Making Herbal Pills
How to make Herbal Pills
An herbal pill is a combination of powdered herbs or extracts rolled into a small sphere. The herbs are combined with an excipient (defined as an inactive substance that serves as the medium for an active substance, in this case, herbs), which moistens and binds the herbs together and allows them to be formed into small balls or ovals.
You can download a PDF of the Herbal Pill Recipes here: Herbal Pills download.
There are many benefits to herbal pills. They are inexpensive and simple to make. They are easy to swallow or chew and make a good choice for administering herbs to children and elders. You can tailor the size of a pill for dosage and ability to swallow. They are very good for treating the GI tract, including the mouth, throat, stomach, and small intestines. Herbal pills are easier to digest than tablets. Unlike tablets and most capsules, they contain no fillers. If chewed, they give our bodies the opportunity to taste the herbs.
I believe when we taste herbs, we gain the important opportunity to learn more about the herb’s properties, how to digest and assimilate them, and how to incorporate their healing properties into our bodies.
Excipients help bind together an herbal pill. They include things like water, glycerin, honey, jaggery, cocoa butter, coconut oil, and simple syrup (a specific combination of sugar dissolved in water). As well as having their own healing properties, herbs such as slippery elm, marshmallow, arrowroot, myrrh, and acacia can all help hold the shape of an herbal pill. (I would imagine kudzu would work as well, although I haven’t tried it. Please let me know if you do!) Some herbs such as myrrh and acacia require the addition of a little water to make them sticky. I generally use a 2:1 ratio of herbs to honey (my favorite excipient) by volume. For example, if you have 2 cups (16 ounces) of powdered herbs, use 1 cup (8 ounces) of honey.
Here is a recipe for an all-purpose excipient mentioned in Remington's Practice of Pharmacy (1936):
Sugar syrup, 4 oz (120 ml)
Glycerin, 1 oz (30 ml)
Acacia powder, 90 grains (6 grams)
Benzoic acid (derived from benzoin gum and other resins), 1 grain (64 mg); substitute with Tincture of Benzoin (5 – 10 gtt., meaning 5-10 drops)
First make an electuary
Herbs to Use:
I like using barks, roots, and seeds for herbal pills, as they are more stable. If the pills are going to be used quickly, flowers and leaves can also be used. It is best to use high quality, recently powdered herbs. Here is a list of some of the best herbs to make into pills. They cover a wide range of medicinal actions, so to make your own formula you will need to do more research based on the healing properties you desire.
American Ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) *
Angelica (Angelica spp.)
Anise (Pimpinella anisum)
Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera)
Aspen (Populus tremuloides)
Astragalus (Astragalus membranaceus)
Balsamroot (Balsamorhizasagittata)
Black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa) *
Black walnut (Juglans nigra)
Burdock (Arctium spp.)
Cacao (Theobroma cacao)
Caraway (Carum carvi)
Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum)
Cascara sagrada (Rhamnus purshiana)
Cinnamon (Cinnamomum spp.)
Dandelion root (Taraxacum officinale)
Devil’s Club (Oplopanax horridus)
Echinacea (Echinacea spp.) *
Elecampane (Inula helenium)
Eleuthero (Eleutherococcus senticosus)
Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum)
Gentian (Gentiana spp.)
Geranium (Geranium spp.)
Ginger (Zingiber officinale)
Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) *
Kava (Piper methysticum)
Licorice (Glycyrrhiza spp.)
Lomatium (Lomatium dissectum)*
Marshmallow (Althea Officinalis)
Milk thistle (Silybum marianum)
Oregon grape root (Mahonia spp.)
Osha (Ligusticum porteri) *
Pleurisy (Asclepias tuberosa)
Prickly Ash (Zanthoxylum americanum)
Psyllium (Plantago spp.)
Red Ginseng (Panax ginseng)
Rhodiola (Rhodiola rosea)
Rhubarb (Rheum palmatum)
Schisandra (Schisandra chinensis)
Senna (Senna alexandrina)
Slippery elm (Ulmus rubra) *
Spikenard (Aralia racemosa)
Valerian (Valeriana Officinalis)
White oak (Quercus alba)
Wild cherry (Prunus spp.)
Willow (Salix spp.)
Yellow dock (Rumex crispus)
* This herb is on the United Plant Savers at-risk list and should only be used organically grown.
Herbal pill preparation
Making Herbal Pills:
When herbs are powdered, they get exposed to more oxygen, heat and light, making them lose their medicinal properties faster. For this reason, I think it is important to use recently powdered herbs. To do this, I will often grind the herbs in a mix or blender myself, just before making herbal pills. This is especially important to do with seeds and aerial parts of plants, as they are more fragile. I then sift the herbs through a mesh strainer to get out the larger pieces. You can use these larger pieces to make tea or tincture if you wish.After combining the herbs, add your excipient.
Knead the powdered herbs and excipient with a mortar and pestle or spoon in a bowl until they are well combined and make a very thick paste. Press down hard to combine the herbs. This can take some time to get everything mixed well. Make sure to add the excipient slowly so as not to thin the pills too much. Add enough until you have a thick and consistent paste, much like pie dough. (Just for interest, at this point, your herbal blend is called an electuary.)
