Research - current, complete, validated research -- is the backbone of our business at Oregon's Wild Harvest. We encourage our customers to research their health products with reliable sources. We're happy to share information with you. As we see it, knowledge is power, and your health depends on it.

Here are some commonly asked questions about our organic herbs. If your question or concern is not addressed here, email us.

Taking Medicinal Herbs

How much should I take?

The dose indicated on the bottle is intended for an adult of average weight (which is estimated at 150 pounds). Doses will vary for each individual, therefore adjustments may need to be made depending on your age, weight, the ailment, and the strength of the herb.

The recommended dose is a guideline based on clinical and/or historical evidence. In general, most medicinal herbs take time to take effect, therefore effective use involves consistency and patience. Generally, it is best not to take medicinal herbal supplements continuously for a long period of time without a 'rest' period. Intake can be resumed after an adequate 'rest' period unless the label indicates that the product is "not intended for long-term use". We have not provided a specific time period here, because each herb is different and must be considered on an individual basis.

Caution must be exercised when herbs are going to be taken by children or the elderly. For older people, one-half to two-thirds of the recommended dose is usually adequate. For children, follow Clark's rule described below.

How much should I take if I do not weigh 150 lbs?

Clark's Rule is used to estimate smaller doses for children and adults, whose body weight is more or less than 150 pounds. The dose can be adjusted according to the person's weight as a ratio to the average adult weight of 150 pounds. In order to calculate the child's dose, take the child's weight (number of pounds) and divide it by 150 pounds, then multiply it by the adult dose described on the bottle.

Vegetarian Capsule Example:
For a 50-pound child, divide 50 by 150, which gives you 0.33 (or 1/3rd) of the adult dose. If the adult dose is three capsules, multiply 3 capsules by 0.33 to arrive at the adjusted dose of one capsule for the child.

Herbal Extract Example:
If the adult dose is 30 drops or one teaspoon, then the child's dose (for a 50 pound child) would be 50 divided by 150, then multiply 0.33 by 30 drops to arrive at the child's dose of 10 drops.
How may times per day?

Herbs are best taken throughout the day to maintain a steady level of the medicinal herb circulating in the body. A person who drinks four cups of coffee daily normally does not drink those four cups in a five-minute period, but finds it more beneficial to spread those four cups throughout the day. If it is inconvenient to take an herb three times daily, try twice daily. For acute conditions such as a cold, it is usually helpful to increase the number of times that the herb is taken per day for an optimum effect.

Most herbs do not have an immediate effect in the same way as, for example, aspirin acts on a headache; therefore it is important to take herbs consistently for approximately four to eight weeks before the beneficial effects are seen.

Can I take medicinal herbs with food?

For optimum benefit, the general guideline is to take herbs about an hour after eating. You will still have some food in your stomach, but not so much that the herb will have to compete with the food for absorption. Since the liquid herbal extracts do not require as much digestion, liquid herbal extract products are recommended for people who have impaired or sluggish digestion. In fact, the taste of the herb may stimulate the digestive system, especially if it is one of the many herbs known as a bitter.

What if I have never taken this herb before?

We recommend cutting the dose in half for the first two or three days. Individuals who have multiple allergies and sensitivities it is a good idea to start with a quarter of the dose, and gradually increase to the recommended dose by doubling the amount each time the herb is taken.

Organic Farming

What is the difference between Organic and Certified Organic?

In the market place today, organic can mean almost anything, as long as the material is of a natural source. Certified Organic guarantees that the plant material was grown without the use of herbicides, pesticides, and other harmful chemicals. In order to call a product "Certified Organic," very specific guidelines must be followed, such as testing the soil for the presence of chlorinated pesticides and other harmful residues. To be a certified organic farm, the farm and production facilities must be inspected by a recognized third party certifier. Oregon's Wild Harvest is inspected and certified by the Oregon Tilth.

Why is organic farming important?

Organic farming protects us, farm workers, our children, and our environment. Organic farming uses no pesticides or harmful chemicals, such as those that have been linked to illness in adults and children. Organic farming also nurtures more of a plant's healthy properties and compounds. Just as nature intended.

How are we improving the quality of our crops from year to year?

