Semester 4, Week 8, Day 6: Wildcrafting and Standardization

The rash is healing!  There is still some swelling but it's going down.  Th spreading seems to have slowed DRASTICALLY which makes me happy.  Breakfast is cooking which is making the kids happy.  Of course, it can't cook fast enough but they are quite pleased to know the process has started. Only 2 more days and I can upgrade this site and people will be able to join without asking me!  I have turned in all things that are due this week so today and tomorrow I can work on my book and paper. There is so much work to be done.  I wanted my rosemary entry to be done by the end of the month so I could focus on my paper but that is NOT going to happen.  I did adjust the format a little so I have more room to put studies and pictures in.  I still need to put in my own experience as well in the sections that need it. I'm also going to add my lab back in.  I think sharing my experience is important. Love and Light!

On to the discussion!

"Chemical analysis is necessary for the process of standardization. Some herbalists embrace standardization, while others think it interferes with the natural and holistic balance of constituents in an herb. What is your understanding of the term, and how do you think standardization should be used? Can you think of benefits and drawbacks?"
Wildcrafting Tips

"It is common for herbalists to collect wild plants and use them for teas, tinctures, and other preparations. Unfortunately, there is always a possibility that plants that you collect are contaminated with heavy toxic metals or contain pesticide residues. What can we do ensure the safety of the herbal products we prepare without sending samples of collected herbs for expensive analysis?  Do you have any wildcrafting tips? Please, as a discussion breaker, share your thoughts on this topic."

Both of these topics have been discussed in classes I have taken in the past.  I do not currently wild craft.  One of those reasons is mentioned in the prompt.  We have no way of knowing the soil quality.  I’m also afraid of misidentifying an herb with a look-alike. We had an exercise in botany where we examined the differences between 2 look alikes.  That was a real eye opener!  Tips we got were to only take what you need or 10% whichever is less so you don’t over harvest the area.  I also got a loupe so I could look at the plants through magnification to ensure it IS the plant I’m looking for.  I prefer purchasing my herbs through a reputable source or growing it myself.  This is why I want to write a series of books where it combines Herbal herbariums and botanical herbariums. I want to include cultivation information in there as well.  We all buy this vast amount of books to put all the pieces together. There is no one set of books that covers it all. 
 
To me, standardization is like standing on the edge of a knife.  For an herb to be effective, it must be grown in the right conditions with minimal contaminants. In our polluted world, this is becoming more and more difficult. Science and labs have made it easier to identify the strength of constituents in each batch of plants but that makes the medicine even more expensive in a world where pennies are pinched. I think a line can be walked here but not always easily.  We need the synergy of the plants, not just a bit of the plant so extraction in a lab is not always best. 

I think the best example I can think of for walking this line is making tinctures.  There is the folk method and there is the w/v method. The folk method is less precise.  When I read Whisper’s book on the w/v method, I jumped on it because it was a way to get more precise results without altering the plant sample, it’s just making sure you use the exact same amount each time you make a tincture.

There will always be the question of what amount of constituent in is each batch of plants, there is no way around that.  Even if you grow the plant in pristine conditions, unless it’s a sterile environment, some change will always happen.  An example I can think of this is in a greenhouse where a bug flies in while the door is open or failing to clean the filters on the vents and the havoc that can wreak, or not having filters at all and allowing all manner of wildlife to enter.

The lesson really hits this on the head right there in the first paragraph where it states “At its best, standardization assures a high-quality herbal product of reliable composition; at its worst, it narrowly focuses on increasing levels of single ‘marker compounds’ at the expense of a natural balance or broad spectrum of constituents”. I don’t think I can say it better than that in my ramblings… 

I’ve been trying to comb through my books, trying to find words that sum up my feelings on this topic.  I think this is the best quote that helps me express this “we do not intend to decry either pharmaceutical or manufactured herbal products, for clearly both have their place and many people want them (Bruton-Seal and Seal, 2009, p. ix).” Essentially, there are times when the synergy of the plant is needed for the best effect. There are times when just the constituent is sufficient, example: capsaicin, and there are times when neither works and you need something from big pharma.  There is no single answer to the standardization question which means it will probably never be fully realized.
 
References
Bruton-Seal, J. and Seal, M. (2009). Backyard Medicine: Harvest and Make Your Own Herbal Remedies. Skyhorse Publishing.
Class Lesson. Retrieved from https://achs.instructure.com/courses/1673/pages/standardization?module_item_id=194066
Wisper, T. (2014). Making Tinctures: Beyond the folk method. Thyme Whisper Herb Shop, Inc.

Have a Great Day!