Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

A friend and fellow practitioner recommended Healthy Hair by Banyan Botanicals to me. I tried the product in 2007, and began using it regularly in November 2011. I took the lowest dosage as directed on the bottle. Neither the packaging nor the company web site or literature indicated any warnings or dangers. In September 2012, I began becoming sick more frequently. In February, April and May of 2013, cysts erupted under my arms. In June 2013, my face broke out with cysts, acne, sunspots and dermatitis. I started to suffer from diarrhea, insomnia, anxiety, exhaustion, hair loss and menstrual irregularities. For nearly one year, health and skin care practitioners and I believed the problems to be linked to hormonal imbalance, and began treating these issues, generally with little to no improvement. On Wednesday, April 30, 2014, I looked at the list of ingredients on the Healthy Hair by Banyan Botanicals bottle. I visited the Banyan Botanicals Healthy Hair product web page and noted the botanical name referenced there, i.e., Centella asiatica. Centella asiatica is not brahmi, i.e., Bacopa monnieri, but Gotu kola, an herb with which I am familiar. Gotu kola has been linked to liver damage and failure, cancer, dermatitis, stomach problems, photosensitivity, interactions with estrogen and estrogen therapy, and is not safe for use during pregnancy. It is not considered safe for anyone suffering from hepatits or any liver-related disease, and is not recommended for long-term use. Furthermore, the herb is listed on the FDA web site in the Poisonous Plant Database. Under California's Proposition 65, Banyan Botanicals is required by law to include such warnings on its label. Banyan Botanicals is also required to accurately list ingredients. I have stopped taking Healthy Hair by Banyan Botanicals and my symptoms are improving, but still present. I contacted the company and filed an adverse reaction report. I was informed that I would be contacted by a practitioner. I have not since been contacted by anyone at Banyan Botanicals, and have not detected any warning additions and corrections to their web site. I am therefore posting this review, to serve as notification of the warnings and possible dangers of using Gota kola found in Healthy Hair by Banyan Botanicals, and any product that contains Gotu kola or other potentially hazardous ingredients.