Not necessarily. Don’t think that all herbal health products and supplements are safer than medicines just because they occur in nature or come from plants. Although herbal products and supplements are advertised as “natural,” they aren’t necessarily natural to the human body.
Some herbal products and supplements might contain other ingredients, such as plant pollen, that could make you sick. Sometimes they contain drugs that aren’t listed on the label, such as steroids or estrogens. Some of these products may even contain toxic (poisonous) substances, such as arsenic, mercury, lead and pesticides.
However, some manufacturers of vitamins, minerals, and dietary supplements follow the U.S. Pharmacopeial (USP) Convention quality standards. These supplement manufacturers volunteer to have their supplements tested for quality and purity by an outside company before they are sold. These supplements often display additional quality credentials on their labels, such as “USP Verified” or “ConsumerLab.com Approved Quality.”
Choose your supplements carefully, and talk to your family doctor and/or your pharmacist if you have questions.
Hundreds of herbal products and supplements are available. They are advertised to treat just about any symptom. However, trustworthy evidence usually doesn’t exist to support these advertising claims.
Some of the most popular herbal products and supplements include chondroitin sulfate, echinacea, ephedra (also called ma huang), garlic, ginkgo biloba, ginseng, glucosamine, kava, melatonin, phytoestrogens (such as black cohosh, dong quai and soy), saw palmetto and St. John’s wort.
Yes. Herbal products and supplements may not be safe if you have certain health problems. You also may be at increased risk of problems from these products if you are elderly. Talk to your doctor before taking herbal products if you have any of the following health problems:
If you are going to have surgery, be sure to tell your doctor if you use herbal products. Herbal products can cause problems with surgery, including bleeding and problems with anesthesia. Stop using herbal products at least 2 weeks before surgery, or sooner if your doctor recommends it.
Yes. Herbal health products or supplements can affect the way the body processes drugs. When this happens, your medicine may not work the way it should. For example, St. John’s wort reduces the amount of certain drugs absorbed by the body. This may mean the drugs aren’t absorbed at high enough levels to help the conditions for which they are prescribed. This can cause serious problems.
You should be especially cautious about using herbal health products or supplements if you take a drug in one of the following categories:
If you take any of these drugs, talk to your doctor before taking any type of herbal product or supplement.
Yes. Herbal products and supplements may have other effects that aren’t listed in the box above. A few examples include the following:
Also, you shouldn’t take more than the recommended dose of any herbal health product or supplement. The problems that these products can cause are much more likely to occur if you take too much or take them for too long.
Funding and support for this material have been provided by the Consumer Healthcare Products Association.
Written by familydoctor.org editorial staff
Reviewed/Updated: 02/12
Created: 09/05