A Simple Guide to Understanding Nature’s Answer’s Extracts vs Tinctures, and Glycerites

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What Are Herbal Extracts?

In the world of natural wellness, herbal extracts have become increasingly popular. This form of herbal delivery is much more concentrated than teas or tinctures. But what exactly are herbal extracts? How are they made, and how do they fit into the growing movement toward holistic health?

What Are Herbal Extracts?

Herbal extracts are concentrated forms of plants that have been processed to extract the active compounds believed to be responsible for their potential effects. Fresh or dried herbs contain a small amount of active constituents, but Natures Answer’s herbal extracts condense these compounds into a more potent form. This allows consumers to get a more concentrated dose of the beneficial components found in the plant compared to using the whole plant.

What Are the Benefits of Using Herbal Extracts?

Herbal extracts have been highly valued and used for centuries to support health and wellness. They are commonly used for immune support, to promote healthy sleep and digestion, and to offset the effects of stress. Herbal extracts like elderberry, echinacea, and valerian root provide targeted health benefits through specific compounds. Benefits vary significantly depending on the herb and the form of extraction.

What Are the Types of Herbal Liquid Preparations?

There are different types of herbal liquid preparations that are created using various methods, each with its own unique characteristics.

Tea or Tissane: This is a simple herbal preparation where the herb is soaked in water, usually hot, and then taken in oral form, as a liquid.
Tinctures: These are a popular form of liquid herb because they’re made simply by soaking the herbs in alcohol. Tinctures provide a less concentrated final product compared to fluid extracts.
Glycerites are a type of herbal extract similar to tinctures, but instead of alcohol, glycerin is used as the menstruum or soaking agent. This makes glycerites a popular choice for individuals who are sensitive to alcohol or prefer to avoid alcohol-based extracts. Glycerin is a milder solvent, and while it works well for extracting certain plants, it is not effective for all herbs. Some plants may not release their active constituents efficiently in glycerin, which can result in a less potent or ineffective preparation. Therefore, the suitability of glycerin as a solvent depends on the specific plant being extracted and its chemical composition.
Bio Chelated® Process – This is a unique, proprietary patented process created by and used exclusively by Nature’s Answer to prepare concentrated liquid herbal extracts.
Bio-Chelated® Process is a proprietary cold extraction technique that is herb friendly. The process begins by taking the raw plant parts which are extracted without the use of heat. By using cold extraction, we are able to maintain the whole plant's natural constituents allowing the herb to keep its holistic balance.
Starting with the whole plant material and finishing off with a true 1:1 extract, Nature's Answer delivers a super-concentrated 1000mg dried herb equivalent per 1mL serving.
Liquid Extracts can be prepared as a holistically balanced extract, which maintains the ratio of active constituents that is naturally found in the plant, or it can be standardized to contain a specific amount of a specified active compound.
Powdered Extracts are another form of concentrated extracts which can be taken in capsule or tablet form. This may be preferable to avoid the strong flavor of some herbs.

How Are Herbal Extracts Made?

To create an herbal extract, the plant material—whether it's the roots, leaves, flowers, or bark—is typically soaked in a solvent like alcohol or water to extract the active ingredients from the plant. The extraction process includes the following steps:

Selection of Plant Material:

The first step is choosing the appropriate part of the plant, whether it’s the roots, leaves, flowers, or bark. Each part of the plant contains different compounds intended to deliver specific benefits, so the selection depends on what benefits the extract is intended to provide. There are two primary types of plant origins that can be sourced to make herbal extracts, Wild crafted and Farmed. While both can be beneficial and valuable they do have several differences from how they are grown and harvested to potency and sustainability.

Wild crafted plants are harvested from their natural habitat. These plants grow in the wild, often in forests, meadows, or fields, and are typically foraged or gathered by hand from their native habitats. Whereas farmed plants are cultivated in a controlled farmed setting.

Nature’s Answer uses a variety of herbs, including wild crafted herbs, cultivated herbs, and certified organic herbs. We always start with the whole herb, which is then ground by a technique called Milling, to increase its surface area. This step enhances the plant’s ability to release its active compounds by increasing the surface area that is exposed to the extractants. The ground herb is then soaked in a carefully selected solvent, typically a combination of alcohol and water, to extract the beneficial constituents. After soaking, a cold extraction process is employed to distill the mixture, effectively removing the alcohol and leaving behind a thick, concentrated herbal extract.

Extraction Process:

Nature’s Answer can extract the goodness from every herb using our proprietary Bio-Chelated® technology, which is a unique, herb-friendly cold extraction method that gently extracts and concentrates the raw plant material without the use of heat. This process helps preserve the plant’s natural compounds, maintaining its Holistic Balance™.

Finished Herbal Extracts:

Next, glycerin is added to the concentrated extract to create a holistic, alcohol-free solution. We also produce low organic alcohol extracts (12-15%) by adding Organic Alcohol, along with glycerin, to the concentrated extract. The finished product results in a true 1:1 extract, meaning that each 1mL of the final product contains the equivalent of 1000mg of the original herb. This process preserves the full spectrum of the plant’s active compounds while ensuring a potent and balanced extract.

FAQs About Herbal Extracts

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*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.