Tincture Basics
If you’re new to tinctures, you’ll find that doses are usually given in “dropperfuls.” Despite how this may sound, this doesn’t mean that the dropper tube is actually full.
One dropperful = the amount of liquid that is naturally drawn into the tube when you squeeze and release the the bulb.
Other tincture tips
- Tinctures can be taken directly into the mouth (doesn’t need to be under the tongue), or diluted in a small amount of water, juice, or tea. For some preparations, part of the medicinal action depends on plant constituents binding to taste receptors, so in those cases, it’s important to actually taste them!
- Pulse dosing: For tinctures to help with sleep, it’s often recommended to follow what’s known as a pulse dose schedule. This means spreading a dose out in time as you prepare for bed, which allows the medicine to build up and begin to act in your system before you’re actually wanting to fall asleep. For example, if your recommended dose is three dropperfuls, pulse dosing would look like:
- 1 hour before bed: 1 dropperful
- 30 min before bed: 1 dropperful
- Getting into bed: 1 dropperful
Tinctures are alcohol extracts of plant material, and may be made in vodka, brandy, gin, other liquors, or stronger concentrations of ethanol. If you do not want to work with alcohol for personal, medical, or religious reasons, many preparations can also be made with glycerol, which is non-alcoholic.