Now in its revised and expanded Second Edition, the Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients stands as the most authoritative reference for natural ingredients in commercial use. This new edition addresses the increased interest in natural ingredients over the past decade, especially in health foods-a category that includes food products, over-the-counter drugs, and herbal teas. The Encyclopedia encompasses approximately 500 of the most commonly used ingredients, and covers the identification, processing, preparation, and manner of use for each. Following the current demand for products that alleviate stress and other lifestyle-related conditions, this volume emphasizes the drugs and herbal formulations created for those purposes. Expanded to twice the size of its predecessor, the Second Edition updates all the original entries of the first edition, and incorporates many new entries, classifications, references, and a new category, Health Foods/Herbal Teas. The inclusion of a new classification on Chinese medicinal herbs is particularly innovative, offering information that appears here for the first time in English. This classification draws on both classical and modern Chinese medicine and reflects the growing popularity of Chinese herbs in this country and in the rest of the world. This Second Edition of the Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients will be welcomed by chemists, botanists, and product developers in the cosmetic, food, and drug industries, as well as consumers who need an authoritative, up-to-date source of information on this important field. The most authoritative, comprehensive, and up-to-date reference on natural ingredients and their commercial use This greatly expanded and revised edition of the Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients is the only single-source reference devoted to the approximately 500 naturally derived ingredients currently included in a wide range of cosmetics, food items, and drugs. Major features of the Second Edition include: Accurate information based on reliable research methods In-depth coverage of each ingredient, including general description, chemical composition, uses and commercial preparations, and synonyms, as well as regulatory status and references A new category, Health Foods/Herbal Teas, reflecting the latest information on these increasingly popular subjects An easily accessible alphabetical presentation of the entries according to common names, and cross-referenced to scientific names in the index Glossary of the most commonly encountered terms used in the botanical industry A carefully selected general reference list