What are herbal tinctures?

A herbal tincture is a concentrated herbal extract made by soaking plant material in alcohol, glycerin or vinegar. This soaking pulls the medicinal properties from the plant material. Tinctures can contain all parts of a plant, including barks, roots, leaves, flowers, berries, resins; basically any part of the plant that has medicinal properties. There are some plant constituents that extract better in alcohol than say water, and varying strengths of alcohol that herbalists use depending on the plant part. There are also different strengths of tinctures, with a differing herb to alcohol ratio, rendering the tincture weaker or stronger and changing the therapeutic dose. This is important to know, as it will effect the therapeutic dose of a tincture. Many herbal tinctures in health food stores or vitamin shops will have a weaker ratio, meaning that you have to take more to get the therapeutic value. There is of course still benefit in this but you may have to take the tincture for a longer period of time to notice effect.

At Sisterhood, our tinctures are soaked in alcohol and are stronger in strength, as we want people to feel better as soon as possible. Tinctures are stronger than teas, decoctions and capsules, thus a smaller amount is taken at a time. We chose to offer herbal tinctures because they are convenient and easy to take within a busy lifestyle, they absorb easily and they produce quicker results. They are also have a longer shelf life than other herbal products. The taste can be quite strong, so we recommend that you put your dose in a little water or tea to dilute!