IE84119B1 - A process for producing a herbal extract composition - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT Measured amounts of one or more selected herbs are delivered to a container together with a solvent. The solvent in the container is heated, being refluxed for a desired period of time for extracting active principles from the herbs, thus producing a herbal solution. After refluxing the herbal solution is cooled and separated from the solid herb material. The herbal solution is then used to produce a herbal extract composition for the prophylaxis or treatment of ailments.

Description

"A process for producing a herbal extract composition" Herbal tinctures for use in the preparation of herbal and homoeopathic remedies are generally time consuming to soaked, in an to three prepare. selected herbs are alcohol Typically, and water solution over a two week then This period, being stirred twice daily. The mixture is squeezed in a press to extract the herbal tincture. is a relatively time consuming process and does not lend itself to the herbal and commercial production of homoeopathic remedies.

The present invention is directed towards overcoming this problem.

According to the invention there is provided a process for producing a herbal extract composition for use in the prophylaxis and treatment of ailments, the process comprising the steps: herb material delivering a desired quantity of comprising one or more selected herbs to a container, delivering a desired quantity of a complementary solvent to the container, soaking the herb material in the container with the solvent, extracting desired. active principles from the herb material thus forming a herbal solution in the container, herb and to a desired temperature heating the solvent mixture in the container sufficient to vaporise the solvent, controlling said desired temperature for refluxing the solution for a pre—set time period, ;_x Q1 cooling the herbal solution, separating the herbal solution from solid herb material, using the herbal solution to produce a herbal extract composition; and adding a homoeopathic composition to the herbal extract composition.

Advantageously the process of the invention. allows the relatively rapid production of the herbal solution.

Herbal extract solutions which are prepared by a conventional technique take two to three weeks to produce, whereas herbal extract solutions can be produced according to the process of the invention in about two to eight hours. Further, it has been found that there is a greater concentration of the principal ingredients in the solution by using the refluxing technique of the ‘ invention and therefore effectiveness of the remedies has the be regulated such that Vitamin C or other desirable extracts been enhanced.

Conveniently, heating can are not destroyed as the temperature does not get high enough.

In one embodiment of the invention the process includes the step of forced cooling of the herbal solution.

In a particularly preferred embodiment the selected herbs comprise taraxacum. officinale, agrimonia eupatoria, berberis vulgaris and silybum marianum.

In another embodiment the selected herbs comprise tilia europea, crategus oxyacanthoides and zanthoxylum americanum.

In a further embodiment the selected herbs comprise (_f| l\¢ C arcostaphylus uva ursi, juniperus communis, petroselinum crispum and Zea mays.

Di a particularly preferred embodiment the homoeopathic composition comprises selected concentrations of the herbs echinacea angustifolia, belladonna, arnica montana, silybum marianum, thuja occidentalis, astragalus membranaceous, angelica sinensis and panax ginseng.

Preferably, the homoeopathic composition comprises in combination two or more selected concentrations of one or more of the herbs.

Typically the homoeopathic composition is added to the herbal composition at the rate of between 0.25% and 3% of homeopathic composition in the overall composition. The combination of the herbal and homoeopathic compositions has a herbs. synergistic effect enhancing the action of the The invention will be more clearly understood by the following description of some embodiments thereof, given by way of example only.

According to the method of the invention a measured amount of one or more selected herbs is delivered to a container together with a solvent. The solvent in the container is heated, being refluxed for a desired period of time for extracting desired active principles from the herbs, thus producing a herbal solution. Vapours rising from the solution are condensed in an outlet neck of the container which is cooled by a water jacket. When refluxing is complete the herbal solution is cooled and then separated from the solid material.

For preparation of the herbal solution herbs can be used in virtually any form. They can be freshly picked, dried whole, as in the case of seeds, flowers, roots If desired the herbs can be cut to any desired particle size or they can be powdered. berries, and rhizomes and the like.

In some cases the juices can be squeezed out of a herb to be used on its own or in combination with other herbs Ideally, the herbs should be as free from contaminants such as sprays in any desired form. pure as possible, or industrial contaminants, lead from petrol, damage or decay. Preferably the herbs should be organically grown ideally the herbs should be harvested at the time of highest content or where possible picked from wild. Further, of the active principles and then dried.

It will be noted that in the preparation of a formula for a particular purpose, any number of selected herbs could so that the herb with with the be combined in any desired ratios, the highest ratio might be the one most desirable properties, or might only contain low levels of some desirable active principles. The herbs can be processed as individual herbs and. the resultant herbal solutions then. mixed in the desired proportions.

Alternatively the herbs can be pre—mixed and then processed to produce the desired compound herbal solution.

