Some Ayurvedic Products and Herbal Supplements Manufacturer and Exporters are not aware of this difference. However, it is very important for you to know this as a consumer and as a part of herbal and natural wellbeing industry.

First, let me explain this from Indian point of view.

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Ayurvedic Products in India:

Ayurvedic products in India can be of two types...

1. Classical Ayurvedic Preparations are based upon Ayurveda books and their reference can be sourced to one or more of these books.
2. Ethical or Patent or Modern Formulations are proprietary Ayurveda formulations that any company can seek Trademark and later manufacture under its range of products.

Again, from the perspective of Export, Ayurvedic products sharply fall under two categories...

1. Ayurvedic Herbal Products is allowed for export outside of India as they contain only Ayurvedic Herbs. Still, you have to cross check whether some specific herbs is not allowed in any given country. If any specific herb or herbs are present even in Herbal Product, it becomes illegal in that country and you should not export it.
2. Ayurvedic Products with Bhasmas (Metallic and Mineral Preparations) are not allowed to export outside of India as per Indian Government directive. This has earlier brought widespread and often misrepresented criticism of all Ayurvedic products all over the world.

The manufacturing license of all these Ayurvedic products come under Ayurvedic Medicine within India. As an importer of Ayurvedic Products, you can ask to see the manufacturing license of the company. It will clearly be Under Ayurvedic Medicine and will be issued by Director of Ayurveda office in any state within India.

Ayurvedic Products Vs. Herbal Supplements or Herbal Food Supplements:

This is a new category of products. You can use either Ayurvedic or imported herbs to formulate and manufacture a new Herbal Supplement. If it contains only Ayurvedic herbs, you can truly call it Ayurvedic Herbal Supplement. If it contains a mix of herbs, you can term it simply Herbal Supplement.

Herbal Supplement or Herbal Nutraceuticals are often considered same.

The manufacturing license of all Herbal Supplements are provided by FSSAI or Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. It can be provided by Central Government or by Chief Medical Officer or District Food Officer in different states within India.

Ayurvedic Herbal Products Vs. Nutraceutical Products:

Nutraceuticals are also considered natural products even though they might contain synthetic ingredients. This is somewhat contradictory. They usually contain...

1. Vitamin
2. Minerals
3. Other synthetic or natural substances from plants or animals like Amino Acids, Antioxidants
4. Might also contain herbs
5. Hormones or Enzymes or Neurotransmitters (Melatonin) identical to those found in human body or plants

Dietary Supplements or Food Supplement is also a popular term for these products in USA.

If you truly consider Ayurveda principles of combination of natural products and their purification process, It would be tough for me to find even 10 companies who can do it judiciously keeping the safety and efficacy and Ayurvedic principles. Some of the fundamental violations are...

1. Otherwise, the usual method is to get a list of beneficial substances for a category, for example, mind health and simply make a formulation out of them. This is a very common practice in Nutraceutical world.
2. I am against the use of hormones or neurotransmitters or strong chemicals, even if they are naturally found in human body. And this can be a disruptive process for normal physiology over a long period of time.
3. The use of vitamins and minerals in the rat race to provide 100 to 150% of Daily Recommended Value is beyond any logic. You simply pass out these vitamins and minerals or accumulate them unnecessarily.
4. All products of these categories are considered Natural, even though ingredients might be synthetic chemicals. Nobody tries to see this.
5. Usually, some marketing oriented companies look for buzz and trends in natural researches and come up with wild and unsupported claims. Just to make money, quick and fast, and then disappear.

Herbal Supplements Vs. Herbal Medicine or Natural Medicine:

This is a similar category as Ayurvedic Herbal Medicine described above. However, this is legitimate in few countries. Usually, there is a lot of documentation and clinical trials and safety data on the line of research of medical drugs. Most of that is not required and this is simply sabotaging the Herbal Industry.

My opinion is that research in the field of Herbs should be targeted more to ensure beneficial effects and to ensure safety of herbs. Tremendous amount of energy, money and time is presently wasted on doing herbal research by focusing on a single phytochemical and treating it like a medical drug.

This type of herbal research will sabotage herbal industry and make it crippled and dependent upon sophisticated medical institutes and hospitals. And above all, it is irrelevant. How a specific phytonutrient acts upon human body, doesn't give the definite clue about how the entire herb is going to affect the body. Many times, this information can be deceptive.

Most of the time, when you are taking a herb either as powder or extract, you are not taking a single phytoingredient, you are consuming the wide range of phytonutrients naturally and inherently present in the herb. Some phytonutrient, from within a single herb, might have contradictory biological activity.

In this way, it would be easier to conduct herbal research that will ensure safety and efficacy. And it will be fast, less time and money intensive.

Where does Holistic Herbalist stand with its Product Line?

Presently, all of our products that are in tablet or powder or syrup or herbal tea form, fall under...

1. Herbal Supplements mainly using Ayurvedic Herbs, based upon Ayurveda wisdom of formulation
2. Manufactured in standard and state of art manufacturing facility, under expert supervision and control at all levels
3. Our Manufacturing License is under FSSAI or Food Safety and Standards Authority of India
4. So, you can our products as Herbal Supplements, Ayurvedic Herbal Supplements, Ayurvedic Herbal Products, Herbal Dietary Supplements
5. You don't need any prescription to buy them within India or abroad. However, we offer a great bouquet of services and support so that you could have 100% benefit of our herbs, plus support your diet, exercise and lifestyle and further enhance your health and wellbeing.
6. Holistic Herbalist is the Manufacturer and Exporter of Herbal Supplements, Ayurvedic Herbal Supplements, Ayurvedic Herbal Products, Herbal Dietary Supplements