Know What the Pros Know
Unlike pharmaceutical preparations, which typically offer very limited choices (will that be gelcaps or caplets?) or a single, one-size-fits-all formulation, herbs give you a variety of options. Here's how to navigate them:
Buying in Bulk
Buying bulk herbs is a much more tactile experience than buying readymade remedies. It also gives you a chance to see exactly what you're getting. If you have a choice between fresh and dried, herbalists recommend the fresh in most cases.
When you're buying bulk herbs, be sure to give them a sniff first. Every herb will smell like something, even if it's just grass.
Not every herb smells like rose petals — and plenty of them don't. Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) and lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) have a pleasant floral fragrance, and peppermint (Mentha x piperita) and rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) smell sharp and appealing. But sage (Salvia officinalis, S. lavandulaefolia) has a musty-old-attic odor, and valerian (Valeriana officinalis) is reminiscent of an old pair of socks.
If you're buying dried herbs, remember that an herb that's fragrant when it's fresh should be fragrant when it's dried, too. Herbs that are colorful while they're growing should be colorful in the store (and dried herbs should retain much of the color they had when fresh).
Tincture How-To's
Most tinctures are made with alcohol, but alcohol-free products made with glycerin are also available. A tincture's concentration will be listed as a ratio: The first number indicates the amount of herb (this will be a 1), and the second indicates the amount of solution. Many tinctures contain one part herb and five parts solution, and so have a ratio of 1:5. The smaller the second number, the stronger the remedy will be.
Buying Herbal Extracts
Herbal extracts are sold as liquids or solids (capsules and tablets) and can be anywhere from 1 to 100 times more concentrated than crude herbs. The concept works like the one used for tinctures, but it's explained differently: The first number indicates the concentration, the second represents the herb in its natural state (it's always a 1). The bigger the first number is, the stronger the preparation will be.
Don't confuse herbal potency formulas with the one used in homeopathy, which works in the opposite direction: The more a remedy is diluted, the more potent it is believed to be. Homeopathic remedies are classified according to the number of times they're diluted (the more dilutions, the stronger the remedy), so a 12C or 12X remedy will be stronger than a 6C or 6X (homeopathy also uses a few different potency scales).
For example, an extract that's four times as strong as the crude herb has a ratio of 4:1. Fluid extracts are often sold in a 1:1 potency, meaning they're not concentrated.
Advice on Storing
Different herbs and herbal preparations have different considerations, but almost all should be stored the same way: in dark-colored, airtight glass containers kept in a cool, dry place. Herbs can quickly degrade and lose their medicinal muscle when exposed to even small amounts of sunlight and oxygen.
Every herb has its own lifespan, but, generally speaking, you can keep fresh herbs until they get slimy (or until you dry them). Dried herbs will generally keep about a year when stored correctly.
Powdered herbs generally keep just a few months before losing effectiveness. A tincture should be kept in its original container (most likely a dark-colored glass bottle with a dropper top). Stored correctly, tinctures will keep up to two years.
Both dried and liquid herbal extracts should keep about a year. Essential oils will keep indefinitely. Many commercial lotions and potions contain chemical preservatives, which give them the shelf life of a Twinkie (read: forever). But truly natural products contain natural preservatives, such as vitamin E, which don't last as long.
There's no official definition of “natural” when it comes to any consumer goods, including herbal products. For example, many cosmetics manufacturers use completely synthetic ingredients like caprylic acid or cetyl alcohol but list them on the label as being “derived from coconut oil.” The only way to be sure a product is natural is to make it yourself.
Generally speaking, you can keep a product that doesn't contain synthetic preservatives for a few months — or until it changes consistency or starts to smell funny. Keeping it in the refrigerator should extend its life. Always check the expiration date on any packaged herbal product.