A number of solvents or solvent mixtures may be used. If the remedy is to be taken or used internally then the solvent must be potable. If for external use the range of solvents can be much wider, but overall they must not be poisonous, or have any undesirable side effects and must be as uncontaminated as possibleIV' Water may be used as the solvent, purified to British filtered, some times up to treble distillation, Pharmacopoeia or similar standards, distilled, sterilised, or even common tap water of food standard.

P C) Since not all the active principles in herbs are soluble in water and would therefore not be available, an alcohol such as ethanol may be used as the solvent, not only for its availability to dissolve most of the desirable active principles, but also because it acts as a preservative.

Examples of other possible solvents which can be used are glycerol, iso—propyl alcohol, ethers and many others, selected according to the criteria mentioned above.

Mixtures of one or more of the solvents may be used, for example a mixture of ethanol and water. The normal minimum acceptable level of alcohol in a tincture is 25%, but this needs to be the herbs involved and the be For calendula varied depending on active principles\ingredients to the officinalis is only soluble in 90% alcohol in water. extracted. example key resin in may in some cases be desirable to use a three component solvent, for example to produce a sweet tasting tincture for children or a lotion which has a higher viscosity than better Even though the boiling point of the alcohol still and thus the temperature is An an alcohol\water solvent or because a extraction is achieved. the key solvent could be very high, vaporises controlled. example of such a multi—component solvent would be water: ethanol: glycerol in the ratio 25:25:50 by volume.

Again, taking the example of calendula officinalis, if it is intended to use the tincture on the skin where it is very effective in minor conditions such as burns, abrasions and the like and where a high alcohol content could cause severe stinging on an open wound a solvent used could comprise water: alcohol: lO:25:65 by volume. added to a individual or combined herbs. glycerol in the ratio This could then be used as a lotion or cream or ointment base, as can other An example of this would be a mixture calendula officinalis and echinacea angustifolia to provide a potent herbal anti—biotic.

The tinctures or extracts are normally prepared at one of a set of strengths, given below. l:lO — which represents lOO grammes of dried herb or its equivalent in one litre of solvent. “:5 — 200 grammes of dried herb or its equivalent in one litre of solvent. l:3 — 333 grammes of dried herb or its equivalent in one litre of solvent. l:2 — 500 grammes of dried herb or its equivalent in one litre of solvent.

Up to l:l representing 1 kg of dried herb or its equivalent in one litre of solvent. The tinctures or extracts could be at any suitable strength to suit dosage or to achieve a sufficient equivalent of the herb in a reasonable dose for a therapeutic effect. For example it is convenient where possible to standardise on an adult dose of 5 mls (one teaspoonful).

For example in the case of gelsemium sempervirens, used as a sedative, analgesic, vasodilator‘ and. diaphoretic, the maximum permitted dose of the dried herbs is 25 mg of the dried herb or its equivalent three times daily. To manufacture the tincture to this strength for a 5 ml dose its extraction would have to be done with only 5 grammes of the dried herb in a litre of 60% ethanol in water. In practise of course it is done as a higher concentration and diluted with the same solvent mixture to the desired strength for 5 ml dose.

On the other hand, as say for example in the case of R) C) the herb required dose is the equivalent of 3-4.5 grammes of the Ginkgo Biloba, where is very bulky and the dried herb three times daily, it can be necessary to do one extraction at half the desired final strength to ensure the herb is covered by the solvent solution in the container or vessel and then repeat the process using the extract from. the first process as the solvent for the second.

The need for this double extraction could be overcome by the It is essential for full incorporating a stirring mechanism in container and/or by using powdered herb. extraction that the herb be completely covered. by the solvent, or exposed to it through continuous stirring. of in the container the solvent should be controllable so that at maximum a slow simmering of the Heating herb/solvent mix is achieved. Where alcohol is used as the solvent, the temperature is normally automatically controlled at the boiling point of the alcohol such as ethanol i.e. 780C. At this temperature not more than three hours heating would be required to achieve a satisfactory level of extraction. Heating can be achieved by water bath, electrical elements, steam jackets, electrical mantels or any suitable and preferably controllable means.

It is not essential for the herbal solution to be at this or any higher temperature. In fact where temperature is controlled it might in some cases be desirable and beneficial to use temperatures at or close to 40°C. This however would slow, down the rate of extraction and lengthen the process considerably.

After the the herbal heating process to solution. may be allowed cool naturally room temperature.

