Merchient’s ingredient library
The library supports 2 wordings for lemon balm; the strongest is “Traditionally used in herbal medicine to help relieve restlessness or nervousness, which helps promote sleep” (limited, 0.4-13.5 g dried herb top (or extract equivalent) a day). Avoid wording that names or implies a disease, a drug or a treatment, such as “Treats anxiety or insomnia”.
Also called: Melissa officinalis
Reviewed
Not legal advice. This guide shows the wording that published evidence supports at a daily dose, from the sources linked below; it is not a ruling on any claim. Your own product, its form and dose, and your own evidence still need to match the wording you use.
Supported wordings
Limited evidenceWording 1
Claims Facts
“Traditionally used in herbal medicine to help relieve restlessness or nervousness, which helps promote sleep.”
| Daily dose | 0.4-13.5 g dried herb top (or extract equivalent) a day |
|---|---|
| Support | Traditional use in Health Canada’s monograph; no other listed source covers it. |
| Dose details | Adolescents 12 to 17 and adults. |
| Form | Dried herb top, powder or extracts |
| Source | Health Canada monograph: Lemon Balm - Melissa officinalis |
Limited evidenceWording 2
Claims Facts
“Traditionally used in herbal medicine to help relieve occasional mild digestive upset, such as an upset stomach, bloating and gas.”
| Daily dose | 0.4-13.5 g dried herb top (or extract equivalent) a day |
|---|---|
| Support | Traditional use in Health Canada’s monograph; no other listed source covers it. |
| Dose details | Adolescents 12 to 17 and adults. |
| Form | Dried herb top, powder or extracts |
| Source | Health Canada monograph: Lemon Balm - Melissa officinalis |
Wordings to avoid
Claims Facts
| Wording to avoid | Reason |
|---|---|
| “Treats anxiety or insomnia”Names mental health and sleep disorders; the supported wording is traditional relief of restlessness or nervousness. | Disease |
| “Relieves indigestion, without ‘occasional’”FDA’s 2000 rule (page 1031) accepts only ‘occasional’ indigestion wording; unqualified relief of indigestion is disease wording. | Disease |
| “Works like a sedative or sleeping pill”Compares the product to a drug. | Drug |
Disease: names or implies a disease. Drug: names a drug or presents the product as one. Treatment: promises to treat, cure or prevent a condition.
Vera, Merchient’s AI employee, reads your site and emails you the riskiest line, why, a safer rewrite and how many more like it she found. Reply, and you get the free first report.
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