Most Popular Herbs and Supplements

Most Popular Herbs and Supplements in the United States


The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in the United States continues to expand in 2009. This growth can easily be seen in the current use of herbs and supplements -- sales of glucosamine and chondroitin, supplements used commonly for osteoarthritis, were $288 million dollars last year, and sales of ginkgo, a herb taken to improve blood flow to the brain in conditions where blood flow is insufficient, reached $147 million dollars. Ginkgo also aids is better memory and clarity.


What are these herbs and supplements being used for? Chronic conditions that are difficult to treat or manage with conventional medicine, such as mood disorders, heart disease, arthritis, women's health conditions, and digestive disorders. Below please note, that 3 of the ten most popular herbs are for aid with pre-menopause, menopause or post-menopause. Diet, appropriate rest and exercise is key to the supplements.


It would be interesting to know how many of these products were self-prescribed and how many were recommended by a health practitioner. Consultation with a health practitioner before taking herbs and supplements is always recommended in order to avoid adverse side effects and drug interactions. The other side of this argument is that there are 100,000 misdiagnosed illnesses per year by medical professionals that end up in death and another 100,000 deaths causes by malpractice in hospitals each year. The bottom line is each of us are responsible for our own health.

Top Herbs in the United States
Herb $Millions Condition Commonly Used In
Ginkgo biloba 147 Increase brain blood flow, prevent dementia, improve memory
St. John's Wort 104 Mild to moderate depression
Ginseng 84 Fatigue and weakness
Garlic 77 High cholesterol
Echinacea 72 Colds and respiratory infection
Saw palmetto 45 Prostate conditions
Kava kava 18 Anxiety and stress
Soy 18 Menopause
Valerian 10 Anxiety
Evening primrose 9 Inflammation, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), menopause, immune disorders
Grape seed 8 Allergies, antioxidant
Milk thistle 8 Liver disease, protects the liver
Bilberry 6 Eye disorders
Black cohosh 6 Menopause, PMS, menstrual disorders
Pycnogenol 5 Antioxidant
Ginger 2 Nausea, poor digestion
Top Supplements in the United States
Supplement $Mil Condition Commonly Used In
Glucosamine 288 Osteoarthritis
Chrondroiton
CoQ-10 41 Heart disease, muscle disorders, antioxidant
Melatonin 31 Insomnia, antioxidant
Amino Acids 21 To increase muscle mass
Fish Oil 14 high blood pressure, high cholesterol, inflammatory disease
Fatty Oils
DHEA 11 To slow conditions associated with aging
Acidophilus 11 Poor digestion, prevent bacterial overgrowth in the intestines
Lecithin 10 High cholesterol
Gelatin 8 Food supplement
Glucose 7 Food supplement, form of sugar
Shark cartilage 6 Arthritis, cancer

This is just one installment on herbs and supplements for 2009. Some of you, have asked me recently about popular herbs and supplements and there uses, so this is a brief overview. Please research these supplements for yourself and read book such as "Prescription for Nutritional Healing" ...and the like.

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