We are always looking at peak harvest times and soil consistency. Our soil test from this spring was almost perfect. In fact, the testing facility called us because they seldom see such quality soil samples. He stated "I don't know what you're doing, but keep doing it." We also use Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) testing on plants, to determine when the active constituents are at their highest levels. This ensures that we harvest and dry all of our organic herbs when they are at their peak potencies.

What organic herbs are grown and used in finished herbal products by OWH?

We grow a wide variety of organic herbs, including artemesia, ashwagandha, astragalus, black cohosh, black walnut, boneset, burdock, calendula, California poppy, catnip, celandine, chamomile, comfrey, dandelion, echinacea, elecampane, feverfew, garlic, ginkgo, goldenseal, gravel root, grindelia, horehound, hyssop, lavender, lemon balm, marshmallow, motherwort, mullein, nettles, oats, passion flower, peppermint, red clover, skullcap, St. John's wort, valerian, western red cedar, white willow, yarrow and yellow dock. We do buy organic herbs from other local organic farms and work to support local growers, helping to support sustainable organic farming.

Biodynamic® Farming

What is Biodynamic® farming?

Biodynamic® agriculture takes in to account the forces and cosmos of the earth, and combines them with those of the plants, animals and human beings. It works on the basis that everything is interrelated, working to harmonize the environment and eco system of the farm, to promote sustainability within that environment. On a Biodynamic® farm, everything that comes off the farm goes back in to it. It is our goal to have our Biodynamic® farm working free from needing anything from the outside world, besides minerals such as lime and rock phosphate.

Why is this mportant?

When you do not use outside sources to help a farm grow, you decrease the use of fossil fuels for transportation. The farm then becomes a unique and specialized production area for very high quality foods.

Wildcraft

What are our policies and procedures to wildcraft herbs?

We follow a strict set of guidelines when we wildcraft. First and foremost, we harvest with future generations in mind. It is our goal to only improve the conditions and plant populations as we harvest. Some basic guidelines we follow are:

• To never harvest more than one-third of a specific plant in any one eco system.
• Re-plant seeds and root crowns, always leaving the grandfather and grandmother plants, providing the best seed stock for future generations.
• Always harvest in areas that are free of any possible pollutants.
• Stay well away from roads and commercial farming areas.
• Always obtain all proper permits, working closely with the Department of Natural Resources.

What is the companies position on "endangered" herbs?

We strive to use only organic herbs like organic goldenseal. Our encapsulated goldenseal is certified organic, and we are in the process of growing goldenseal on our Biodynamic® farm for our fresh organic herb extract. As for our black cohosh, we purchase our plant material from a sustainable source, and are currently working on growing our own on our Biodynamic® farm. Even our slippery elm is organic. We DO NOT purchase other endangered herbs, and we follow all United Plant Savers (UPS) guidelines.

Drying Processes

We dry our herbs using two different processes. We have two standard drying rooms, which both hold approx. 500 to 1000 pounds (depending on the herb), and a flat bin dryer which is constructed of stainless steel and food grade surfaces. It is our goal to complete the drying process with in 48 hours of harvesting, using good air flow and temperatures below 108 degrees. We have found that drying within 48 hours, at these temperatures, helps to maintain quality herb color and activity.

Are there any benefits to this process?

The advantages and benefit to this process results in maintaining high quality, color and activity in all plant material. There are several other things that insure quality herbs:

• We store our farm grown organic herbs in their whole form. This is important because milling plant material to a cut-and-sift or powder form, increases the surface area, and adds to the de-graduation of the plant material through oxidation.
• We also consistently bring in fresh, new plant material from our Biodynamic® farm, so almost all the organic herbs on your shelf are freshly harvested and dried.

Standardized Herbs

Are solvents used to process the herbs?

We do not use solvents with our organic herbs. The standardized extracts which are added to some of our products are organic ethyl alcohol and water extracted, with the exception of turmeric, due to low concentration levels when extracted with organic ethyl alcohol.

Does OWH standardize its own herbs?

