The herbal teas are made from loose, fresh or dried plants, but this preparation can only collect the active ingredients soluble in water. “Their contribution is not negligible, if they are done well, underlines Dr. Éric Lorrain, president of the European Institute of Plant Substances. For example, angelica relieves spasms and bloating gastrointestinal; while cherry tails stimulate urinary elimination and detoxify. “
To extract the active substances from plants and preserve them, herbal medicine laboratories mainly use four other methods:
– The powder is produced by drying the plant part, then spraying it. Once sieved, it can be used in particular for the manufacture of capsules.
– The mother tincture is obtained by maceration of the plant in alcohol. It is used in the manufacture of homeopathic medicines or is used in the form of drops in herbal medicine.
– The extracts are obtained by soaking the plant in a solvent. After evaporation of the solvent (water, alcohol, ether, propylene glycol), a fluid, soft or dry extract (sometimes called a nebulisate) is collected which can be used to make tablets. This technique makes it possible, in certain cases, to select only one group of active ingredients, such as the flavonoids in the dry extract of chamomile.
– The integral suspension of fresh plants consists of freezing the plant in liquid nitrogen less than 24 hours after its harvest, then finely grinding it and suspending the result in alcohol at 30 °. This process better preserves all the active ingredients of the plant. It has been further perfected in standardized fresh plant fluid extracts or EPS, which add a multi-extraction step. These formulas can be part of magistral preparations (mixtures made by the pharmacist) or be sold in the form of drops, tablets and capsules.
What is the most effective form?
We must distinguish between plants for herbalism (herbal teas), those used in food supplements, and the truly medicinal forms. The majority of products containing plants are now part of the family of food supplements. The regulations require that they are not very dosed. In addition, manufacturers generally do not provide any information on plant treatment processes. Not very surprising then if the harpagophytum only randomly improves rheumatism. As for herbal teas and decoctions, they will be all the more effective when they are made from fresh plants. “If you pick the lemon balm leaves from your garden, you will obtain about 40% of the effectiveness of a drug based on the same plant”, assesses Éric Lorrain. The most concentrated forms are indeed those that the authorities assimilate to real drugs. They must also obtain, like them, a marketing authorization (MA) or are used as raw material for magistral preparations. Phytotherapists most often prescribe the latter, made by the pharmacist from extracts of fresh plants or mother tinctures. However, their potency requires precautions for use. Some liquid preparations, capsules or tablets are also very good and often better suited for self-medication. The most serious mention the use of fresh plants and the extraction process.
