. Long Dan Xie Gan Wan Pills, and Zhiyuan Xinqinkeli sachets. 

A 21-year-old man presented with hypertension (blood pressure 220/110 mmHg) and ventricular dysrhythmias after taking four capsules of herbal ecstasy (6). He was treated with Udocaine and sodium nitroprusside and his symptoms resolved within 9 hours. 

Betamethasone, 0.1-0.3 mg per capsule, has been detected in Cheng Kum and Shen Loon, two herbal medicines that are popular for their benefits in joint pain, skin... 

GNC Herbal Plus — 1000-mg softgel capsule concentrated St. John s Wort... 

St. John s wort has also been associated with numerous neurological adverse effects. An acute psychotic delirium episode in a 76 year-old female was attributed to St. John s wort. She was taken to the hospital after having visual hallucinations of people in her home. She was taking no prescription or herbal medications besides one 75-mg capsule of St. John s wort daily for three weeks (51). More seriously, there have been several reported cases of serotonin syndrome associated with St. John s wort (52-54). A 33-year-old female on no other medications started taking St. John s wort. She took a single dose on the first day and two doses the next day. She awoke at 1 00 am after the second day with extreme anxiety and nausea, and after going to the emergency department it was found that she had a blood pressure (BP) of... 

Cranberry Fruit Sundown Herbals contain 425 mg of cranberry fruit per capsule. The recommended dose is two to four capsules up to three times a day as needed. 

---