Alternatively to expedite cooling, forced cooling may be l\) U: used, for example using a cold water jacket or tube coils in the container or any other suitable method. Cooling at room temperature normally would take about 4 hours but would be much faster with forced cooling. when the cooling has been completed the separation of the exhausted herb from the herbal extract solution can proceeds If the herb used was a hard. seed. such as silybum marianum, usually simple filtration is sufficient. If desired the mixture may be passed through a press for separation, which can be either continuous or by suitable batch as required. Pressure can be applied manually, means of a screw, a gearbox motor, or a hydraulic arrangement. Other possibilities are vortex or centrifugal separation devices.

Example 1 Herb’ Parts Taraxacum Officinale 1 Agrimonia Eupatoria Berberis Vulgaris (A)I\J|—4 Silybum Marianum The measured amounts of herb material are delivered to a container ethanol: together with a solvent comprising water mixture in the ration 60:4O,v/V. heated the temperature of 780C for three hours.

The solvent is within container and is refluxed at a When refluxing is complete the herbal solution is separated from the solid material and the herbal solution is used to prepare a herbal composition for treatment of liver ailments.

Example 2 Herb Parts Tilia Europea Crategus Oxyacanthoides Zanthoxylum Americanum A\) UI The measured. amounts of the herbs are delivered to a container together with a solvent comprising ethanol: water inixture in. the ratio 50:50, v/v. The solvent is then heated within the container and refluxed at a temperature of 78°C for three hours.

After refluxing the herbal solution is separated from the solid material and is then used to prepare a herbal composition for treatment of hypertension.

Example 3 Herb Parts Arcostaphylus Uva Ursi Juniperus Communis Petroselinum Crispum |4I—‘l—‘b—‘ Zea Mays of the herbs with a The measured amounts are delivered to a container together solvent comprising ethanol: water mixture in the ratio 40:60, v/v. The solvent is then heated within the container at a temperature of 780C for at least three hours. After refluxing is complete the solution. is separated from. the solid material and the herbal solution is used to prepare a GU tract treatment composition.

To each herbal composition produced there may be added a homoeopathic additive composition. A preferred example of homoeopathic additive composition is given below.

Component Potency Percentage Echinacea Angustifolia 2C 7.5 Echinacea Angustifolia 30C 7 5 Belladonna 30C 7 5 Arnica Montana 6C 5.0 Arnica Montana 30C 5 O Silybum Marianum 2C 7.5 Silybum Marianum 6C 7.5 Silybum Marianum 30C 7.5 Thuja Occidentalis 6C 5.0 Thuja Occidentalis 30C 5.0 Astragalus Membranaceous 2C 5.0 Astragalus Membranaceous 6C 5.0 Astraguls Membranaceous 30C 5.0 Angelica Sinensis 6C 5.0 Angelica Sinensis 30C 5.0 Panax Ginseng 6C 5.0 Panax Ginseng 30C 5.0 The homoeopathic additive composition described above is added to herbal preparations at the rate of 0.25% to 3% to enhance their effect.

It will be appreciated that the invention provides a process for the efficient production of high quality herbal compositions. embodiments The invention is not limited to the hereinbefore described which may vary in detail.

Claims (1)

1. A process for producing a herbal extract composition for use in the prophylaxis and treatment of ailments, the process comprising the steps; delivering a desired quantity of herb material comprising one or more selected herbs to a container, delivering a desired quantity of a complementary solvent to the container, soaking the herb material in the container with the solvent for extracting desired active principles from the herb material thus forming a herbal solution in the container, heating the herbal and solvent mixture in the container to a desired temperature sufficient to vaporise the solvent, controlling said desired temperature for refluxing the solution for a pre~set time period, cooling the herbal solution, separating the herbal solution from solid herb material, _using the herbal; solution to produce a herbal extract composition; and adding a homeopathic composition to the herbal extract composition. A process as claimed in claim 1 wherein the process comprises the step of forced cooling of the herbal solution. A process as claimed in claim 1. or 2 wherein the herbs agrimonia eupatoria, selected comprise taraxacum officinale, berberis vulgaris and silybum marianum. A process as claimed in clahn 1 or 2 wherein the selected herbs comprise tilia europea, crategus oxyacanthoides and zanthoxylum americanum. A process as claimed in claim ]_ or 2 wherein the selected herbs comprise arcostaphylus uva ursi, juniperus communis, petroselinum. crispum and zea mays. A process as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the homoeopathic composition comprises two or more selected concentrations of one or more herbs. A process as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the herbs in the homoeopathic composition comprise echinacea angustifolia, belladonna, arnica montana, silybum marianum, thuja occidentalis, astragalus membranaceous, angelica sinensis and panax ginseng. A process as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the homoeopathic composition is added to the herbal and 3% of homeopathic composition in the overall composition. composition at the rate of between 0.25% A process for producing a herbal extract composition _substantially as hereinbefore described. A herbal composition whenever produced according to the process as claimed in any preceding claim.