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Friday, October 31, 2008
FAQ :: Wash out your mouth....
For many years the safety of ethanol-containing herbal medicinal products for children has been questioned by experts and consumers. The Working Group of the Cooperation Phytopharmaka in Germany (where liquid herbal medicinal products for children have been available without prescription since 1926) carried out a scientific examination of the toxicological relevance of ethanol in herbal medicinal products with regard to ingested amounts, metabolism and elimination in children.
They compared the amount of alcohol ingested in the recommended dose of liquid extractions of popular herbs such as ivy, thyme and valerian to the amounts of alcohol produced by the metabolism of common carbohydrates such as bananas, fruit juice and bread. The amounts found in the bloodstream after ingestion of these foods are consistently higher than the amounts found after ingestion of the recommended dose of ethanolic tincture.
Examining reports from poison control centres, the Working Group found no published reports of intoxication with herbal medicinal products. The most common intoxicant for young children was mouthwash.
The Working Group concluded that when used at the recommended dose, the health risk of ethanol-containing herbal medicinal products is negligible.
Reference: Kelber O, et al. Pharm Ind. 70, Nr 9, 1124-1127 (2008)
posted by Juergen 3:57 PM
Monday, October 20, 2008
Blue Green Algae Update
On Tuesday 14th October, the Health Supplement section of the Irish Times ran a story concerning Blue Green Algae sourced from the Upper Klamath Lake in the US which could have harmful effects due to the presence of a liver toxin, Microcystin.
We immediately contacted our supplier for their response to the statements made in the article which is summarised below. We are confident that the response will help eliminate any doubt one might have by reading such an article and are also confident in the products that we provide.
Blue Green Planet:
"Eight years ago there was an excessively long summer period around the Upper Klamath lake where the algae is harvested. This lead to an increase in Microcystin levels due to the rise in temperature and lack of winds to distribute both algae and the microcystin. Microcystin has a parasitic relationship with Blue green algae as it is high in nutritional properties. Micocystin is also present in all fresh water and not just those containing blue green algae. It is not present in spirulina as that comes from salt water sources. Regulations were brought in the control the levels and a tolerance set for products made from the Algae. This level was set above the tolerance for Microcystin to Fresh water ratio (I millionth of a gram: Gram)
Blue Green Planet use the tolerance level of Microcystin to Water rather than Microcystin to Algae. Consumption of the product is as safe as consuming water from any fresh water source."
posted by Juergen 9:26 AM
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