1. Easy to consume in powder, tincture, tablet, capsule or as herbal tea or syrup
2. Cost effective for marketer or companies
3. Doesn’t provide any value for money and doesn’t improve your health if herbs are used in powder form and you take less than 1000 mg of herbal powder of most herbs as one serving.
4. Good if you are taking extracts or tincture of herbs and in this way, you can easily consume about 2-3 gm of equivalent of herbal powder just by taking 1 tablet or capsule
5. Use of single herbs is better when you are healthy and don’t want to use herb for any specific health benefit

But there are other important considerations…

I always tell people that herbs are special foods, rather, herbs are "the Seventh" category of nutrients after protein, fat, carbs, vitamins, minerals and water.

You already know that you take foods almost always in combination. You prepare and serve foods based upon certain recipes.

These recipes are the best manner to derive great taste and balanced nutrients from foods. The same is true with herbs.

The Balance of Herbs in Herbal Formulation

All of our herbal supplements are special foods for certain conditions. They are a combination of balanced phytonutrients based upon Ayurveda wisdom to unleash the synergy of herbs for improving your health and wellbeing in a specific manner.

You might ask, “Why do you need the BALANCE while making herbal health recipe?”

OK, let me explain this to you in good detail. And it is very important for you to understand. Consider these two Scenario…

Scenario One - Importance of Balance & Synergy:

You give all the ingredients of a great recipe to 5 different persons. However, you give exact recipe to 2 persons. Only one person is an experienced chef out of them.

Balance and Synergy of Herbs Together in Our Herbal Formulas

Now, you can predict the outcome without difficulty.

The three persons, who have only ingredients, who don’t have any knowledge or expertise of ‘how much to combine of what’, might prepare the worst.

The one person, who has the exact recipe, will be far superior to rest of the three and will definitely give you better taste and nutrition.

The fifth person, who is an experienced Chef, will be able to deliver exactly great preparation time and again. He knows the ins and outs of his game.

When you would like to take herbal formulation instead of simple recipe - the herbs that you would be taking for getting natural health benefit - who will be the person, whom you can trust without any doubt and argument?

Definitely, you can answer this without hesitation, with 100% clarity in your mind.

Herbal formulations are not easy thing to master by any person who doesn’t have the right mindset, heartset and practical experience and expertise.

Remember, that I am not talking about manufacturing of herbal supplements or procurement or packaging of herbs. I am just talking about herbal formulation – the proportion of herbs in any herbal supplement.

Synergy of Individual Herbs in Our Ayurvedic Herbal Formulations

The person who is an expert of Ayurveda and has good experience can have that delicate ability to bring out the balance and synergy of herbs in your life that will improve your health and transform your lives with greater wellbeing.

I humbly gain that expertise over 18 years of my education, discipleship and clinical experience of Ayurveda – the discipline of health and wellbeing.

The entire point of this article is to emphasize why balance and synergy should be kept supreme than efficacy and individual ingredients.

It had been the most important lesson in my life for using herbs and for preparing herbal formulations. Let me explain this with Scenario Two and give you a true story about my sole faltering from ‘the principle of balance and synergy’ of Ayurveda.

Scenario Two - Balance and Synergy of Herbal Formulation:

In 2001, a young Ayurveda doctor started his clinical practice in a small town, Baraut, 60 km. north of New Delhi. After few months, he got interested in learning about Western Herbalism. For one year duration, he learned from a good resource. He also tried to analyze the Western Herbal Supplements being sold over the internet. And internet was the most scarce commodity or facility to use in that town with a population above 150,000 people.

The Dynamic Balance of Herbs in Our Ayurveda Herbal Formulas

He got fascinated with one idea and tried to prepare a “Super” herbal formulation for patients of Bronchial Asthma. After more than one month of serious study, note taking and careful reviews, he arrived at the “Fantastic” herbal formulation.

He simply ordered it to be procured and received this herbal remedy in his clinic next day. He gave it to one of his patient, a patient of Bronchial Asthma and working on local Railway Station as a vendor.

The patient came again in the evening and told that he experienced severe hyperacidity and had one vomiting. The young doctor assured him and told that it might be due to some food, not herbs. Next morning, the patient again visited and reported about acidity and vomiting in the morning.

Now, the doctor tried to take 2-3 pinches of that herbal formulation himself and after few minutes, and he himself experienced some acidity in stomach.

The Ayurveda doctor simply replaced the herbs with other routine stuff that he was using and patient showed after one week with some improvement and without any other complaint.

This simple experience jolted the young doctor and kept him on ‘high-thinking’ mindset for coming weeks. After deep study and reflection, the Ayurvedist finally could decipher his faltering from the Ayurvedic principle of balance and synergy.

Actually, all the herbs were great in that formulation, they were effective, they had supportive data for their benefits. The doctor found the missing link from one Sanskrit Verse of Charaka Samhita.

Synergy of Herbs in Herbal Formulation, Just like Life!

The Samyog or formulation was zealously and enthusiastically designed and left one single ingredient of powder of jaggery (raw sugar crystals or unrefined sugar from sugar cane juice). When it was added in the appropriate quantity, the same formulation worked without any harm and produced benefits for several years.

Definitely, this was the lesson for the lifetime!

That Ayurveda doctor was none other than me, Vikrama Aditya Tomar.

I purposely wrote this article. And there are three objectives behind it…

1. Many herbalists – my students and others – could take this lesson seriously.
2. All our products are intuitively, thoughtfully, deliberately, reasonably, carefully and delicately express that balance and synergy. (By now, I might have transformed into a “Pro” Level A player of my chosen game!)
3. You, the end user of herbal supplements, as a consumer or health enthusiast, could understand the balance and synergy of herbs that we represent.

I insist you to comment and share your views. They are very important for me, personally as an Ayurveda Mentor, and for our company Holistic Herbalist!