Roll the mixture out into a long, uniform cylinder about the thickness of your pinkie. Cut the roll every ¼ to ½ centimeter (1/5 inch) or so, depending upon how large you want the pill to be. Making them the size of a peanut is often a good dose. Roll each piece into a small ball or oval. I find that coating my hands first with olive oil or coconut oil keeps the mixture from sticking to my fingers.
Once formed, I like to roll each pill in a little marshmallow powder so that they don’t stick together. To dry, lay the pills out on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. A food dehydrator can also be used. Another method is to heat the pills in the oven at the lowest temperature (be aware that to keep the benefits of raw honey intact, don’t raise the temperature above the natural hive temperature of 95°) for 2-3 hours to speed the process. Pills made with honey may take a couple of days to dry. Pills made with simple syrup or glycerin dry more quickly. Store dry pills in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Make sure to label them with the ingredients and date made.
To Estimate the Dosage:
Count the number of pills made and divide this number into the weight of herb material used before adding the excipient. Dosage for pills is best measured in milligrams. For example, if 25 grams of the herb was used to produce 50 pills, divide 25 grams by 50 pills. 25/50= .5 grams for each pill. To get a milligram dosage, multiply the answer by 1000. S0 .5 grams x 1000 = 500 mg. So each pill will contain about 500 mg of the herb. For easy measurement conversion in case you are weighing in ounces, 1 ounce of herb = 28.35 grams, and 1 gram = 1000 milligrams (also denoted as “mg”). The shelf life for a pill will depend on the ingredients used, but I have herb pills that I made over 3 years ago and they are still good.
You Will Need:
Heavy-duty blender or Vitamix
Fine mesh strainer
Bowl and spoon, or mortar and pestle
Knife
Cutting board
Small bowl (for marshmallow powder)
Cookie sheet
Food dehydrator (optional)
Rolling the pills
Herbal Pill Recipes:
You can download a PDF of the recipes here: Herbal Pills download
Digestive Bitter Pills
Digestive bitters are traditional remedies dating back to ancient Egypt. They became very popular in the 1800s and you can find many different recipes in old formulary and pharmacopeia books. Digestive Bitters are taken before a meal to encourage proper digestion. These pills need to taste bitter in order to work well! Chew 1 pill 15 minutes before a meal.
Measure by Weight:
2 ounces Gentian root (Gentiana lutea)
2 ounces Angelica root (Angelica spp.)
1 ounce Orange peel (Citrus sinensis)
½ ounce Ginger root (Zingiber officinale)
½ ounce Cardamom seed (Elettaria cardamomum)
½ ounce Marshmallow (Althea officinalis) to roll the pills in once they are done
Measure by Volume:
Approximately ½ cup Honey or a bit more (or any other excipient). Add slowly and only use the minimum amount needed.
Roll and cut into the desired size. Roll between the palms until spherical. The number of pills you get depends on how large you make them. Roll each pill in marshmallow powder and set it on a cookie sheet until completely dry.
Calm the Cough Pills
These pills are excellent for soothing and coating a sore throat, cough, bronchitis, and respiratory congestion. Take 1 pill as needed, up to 8 times a day.
Measure by Weight:
1 ½ ounces Marshmallow (Althea officinalis) (1 ounce goes in the pills, ½ ounce is used to roll the pills in after they are formed.)
1 ounce Licorice (Glycyrrhiza spp.)
1 ounce Wild cherry (Prunus spp.)
1 ounce Elecampane (Inula helenium)
½ ounces Spearmint (Mentha spicata)
Measure by Volume:
Approximately ½ cup Honey or a bit less (or any other excipient). Add slowly and only use the minimum amount needed.
Roll and cut into the desired size. Roll between the palms until spherical. The number of pills you get depends on how large you make them. Roll each pill in marshmallow powder and set it on a cookie sheet until completely dry.
Digestion Soother Pills
These pills can be used for GI discomfort, diarrhea, stomachache, leaky gut symptoms, ulcers, and after food poisoning or an allergic reaction, or sensitivity to, food. Take 1-2 pills 3 times a day.
Measure by Weight:
2 1/2 ounces Marshmallow (Althea officinalis) (2 oz goes in the pills, 1/2 oz is used to roll the pills in after they are formed.)
1 ounce Licorice root (Glycyrrhiza spp.)
1 ounce Yellow Dock (Rumex crispus)
1 ounce Black Walnut (Juglans nigra)
¼ ounce Ginger Root (Zingiber officinale)
¼ ounce Cinnamon Bark (Cinnamomum verum)
Measure by Volume:
Approximately 1/2 cup Honey (or any other excipient). Add slowly and only use the minimum amount needed.
Pills drying in dehydrator
Roll and cut into the desired size. Roll between the palms until spherical. The number of pills you get depends on how large you make them. Roll in marshmallow powder and set on a cookie sheet until completely dry. You can download a PDF of the recipes here: Herbal Pills download. I hope these recipes are helpful to you. I’d love to hear about any herbal pill recipes that you create.
© Elaine Sheff, Clinical Herbalist, RH (AHG)