Complementary Alternative Cardiovascular Medicine
Complementary Alternative Cardiovascular Medicine
Complementary Alternative Cardiovascular Medicine
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
16 <strong>Alternative</strong> <strong>Cardiovascular</strong> <strong>Medicine</strong><br />
bulk form, that is, dried herbs usually displayed in glass jars and sold by<br />
the ounce. Herbal teas, also called infusions, can be found in nearly every<br />
restaurant and hotel in the world. Herbal products also include liquid<br />
extracts or tinctures, cough syrups, and lozenges.<br />
ABOUT EXTRACTS<br />
The leading products on the market today are standardized extracts,<br />
meaning that every dose of the extract contains the same level of important<br />
compounds. Doctors and pharmacists favor standardized extracts,<br />
because they add a level of consistency that appeals to professionals,<br />
and, in many cases they are among the best researched products. However,<br />
they are somewhat controversial, too, because they are highly processed,<br />
and, in many cases, we do not fully understand which constituents<br />
in an herb contribute to its activity.<br />
Plants contain a complex mixture of thousands of substances, including<br />
water and fiber, chlorophyll, starches, fats, and proteins, plus unique<br />
phytochemicals that give each plant its particular physiological effects.<br />
Manufacturers make extracts by grinding the herb and using a solvent,<br />
such as alcohol, to dissolve beneficial compounds from the herb. Some<br />
herbs do not need to be extracted, but for several reasons, some are best<br />
used in extract form.<br />
• Concentration: Some herbs are so mild that it is unrealistic to use them<br />
without concentration. Bilberry is a good example. The dark-blue pigments<br />
in bilberry fruit are responsible for its antioxidant benefits, but to<br />
get enough of these compounds into a few capsules, it is necessary to<br />
concentrate them by 100 times. To get an effective dose of simple dried<br />
bilberry fruit in a capsule, we would need to take up to 100 capsules a<br />
day. Instead, we take a concentrate. This concentrate is called a 100-to-1<br />
concentrate and is usually written 100:1.<br />
• Selection: When a concentrate is made, something is omitted from the<br />
extract. The largest part of what is excluded is the insoluble fiber.<br />
Extraction procedures can be designed to select for extraction of particular<br />
beneficial compounds or elimination of undesirable or toxic<br />
compounds.<br />
Standardized Extracts<br />
To standardize an extract, the manufacturer tests for key compounds<br />
in the plant and adjusts the strength of the extract to ensure that the level<br />
of these compounds remains consistent. For instance, if a company processes<br />
a batch of ginseng that is lower in the active ginseng compounds<br />
(the ginsenosides), the company can either further concentrate the extract<br />
or use more ginseng.