We have implemented a naturally standardized herb process of growing, harvesting and manufacturing for all of our herbal products. And, we are always working to improve our methods. Although we don't "standardize" to specific active constituents, as you would find in a standardized herb like St. John's wort (standardized to .3% hypericins), our freshly hand-picked and dried flower buds contain at least .3% hypericins naturally, and are not processed using solvents. Our quality assurance lab is in the process of looking at many herbs which have similar activity, placing our freshly picked and dried quality herbs against those which have been processed with solvents. We are verifying that we can meet or surpass the levels of active constituents necessary in each plant material, without using solvents, and can provide a longer lasting shelf life. Some of these plants are black cohosh, saw palmetto berry and feverfew.

What is the value of adding standardized herb extracts to herbal supplements?

We have added some standardized herbs to our whole herbs mainly to help with point-of-sale. Two important things to understand are:

• All of the current scientific studies on herbal medicines have been done on standardized herbs. We are not allowed to put a structure function statement on our label, unless we have scientific clinical trials to back up the claims.
• To help with point-of-sale. We added the standardized herb extract because many times the consumer will read an article or hear about a specific active constituent listed on a particular herb, and will come to the store looking for this specified level. This level would not be listed, if only whole herb was used in the formula. Although we know the best way to use herbs is in a whole form, once again, there are very few scientific studies to back that up. We are trying to correct this problem by conducting these studies in local hospitals and clinics, but there is still much work to be done.

Organic labeling rules apply, as specified by the Oregon Tilth. If the product is less than 70% organic, then you are not allowed to list "organic" on the front panel of the label. Each organic ingredient may be listed on the side panel as organic, though. With all encapsulated herbs, the capsule is considered part of the weight, and that weight is 100 mg of the finished capsule. So, it is very hard to hit 70%, even with 100% organic plant material.

Testing Methods

When looking at TLC testing, what are we looking for?

Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) is a common method that is used in analysis and/or separation on components within a sample. It is mostly used as a qualitative method, when the analyst is interested in identification, adulteration and contamination. It is not quantitive, and does not give a measurable amount of a particular constituent.

Oregon's Wild Harvest uses the TLC method, instead of High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), because it requires a very small quantity of solvent to extract the components within the herb.

What do we test for when we bring raw materials in from outside sources?

Product material we receive from other vendors goes through rigorous testing, to determine that it meets our high quality standards. All plant material is tested for ecoli and total coliforms. Plant "tops," or the part that grows above ground, is also tested for salmonella. We are in the process of testing all plant material for heavy metals, as well, especially high risk herbs.

Every raw material is also compared to a standard raw material sample for odor, taste and appearance. A microscopic examination is performed on herbs that are difficult to identify with the standard organoleptic examination.

Which environmental/ecological groups does Oregon's Wild Harvest support?

We support The National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture, Co-op America, The Regional Farm and Food Project, and The American Association for Health Freedom.

Non-GMO Vegetarian Capsules

What are polysaccharides, and what is the importance of this material in the manufacturing of our vegetarian capsules?

Polysaccharides are complex carbohydrates of high molecular weight, and are found in many plants. Polysaccharides can be dietary fibers - soluble fibers composed of starch, and insoluble fibers composed of cellulose.

Our vegetarian capsules are made of polysaccharides in the form of starch, which helps to bind and form the capsule, giving it structure and strength. This polysaccharide is known as pullulan, which is natural and water soluble. It is produced from GMO-Free corn, a source of soluble fiber.

How do you know the corn is GMO-Free?

Every batch of corn used is tested to insure that the corn is free of all Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO's), or GMO-Free.

It is ok for consumers to ingest, if they are allergic to corn?

After the corn has been processed into a water soluble polysaccharide, it is then tested for the DNA that identifies the corn. Absence of the corn DNA assures the absence of the allergens present in the finished product.

We have been assured by the manufacturer that people who are allergic to corn, or any of the by-products of corn, can use this product.

Is it gluten-free?

Yes, this is guaranteed by the manufacturer.

Organic Alcohol Herbal Extracts

How much alcohol is used in each herbal extract?

The amount of organic alcohol used in each herbal extract varies (from 22-85%) depending upon the specific herb being extracted. Each product has an optimum alcohol-extraction level due to the herb's properties, which are determined by its balance of alcohol-soluble to water-soluble constituents.

The average serving of 30 drops of herbal extract (with an alcohol content of 45-50%) equates to 1/65 of a 12 ounce beer, or 1/85 of an 8 ounce glass of wine.

