When reading or talking about nutritional health supplements, you will often hear terms like herbs, herbal supplements, and botanicals being thrown around. To most of us, these terms often have very vague meanings and we do not understand what, exactly, a botanical or herbal supplement is. Well, lucky for you, you’re about to learn all about herbal and botanical nutritional health supplements.A botanical is a plant or part of a plant that is used for its medicinal (or therapeutic) properties. Herbs are just certain types of botanicals, and nutritional supplements that are made from botanicals and herbs are often referred to as botanicals, botanical supplements, herbal supplements, or herbal remedies. Many botanicals are manufactured, packaged, and sold as dietary supplements.
Botanical supplements can be prepared, packaged, and marketed in several different forms. Many are sold as a tea, which is a dried form that the consumer later adds boiling water to. Herbs and botanicals can also be found in their original plant or root form. Many supplements contain extracts from herbs and botanicals and are sold in pill, capsule, or tablet form.
Many of the most popular nutritional supplements sold today are actually botanicals and herbal products. Green tea, ginkgo biloba, and ginseng root are all common examples. Ginseng, for example, is sold as a ground up root, in a tea form, and as an extract in the form of pills and capsules. And while green tea has been around for centuries, new marketing such as green tea weight loss has created a surge in popularity. recently. (more…)