Horse chestnut
Horse chestnut ingredients come from the seeds of Aesculus hippocastanum, a tree native to the Balkans and widely planted in Europe. Seeds are dried, milled and extracted with water-alcohol, and the extract is concentrated and dried. Supplement extracts are standardized to triterpene glycosides calculated as aescin (escin), usually by HPLC, and are often sold as delayed-release grades. Raw seed is not used directly in consumer products.
Suppliers sell different products under the same name. Specify the one you need.
Dry hydroalcoholic extract with a declared aescin percentage, commonly around 20 percent.
Further purified extract with a higher aescin percentage for small-dose formats.
Extract or purified escin for creams and gels, with its own cosmetic specification.
Whole or milled seed sold for further extraction only.
Compare each result with your own specification when the lot arrives.
Store extract sealed in lined drums, cool, dry and away from light; the dry extract is hygroscopic. Suppliers assign shelf life or retest dates and repeat the aescin assay before use past retest.
Aescin content varies between seed lots and extraction runs, so check each COA against the label amount. Record supplier lot, aescin percentage and carrier, and keep lots traceable to finished batches.
Facts from regulators and standards bodies, each linked to its source.
Health Canada's horse chestnut natural health product monograph lists Aesculus hippocastanum with the dried seed as the source part.
Source: webprod.hc-sc.gc.ca (opens in a new tab)That monograph states its daily dose as milligrams of aescin.
Source: webprod.hc-sc.gc.ca (opens in a new tab)This is general information, not regulatory advice. Status differs by country and by how the ingredient is used, so check the rules for your product and market.
Manufacturers and distributors whose own websites say they sell it.
Manufacturer · Changsha, China
Hunan Nutramax is a plant extract producer in Changsha, China, best known for monk fruit (luo han guo), stevia and sweet tea extracts, that also offers a range of herbal extracts.
Suppliers are in alphabetical order and none pays to appear. Each claim is checked against the supplier’s own website on the date shown. Ask for the specification sheet and a recent COA before you order, and confirm details with the supplier.
Common forms include standardized seed extract, high-aescin extract, topical grade extract and dried seed. Ask each supplier for the specification sheet of the exact grade they quote.
Expect identity (HPTLC), aescin assay (HPLC), residual solvents, heavy metals and microbiology, each with its method, specification and result for that lot.
Store extract sealed in lined drums, cool, dry and away from light; the dry extract is hygroscopic. Suppliers assign shelf life or retest dates and repeat the aescin assay before use past retest.
Health Canada's horse chestnut natural health product monograph lists Aesculus hippocastanum with the dried seed as the source part. That monograph states its daily dose as milligrams of aescin.
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