Botanicals Can Ease the Silent Suffering of Incontinence

Urinary incontinence is far more common than many people realize. Those affected often feel ashamed, and they hide their suffering. Further, the commonly prescribed drugs can cause adverse effects so unpleasant that patients choose to forego treatment. Fortunately, there are alternatives. Several botanical medicines, used in combination, can safely address urinary dysfunction without the concerning side effects.

Six Essentials for Optimal Wintertime Health

With shorter days and colder weather, many people have trouble finding the motivation to stay healthy during the winter. The following tips can prepare people for what winter has in store for us, and more.

In New Self-Policing Effort, Herb 
Industry Urges, “Burn, Don’t Return”

Leaders in the dietary supplement industry have a sharp new directive for manufacturers who discover adulterants or contaminants in botanical raw materials: “Don’t Return It, Burn It.”

The innovative self-policing policy, launched in October, and supported by all the major herbal industry trade groups, puts direct economic pressure on raw materials suppliers to improve the quality of the ingredients they sell into the US market.

Webinar: Pediatric Immune System Support

VIEW WEBINAR Many of our patients experience daily immune system challenges, and children are no exception!  Stress, busy school & extracurricular schedules, and erratic or poor eating habits can all impact the body’s natural defense mechanisms. On top of that, there’s exposure in schools to a whole new host of germs. Kids’ immune systems really […]

Webinar: Fall & Winter Immune Support Essentials

VIEW WEBINAR The winter season brings many challenges to the immune system. Colder temperatures, drier air, more time in enclosed spaces–not to mention the holidays—can all take their toll. To bolster and support immunity throughout the fall and winter months, it is essential to build a strong foundation of overall health in the weeks leading […]

Encapsulating Quality: How Ingredient and Capsule Choices Impact Supplement Performance

One of the many challenges for supplement manufacturers is consistently ensuring that the products they bring to market are safe, innovative, and aligned with practitioner and consumer preferences, while optimizing production efficiency, productivity, and profitability.

That’s no easy feat. From the choice of bioactive ingredients, through the encapsulation or tableting process, and ultimately to the packaging and shipping, there are dozens of decisions to be made. Each choice has a potential impact on overall product quality, stability, and efficacy.

Validation Testing: Insights from Inside the Analytical Lab

From the outside looking in, the dietary supplement world can seem like a bewildering place. Many people wonder, “How are all these formulas blended and manufactured? How are the quality and potency being verified?” Sarah Gannon, an analytical chemist at Designs for Health pulls back the curtain.

How Practitioners Define Dietary Supplement Quality

Product quality is a high priority for dietary supplement users, and manufacturers are well aware of that fact. Supplement makers have their own ideas about what constitutes “high quality.” But as more healthcare professionals bring supplements into clinical practice, the question of how practitioners define quality becomes increasingly important. Holistic Primary Care’s 2019 practitioner survey gave us some insight.

Quality Assurance for Hemp CBD: Key Questions to Ask

Quality assurance is a challenge for all herbal companies. For those making hemp extracts, the challenges are compounded by a confusing regulatory landscape, the inherent complexity of the plant, the surging consumer demand for CBD, and the entrance of dozens of upstart brands with no prior herbal experience and little understanding of basic QA methods.

Regulatory Confusion Reigns As FDA Grapples With CBD

On July 30, former FDA Commissioner, Scott Gottlieb, published an op/ed in the Washington Post saying that the agency needs to get a grip on the “out of hand” CBD craze. But it’s a tall order. In many ways, CBD epitomizes all the conflicting motives and scientific ambiguities with which the FDA must constantly contend.