On contaminant testing in our line
A practical note on testing. This is the part of herbal medicine practitioners do not usually see, and it shapes whether the formula on your shelf is safe for the patients in your care.
Three categories of contamination matter for plant material from any region.
Heavy metals.
Lead, cadmium, arsenic, mercury. These are present in soil at low background levels and accumulate in some plants more than others. The risk is highest for roots and barks grown in industrial or roadside conditions.
Pesticide residue.
Even herbs labeled organic can carry residue from neighboring fields. The risk is highest for cultivated, broadleaf herbs.
Microbial load.
Bacteria, mold, and aflatoxins on improperly dried or stored material. The risk is highest for plants harvested in humid conditions.
What we test. Every batch we recieve is tested for all three categories before it goes into formulation. The growers we work with do their own testing first; we test again at the lab we contract with. A batch that fails either round does not enter the line.
What I recommend. If a supplier cannot tell you their contamination testing protocol, that is the question to ask. Practitioners are downstream of decisions made months or years earlier in fields you will never see. The supplier's testing discipline is what protects your patient. We take this part of the work seriously because the patient on the other end has no way to.
With respect,
Dr. Lan
Your Herbal Pharmacist
Four formulas from the line
Purple Tea
Xiao Yao San variant. Liver qi stagnation.
Aquada
Er Miao San. Damp-heat, lower jiao.
Tibetan Foot Soaks
High-altitude Tibetan growers. Damp-heat.
Glow Tea
Gui Zhi Fu Ling Tang with Ai Ye. Cyclic work.