Why use organic alcohol (ethanol)?

Organic alcohol (ethanol) is a traditional solvent for herbal extraction and is the safest solvent available for extraction purposes.

What is the organic ethanol made from?

This premium organic alcohol is derived from corn, under strict National Organic Program (NOP) guidelines. Any proteins that may cause allergic reactions from the corn are removed in the distillation phase of the production process, making this organic alcohol both gluten-free and allergen-free.

How many drops are in 1ml?

To keep up-to-date with recent label laws, we are in the process of updating our extract labels. Recently, we began changing all the labels to be displayed as "supplement facts." This requires the serving size to be expressed as milliliters (ml). Each extract has a slightly different number of drops per ml, but it is in the range of 30-40 drops, which is equivalent to 1 full dropper per ml.

Glycerites

What is the "ring" around the dropper?

Several of Oregon's Wild Harvest alcohol free herbal extracts produce a residue in the dropper that results from the presence of high levels of beneficial chlorophylls. Chlorophyll, the green pigment found in plants, is one of the main chemicals responsible for the conversion of light energy into nutrient energy. Research has shown chlorophyll to be of nutritional benefit in detoxifying and supporting blood health.

Some fresh plant constituents, including chlorophyll, do not dissolve well in glycerin but gather on the surface, resulting in the characteristic residue around the bottle neck and dropper. This is a sign of a high quality, highly bioactive, fresh plant herbal extract. When shaken, these oils will temporarily disperse throughout the bottle.

Packaging

What are your encapsulated herbs bottled in?

#1 recycle level plastic bottles, because more people in more places are able to recycle #1 plastic.

Glass versus Plastic

As an environmentally responsible and health-promoting company with the highest regard for our planet and all its living organisms, Oregon's Wild Harvest does not take any manufacturing decision lightly. The decision to use plastic bottles to package the majority of our encapsulated herbs is no exception.

Like some of our customers, we initially believed that glass packaging was the more ecologically sound choice. The commonly held belief is that glass is a more natural substance, that it requires less energy to manufacture and/or recycle, and that all plastics leach toxins into the contents of their containers. There is also the assumption that glass has a higher rate of being recycled than does plastic.

The downsides to glass packaging led us to take a closer look at the two options, to ensure that we were comparing apples and apples.

Some of the pitfalls with glass packaging from a manufacturing point of view include:

• Breakage in shipping.
• Glass is heavy; an empty glass bottle is seven times heavier than an empty plastic bottle. The added weight requires more energy to ship across the country.
• Glass is inherently more expensive to buy, to ship, and also to recycle.

The obvious exception is when glass is being re-used, such as with milk bottles, and not merely recycled. Re-using is always had a lower impact on the environment, but at this time, there is no program in place for the reusing of vitamin or supplement bottles.

Plastic packaging also carries with it commonly known downsides:

• Unrecycled plastics pollute the environment
• Some plastics can leach chemicals into the contents of the packaging
• Some plastics can contain PVCs and other harmful chemicals

We decided to take a closer look by comparing glass and plastic and the ecological impact of each using three environmental parameters:

• Energy consumption
• Air pollution
• Global Warming potential

Some of the results were surprising:

• Glass consumes nearly twice as much energy to produce as plastic (source: Carnegie Mellon University Green Design Institute: 2008). The fossil fuels required to generate the very high temperatures needed to form glass are just one consideration.
• Glass produces nearly three times more air pollution than plastic (source: Carnegie Mellon University Green Design Institute: 2008). The pollution created by the fossil fuels needed to manufacture glass are one matter: another is the considerable amount of fossil fuels required to transport the glass, and the pollution created by such transport.
• Glass creates nearly seven times more global warming gases than plastic (source: Carnegie Mellon University Green Design Institute: 2008)
• Glass recycle rates are only slightly higher than plastic recycling rates (source: State of California Dept. of Conservation 2007)

So....evidently, glass is not all it's cracked up to be.

Our solution? Using the most recyclable plastic available, and one which is free of PVCs. As a company committed to sustainability, we will continue to search for even more ecologically sound choices for packaging of our products. We strive to reduce our carbon footprint, and to provide herbs which not only promote the health of our customers, but the health of our planet as well.