The Friendly Naturopath

• Ethanol is an excellent solvent for extracting the medicinal constituents in herbs (particularly for roots which can be hard to extract using aqueous methods [ie. using water])
• Ethanolic extracts are more bioavailable to the human body and therefore allow the constituents to be more readily absorbed
• Ethanol is an efficient preservative that inhibits microbial growth, enzymatic action, and hydrolysis
• Ethanolic extracts are potent forms of medicine, enabling smaller doses than dried or aqueous (water-based) formulas

What about children and pregnant patients?

Well, truth is there is little specific scientific information available about the safety of herbs in children and in pregnancy. Modern recommendations are usually based on the knowledge of the herb, its constituents, and traditional evidence of safe use. One 2016 study reviewed the safety data from more than 50,000 children in non-interventional paediatric studies using ethanolic herbal preparations in conjunction with data from routine clinical use in several million children. No evidence of adverse drug reactions was found, allowing the authors to conclude that herbal medicine products are safe when used as prescribed. When within therapeutic dosing ranges, ethanolic extracts for children aged 6-12 years contains approximately 0.07-0.18g ethanol (equivalent to 31-75ml of apple juice which has an ethanolic content of 0.3%) and is eliminated from the blood within 1-3 minutes.

NOTE: Always consult a qualified naturopath or herbal medicine practitioner before taking herbal medicine of any preparation as your health, metabolic capacity, age, weight, lifestyle, diet, and vitality all play a role in how and what you will be prescribed. If you have any questions/concerns about ethanol in your herbal medicine, pleases contact your healthcare professional