Book excerpt: The third edition of the unparalleled reference on natural ingredients and their commercial use This new Third Edition of Leung's Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients: Used in Food, Drugs, and Cosmetics arrives in the wake of the huge wave of interest in dietary supplements and herbal medicine resulting from both trends in health and the Dietary Supplement and Health Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA). This fully updated and revised text includes the most recent research findings on a wide variety of ingredients, giving readers a single source for understanding and working with natural ingredients. The Encyclopedia continues the successful format for entries listed in earlier editions (consisting of source, description, chemical composition, pharmacology, uses, commercial preparations, regulatory status, and references). The text also features an easily accessible alphabetical presentation of the entries according to common names, with the index cross-referencing entries according to scientific names. This Third Edition also features: More than 50 percent more information than the Second Edition, reflecting the greatly increased research activity in recent years A new section on traditional Indian medicine, with information on nine commonly used herbs More than 6,500 references Two new appendices explaining and illustrating the botanical terminology frequently encountered in the text A revised and expanded index Leung's Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients: Used in Food, Drugs, and Cosmetics, Third Edition will continue to provide a comprehensive compilation of the existing literature and prominent findings on natural ingredients to readers with an interest in medicine, nutrition, and cosmetics.