Botanicals New signpost in the health market

Botanicals - a current guide to the healthcare market

Every week around 70 new nutritional supplements (NEM) are launched in Germany. In order to create better transparency in this confusing market, a group of experts headed by Prof. Dr. med. Andreas Hahn developed proposals for the uniform declaration of these products.

Herbal products are popular with consumers for a good reason. From plants, however, not only medicines are produced, but also dietary supplements (NEM) or the so-called balanced diets. Confusing it for the consumer (and often for some expert), if from the same starting plant products of various categories are offered. What criteria should be used to assess such products? The recently published guideline for the use of herbal preparations answers this question and offers hints for more transparency in this area.

The text was written by an interdisciplinary panel of six experts headed by Prof. Dr. med. Andreas Hahn, University of Hannover, created. Using the example of garlic, cranberry and artichoke, he concretizes the existing problems of dietary supplements (NEM) and dietary foods with herbal ingredients. A detailed overview below highlights the complex legal framework for such products in Germany and the resulting scientific requirements.

Finally, the group of experts summarizes their proposals for the use and declaration of herbal preparations in a Code and explains the proper declaration of such supplements with a concrete example. Bibliography: A. Hahn, S. Alban, Th. Dingermann, M. Habs, M. Hagenmeyer, M. Schubert-Zsilavecz, M. Ullmann: Botanicals in Nutritional Supplements, Guidelines for the Use of Herbal Preparations, Karger 2011, ISBN 978- 3-8055-9662-6. (KFN 03/2011 - 15.02.2011)