The Pros and Cons of Using Excipients in Chinese Herbal Products

Excipients, or inert substancecs used as filler, can be useful.  However, finding out how much filler an herbal product contains can be difficult, and how exactly excipients interact with the body has yet to be determined.

FDA labeling requirements for dietary supplements do not require the manufacturer to list the amount of excipients or filler added to health supplements. This leaves room for a lot of speculation and ambiguity regarding the strength of the health supplements. This article will focus specifically on Chinese herbal health supplements and the types of inert ingredients added to herbal products.

The majority of labels on herbal products in the US provide little to no information regarding the use of fillers (ie. starch, otherwise known as an excipient). Excipients are inactive substances that are used as carriers or any ingredient that is added to adjust the intended dosage. Frequently, excipients are used to achieve a uniform 5 to 1 herb ratio. Thus excipients act as a kind of diluting agent. Excipients are also used to facilitate the ingestion of herbal products as they are key ingredients in capsules and pressed pills. Currently, there is no technology to make capsules or pressed health supplements without using excipients.

How much product in the bottle is filler and how much is herbal extract? There is no set answer for this question. It simply depends on the health supplements manufacturer, and many of these manufacturers are not disclosing this information on their labels. Gel-Caps and individual packet herbs are the only modalities which do not need to contain excipients. There are over 750 additives (including excipients) which have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for our food and health supplement products. The possible toxic side effects and relative safety of excipients has been a controversial subject for more than a decade. Some research suggests that excipients can compromise immunity by causing T-Cells to lyse (burst) and may block nutrient uptake. There are compelling reasons for these theories and further research is clearly warranted. There is simply too much we do not know about how excipients interact in our bodies.

In Chinese herbal health supplements, excipient usage ranges anywhere from 35% to 50% for a 100 gram bottle of granule extract. The same percentages apply for capsular herb health supplements. Approximately 50% of every capsule is not active herbal ingredient; rather, it is some type of excipient. Dextrin is a common excipient along with non-GMO potato starch or corn starch (corn is the most genetically altered food). Again, frequently, neither the type of excipient used nor the percentage amount of excipient present is currently required on product labels for health supplements.

A benefit that adding excipients confers on products is that they extend the shelf life of Chinese herbs and other health supplements. Traditionally, Chinese Herb tea pills have been made without the use of an excipient. The natural clumping of the herbs was beneficial in this delivery system. Unfortunately, the shelf life is very short. Remember, herbs are natural products and without preservatives they will turn rancid when exposed to air. One side effect of adding excipients has turned into a benefit for people who prefer to swallow their herb granules by placing granules on their tongue and swallowing with water. The use of excipients makes this easier by reducing the natural stickiness of the herbal health supplements.

Although the use of excipients has proven benefits, the fact remains that there is still much unknown about their possible negative side-effects. A good deal of research needs to be carried out to find out exactly how and where these substances interact within our bodies, and what the possible results of those interactions might be.