When you purchase foods or supplements, lots of you look for the organic label, mostly because you want foods that are not grown with pesticides or other chemical substances. But, are you getting what you are paying for?

It depends… What you are about to read may surprise you.

Organic foods are certified by several different organizations with various levels of strictness, and organic certification means different things in different countries. Europe for example has much more comprehensive standards for organic certification than we have here in the US.

Here is what you need to know: from a practical standpoint, there is no universal standard for what organic really means. in fact, in many cases, the organic label is unfortunately little more than a marketing tool. It can mean very little.

On the other hand, the claim that a product is pesticide-free is another matter entirely. While it does not sound as impressive as organic, it actually is a qualifiably better claim. Let us explain.

While the organic label is just a certification, claiming something is pesticide-free means that someone has examined it in a lab and eliminated the possibility of pesticides.

In other words, while claiming a product is organic just means a farm has passed a test, claiming a product is pesticide-free is a scientific determination.

Let’s say that the organic farm sits by a farm that is not organic and uses crop dusting. The produce from that farm may be certified organic but it is absolutely not pesticide-free. The same would be true if an organic farm is downstream from a water source that has pesticides in it.

While this nuance is important when considering food, it is also important in the realm of health supplements. We bring this up because pesticide testing is one of many tests that Nature’s Sunshine does on all applicable ingredients. This allows you to know for sure that you are not consuming pesticides.

We like science more than marketing spin at Caring Sunshine. That is why we prefer the pesticide-free claim over any organic claim.

And that is a big difference between Nature’s Sunshine and other brands. Depending on an organic certification is common; actually putting a product under a microscope is going the extra mile.

Have you wondered why Nature’s Sunshine often has multiple products with almost the same name?

An extreme example is Kidney Activator. Nature’s Sunshine actually has four products called Kidney Activator. These formulas are all unique, and to be honest, a typical consumer can get very confused when comparing them.

This kind of scenario exists because Nature’s Sunshine has always catered to practitioners that are highly skilled in herbs and often have slightly different approaches to various health conditions. However, that does not make it easier for consumers who simply do not have the expertise to understand the slight differences.

Here is a good rule of thumb: when you come across Nature’s Sunshine products with the same name, choose the one that has TCM at the end. Almost always, that is the best choice both in terms of effectiveness and cost.

TCM stands for Traditional Chinese Medicine. Many of Nature’s Sunshine’s herbal formulas are based on Chinese medicine, but the TCM formulas are special premium formulations. This is true not because the actual herbs are different but rather because the form of the herb used is an extract.

Herbal extracts are superior because the herb is processed in such a way to eliminate the material that does not matter, leaving just a highly concentrated amount of the material that DOES matter (sometimes called the active constituent). This process is standardized to ensure that there is a certain level of this active constituent.

In other words, while you may have some variance in the quality/potency of herbs because of where/when it is harvested, herbal extracts eliminate that variance. You know exactly what you are getting.

Because the TCM formulas are extracts, they are much more consistent, potent formulas. And, even though the bottles only contain 30 capsules, they are also more cost-effective. Here is why: you only need to take 1 capsule a day vs several capsules each day for the non-TCM formulas.

An example is Lung Support. The basic Lung Support formula costs $24.65 and contains 100 capsules. However, the recommended dosage is 6 capsules a day for a daily cost of $1.46. On the other hand, Lung Support TCM costs $32.20 for 30 capsules. But, because you only take one capsule per day, your daily cost is just $1.07.

On top of the cost savings and increased potency, TCM formulas save you shipping cost and require you to swallow fewer capsules (because who REALLY wants to swallow lots of capsules?)

Sixteen of the most popular Nature’s Sunshine herbal formulas are available in TCM. We strongly encourage you to purchase that option when you see them.