In her weekly Column "What’s The Alternative" (Sunday Times 14/01/01), Susan Clark received a letter from a reader who was questioning the effectiveness of ginkgo biloba. Susan Clark explains that many of the brands sold in the high street didn’t contain enough of the active ingredient. She proceeded to recommend a company who invests in quality and research (Lictwer Pharma in Berlin).

This is perhaps a timely reminder to the patient/consumer about products on sale in the high street.
The high street market is about selling pleasant commodities and it is intensely competitive; high quantity, low price, neat packaging and fashions tend to dominate. Quality does push up the price and often gets sacrificed to save on cost.
It is also an environment where therapeutic doses of compounds are risky - Consumers self-prescribe and manufacturers are legally not allowed to print therapeutic guidelines.

Is it therefore a surprise that a product is weak or that a complex medical system (like ayurvedic or Chinese medicine) gets condensed to a brief leaflets displayed next to nice smelling products?