% of tincture in an Ointmet?

Hello

does anyone have accurate information regarding the % of tincture to be used over the total amount of an ointment?

THANKS!

Welcome to Permies, Esteban!

I think we need some more information to answer your question. What kind of ointment are you trying to make? Tincture is usually an alcohol solution and the word ointment usually refers to something suspended in an oil base, like petroleum jelly. So while they are not mutually exclusive, putting a tincture into an oil base is sort of a wasted step, as you could just add the medication to the oil directly. And as with all medications, how much active ingredient you put into the base can vary widely.

Sometimes there ARE reasons for making an ointment with a tincture. Maybe that is the only form available for the herb you wish to make the ointment with. Some herbs, like arnica, should ONLY be used externally. So if all you have is arnica tincture and you would like an ointment for whatever reason, then you would use that tincture.

I have not done this but James Green, in The Herbal Medicine Maker's Handbook suggests 1 part tincture to 6 parts water.

Hello everyone

I made a tincture using Rosemary, Laurel, Boldo and Peumo (those last 2 are from Chile only, I'm from Chile).
All those plants are supposed to help when it comes to muscle pain or Rheumatism.
Then i made an Ointment using Beeswax, almond oil and Palm oil.
Heated the oinment a bit and added the tincture.
What i was never sure about was whether i did pour enough or too much tincture on it, though i used it on my yoga teacher who had her ankle sprained and she said i worked every time she used it; i still have the doubt.

Here's a picture of what came out of this mixture:


CHEERS!

Looks like you did good.

Any volatiles in the tincture (alcohol, water) will evaporate out over time from the less volatile oil and wax, so how much you add is not crucial. If the ointment appears too weak, you can always add more tincture later to get more of the active ingredients incorporated.

Here's how I make ointments/lotions

- Make an oil infusion of whatever herb you want to use.
- Melt 1 oz beeswax per cup of oil on a double boiler.
- While still warm, add 1 cup water* to the mixture and mix with a Bamix mixer or blender.

The cool thing is that you don't need to use water. You could alternatively use a water infusion of an herb or use tinctures. You can even add essential oils if you want. So long as the total volume of water/teas/tinctures/essential oils is 1 cup per cup of the original infused oil the stuff comes out as a nice lotion/ointment.

Doc