Tincture, herbal capsules or dried herb?

Tincture, herbal capsules or dried herb, what should you choose?

There are of course disadvantages and advantages and with all three. We have made a short summary, so you can more easily decide in which form you want your herbs.

Infusion of dried herbs (Herbal extract in water)

Infusion is a water extract of herbs and plants. In principle, the same process takes place in hot water as with a tincture. In other words, the herbs' valuable substances and essential oils are released and end up in the hot water. The substances are absorbed in the stomach, and further out into the body. The advantage is that you get to experience the aroma and taste of the herbs.

The disadvantage of dried herbs that dissolve in hot water is that they need to stand and steep for up to 30 min. The shelf life of dried herbs is slightly shorter than that of Tinctures, but it is still a matter of years if you store the herbs dry and dark.

Herbal capsules:

It has been noted that the digestive system is not capable of dissolving all substances on its own. That is one of the big disadvantages of herbs in capsules. If you finely grind the herb into powder, it becomes easier for the digestive system to absorb the herbs' beneficial substances. Therefore, it is important that the herbal capsule contains finely ground herbs. The advantage of herbal capsules is that they are easy to take and take with you.

The tincture:

It is an extract of the herb dissolved in alcohol or Glycerol ( E 422) . By letting selected parts of the herb lie in the alcohol, the herb's essential oils and active substances are extracted.

The advantage of alcohol versus glycerol is that you get both fat-soluble and water-soluble substances. Glycerol only dissolves water-soluble substances. Thus, ethanol is the most effective in dissolving all substances from the herbs.
When the herbs have been left long enough, the plant residues are filtered off and the liquid is taken care of. Then you've got a tincture, and the substances we want to eat are dissolved in Ethanol or Glycerol.

The substances then become more readily available to the body. Part of the absorption already takes place in the oral cavity and the rest in the stomach. The alcohol causes the tincture to go directly into the body.

Another advantage of tinctures is their long shelf life, and that such a large dose is not needed, as nothing goes down into the stomach and is broken down. The tincture also does not have time to pass the liver, but is absorbed by the body directly.

The disadvantage of tinctures is that they can be strong in taste, as alcohol binds flavourings.