Herbs or Vitamins: What’s the Difference?

Vitamins are important in many cases—in fact, I have included a few helpful supplements for each ailment discussed in future chapters because many herbalists use other supplements in their practices along with the use of herbs. These supplements may be used in cases of great deficiency, or may even add an enhanced effect to your herbal program. Other natural supplements that will be mentioned in this book you might consider along with your use of herbs are:

• Bacteria (usually referred to as acidophilus or bifidophilus)
• Enzymes
• Essential oils
• Homeopathics
• Vitamins
• Minerals

Because herbs are plants, they contain vitamins and minerals. Therefore, once you recover from your ailment, your need for the extra extracted vitamin supplements may decrease if you are using herbs as a part of your daily nutritional program.

Next let’s check out the real difference between a vitamin supplement and an herb.
Foods from the earth are whole foods, which contain all the elements needed to sustain our body and maintain health. Herbs contain usable forms of vitamins and minerals from nature. For instance, natural forms of vitamin C can be found in many herbs, such as rose hips; rose hips provide many other substances such as vitamin A, vitamin E, rutin, B-complex sodium, calcium, selenium, magnesium, potassium, vitamin D, and zinc that herbalists believe enhance the positive effects of the vitamin C. Vitamins, on the other hand, are extracted from the whole plant and are used as an isolated substance.

Herbs provide the entire plant and all its constituents (minus the bug parts). In other words, you get Mother Nature’s full meal and not an extracted piece of it. So trust in your “Mother” to feed you correctly and provide you with everything you need to nourish your body. Mother Nature has lots of things to teach you, so honor thy mother if you know what’s good for you!