Herbal substances Nutritional supplement or remedy?

Herbal substances as a dietary supplement or remedy?
Get healthy, stay healthy - to meet this understandable consumer demand, today the market for health products offers a sheer number of products. Competing with the drugs for self-treatment are mainly dietary supplements (NEM) and foods with health benefits (so-called functional foods). Week after week around 70 new supplements are launched in Germany - who should keep an eye on this? An expert group has now come forward with concrete proposals for the declaration and transparency of such products.

One important reason for consumers' uncertainty lies in the different legal regulations: while herbal medicines are subject to the strict criteria of the German Medicines Act and are constantly monitored by the federal authority BfArM, food supplements are subject to food law, the implementation of which is the responsibility of the federal states and municipalities , The particular problem here: In addition to reputable providers, who pay close attention to compliance with food and advertising regulations, there are also manufacturers who raise false expectations when promoting their products.

An interdisciplinary group of experts led by Prof. dr. Andreas Hahn, University of Hannover, has now identified an overview of the situation of plant products and has prepared a guideline for the use and declaration of herbal preparations (Botanicals in dietary supplements, Karger Verlag 2011). The six-member working group initially analyzed the current market situation of plant-based products using three examples - garlic, cranberry and artichoke. The evaluation revealed a number of shortcomings: it became clear, for example, that the health-related information is incomplete and it is hardly possible to draw conclusions about effective ingredients. The experts therefore call for an appropriate declaration of the plant NEMs, which clearly states the plant substance used („output drug“), the nature of the preparation, the properties of the extract, the recommended daily amount, the purpose and effects, as well as advice for the target consumer group. (KFN 18/2010 - 29.11.2010)