Sales of herbal products continue to increase even while the economy is still considered in recession, says Mark Blumenthal, founder and executive director of the American Botanical Council. Blumenthal says this is "a sign of how highly American consumers value these safe, low-cost materials." He says there remains a very strong consumer demand for herbs and other natural plant-derived ingredients as an essential part of self-care. Sales of herbal dietary supplements in the United States increased by 4.5 percent, reaching total sales of more than $5 billion annually. In this interview on the Five to Thrive Live! show, Blumenthal discusses the research associated with the best selling herbs.

Mark Blumenthal is the founder and executive director of the American Botanical Council (ABC), the leading independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to disseminating accurate, reliabe and responsible information on herbs and medicinal plants. He is the publisher/editor of the HerbalGram, an international, peer-reviewed quarterly journal. He has been a leader in the concerns for more rational regulations of herbal and natural product manufacturing and education on alternative medicines for more than 36 years. For more information, visit HerbalGram.org.