Parsley Leaf 400mg | 60 capsules | Swanson

Parsley Leaf by Swanson

Most people know parsley as the green sprig next to their plate. Parsley by Swanson makes it a standalone supplement: 400mg of dried parsley leaf per capsule, from the plant Petroselinum crispum. This is the whole leaf in powdered form, for those who want to supplement this culinary herb separately.

What Full Spectrum Parsley Leaf is

Swanson calls this a Full Spectrum herb. This means that the dried, ground leaf is in the capsule as a whole, and not a concentrated extract of a single substance. So you get the natural ratio of what is in the parsley leaf, as it occurs in the plant. Parsley is known as a source of, among other things, vitamins A and C, and minerals such as potassium, magnesium, and calcium, although the amounts in a capsule are small. The difference with an extract lies in this: with a whole herb, the composition remains close to the plant itself, with an extract, a specific component is magnified. Parsley has been used in kitchens around the Mediterranean for centuries, both as a flavoring and as a garnish. The name parsley goes back to a Greek word via Latin. The plant Petroselinum crispum exists in a curly and a flat-leafed variety, which botanically belong to the same species.

From Culinary Herb to Capsule

What many people don't know: to get the same amount of parsley that is in a capsule, you would have to eat a large bunch of fresh parsley. A capsule with 400mg of dried leaf is a compact form of that. The leaf is harvested, dried, ground, and put into a capsule, with only rice flour and two anti-caking agents added. The capsule itself is made of gelatin, so this product is not vegetarian. Drying removes moisture from the leaf, leaving the substances in a more concentrated form than in fresh leaf. A dried herb is therefore more compact to dose and has a longer shelf life than fresh sprigs from the refrigerator.

Whole Herb versus Extract

With herbal supplements, you will roughly encounter two forms. An extract concentrates a certain component from the plant, so you get more of it than is in the fresh herb. A whole herb, like this parsley leaf, keeps the entire plant matrix together: the dried and ground leaf goes into the capsule as a whole. Which form you choose depends on what you are looking for. If you want to stay close to the plant as it is used in the kitchen, a whole herb is obvious. Swanson consciously markets parsley as a Full Spectrum leaf, so that the capsule follows the composition of the original leaf as much as possible. The 400mg per capsule therefore refers to the amount of dried leaf, not to a magnified single component.

How to Take Parsley Leaf

Swanson recommends one capsule, one to two times a day, with water. With 60 capsules per bottle, you have about a two-month supply if you take one per day. Please note the warnings: this product is not intended during pregnancy or breastfeeding, nor if you have or have had a kidney or heart condition. In short: parsley leaf is a well-known culinary herb, here as a whole herb in a capsule, with 400mg of dried leaf per piece.