Who we are
Index of Herbs is a public library of herb monographs and a journal about medicinal plants. The site is operated and powered by Stackifide in the State of Florida, United States. The website address is indexofherbs.com.
For privacy questions or requests, use our contact form or email support@indexofherbs.com.
Not medical advice
Index of Herbs is not run by medical experts, and nothing on this site should be taken as medical advice. Our writers and editors research and summarize published information about plants. We are not physicians, pharmacists, nurses, dietitians, or licensed herbal practitioners, and we do not have a doctor–patient or other professional relationship with anyone who reads the site.
Everything we publish—herb monographs, key points, FAQs, journal posts, search results, and any reply we send to a message—is general educational information. It is not:
- a diagnosis of any condition;
- a recommendation to take, stop, or change any herb, supplement, or medicine;
- a dose or treatment plan for you or your child;
- a substitute for advice from a qualified healthcare professional who knows your health history and medications.
Herbs can cause side effects and interact with prescription drugs. Information about plants and research changes over time, and a monograph may be incomplete or out of date. Always talk with your doctor or pharmacist before using an herb, especially if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, giving it to a child, taking prescription medicines, or managing a health condition.
If you think you may be having a medical emergency, call 911 or your local emergency number right away. In the United States, Poison Control is available at 1-800-222-1222.
See our Terms and Conditions for the full disclaimer.
What this policy covers
This policy covers indexofherbs.com, including public pages, site search, the contact form, member accounts, and the administrative tools our editors use.
It does not cover third-party websites we link to, such as the government agencies, national libraries, journals, and research databases cited in our sources. Those sites have their own privacy policies.
Information we collect
We collect only what we need to run the site.
Information you give us
- Contact form. When you write to us, we receive your first name, last name, email address, and message so we can read and reply. Messages are delivered to our inbox by email; we do not keep a separate public database of submissions.
- Accounts. Accounts are optional. If you register, we store your first name, last name, email address, a securely hashed password (never the password itself), and your account role. You can update your details or delete your account from your profile.
- Site search. When you search for an herb, Latin name, or concern like “sleep,” we use the words you type to return matching monographs and journal posts. We do not save a personal search history. Search terms can still appear in server logs and analytics, so please do not search for personally identifying details.
Information collected automatically
- Technical and log data. Our servers record standard request information such as IP address, browser and device type, date and time, pages requested, and referring URL. We use it to run, debug, and protect the site.
- Session data. Visitor sessions are stored on our server and include your IP address, browser user-agent, and recent activity time so features like login and form messages work.
- Analytics. Google Analytics records how pages are used, such as which monographs are read. See Analytics.
What we do not collect
Index of Herbs does not process payments, sell products, run a display-ad network, offer public comments or reviews, or accept visitor photo uploads. Images on herb and journal pages are editorial media we publish ourselves.
Please do not send us health information. We are not a healthcare provider, and messages to us are not protected like medical records. Do not include diagnoses, medications, test results, or other personal health details in the contact form or email. We cannot answer personal medical questions.
How we use information
- Operate, maintain, and improve the herb library, journal, and search
- Create and secure member accounts, including password resets
- Read and reply to messages, corrections, and plant suggestions
- Understand which content is useful so we can improve and expand it
- Prevent spam, abuse, and security incidents
- Comply with the law and enforce our Terms and Conditions
We do not use your information to build a health profile about you, and we do not sell personal information.
Cookies and similar technologies
Cookies are small files stored by your browser. Essential cookies make login and forms work; analytics cookies help us understand traffic. The site still works for reading if you block analytics cookies.
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| index-of-herbs-session | Keeps you logged in during a visit and shows one-time messages such as “message sent.” | About 2 hours of inactivity |
| XSRF-TOKEN | Protects forms against cross-site request forgery. | About 2 hours of inactivity |
| remember_web_* | Set only if you choose “remember me” at login, so you stay signed in across visits. | Up to 400 days, or until you log out |
| _ga, _ga_* | Google Analytics: measures aggregate traffic and which pages are read. | Up to 2 years |
On the contact page, Google reCAPTCHA may set its own cookies to tell people from bots. We do not use advertising cookies or marketing pixels such as the Facebook or TikTok pixel. If that ever changes, we will update this policy first.
You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings. Blocking essential cookies will sign you out and may stop the contact and login forms from working.
Analytics
We use Google Analytics 4 to see which pages are viewed, how visitors find the site, and general device and browser types. This helps us decide which herbs to cover next and which pages need work. We use it for measurement, not to sell a list of visitors. Google may process this data on servers outside the United States.
Learn more in the Google Privacy Policy and how Google uses information from sites that use its services. You can opt out with the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on or by blocking analytics cookies.
Third-party services
- Google reCAPTCHA runs on the contact form to block spam. Using the form means Google may collect device and usage data under its own privacy policy.
- Google Analytics measures site traffic, as described above.
- Bunny Fonts (fonts.bunny.net) delivers the typefaces used on the site. Your browser requests font files from that service when a page loads.
- Hosting and email providers store the site and deliver messages, such as contact form notes and password-reset emails.
- Cited sources. Clicking a citation takes you to another website, such as a government health agency or research database. Those sites may set their own cookies. Citing a source is not an endorsement of its privacy practices.
How we share information
We do not sell personal information, and we do not share it for cross-context behavioral advertising as those terms are used under California law. We do not rent or trade email lists. We share information only:
- with service providers that process data for us (hosting, email delivery, Google Analytics, and Google reCAPTCHA), who may not use it to market to you on our behalf;
- with our administrators and editors, who can see account details and contact messages while running the site;
- when required by law, or to protect the site, our users, or others from harm or fraud;
- as part of a merger, sale, or transfer of the website, in which case this policy, or a successor notice, would continue to apply.
How long we keep information
- Accounts: until you delete your account, or we close it for abuse or inactivity.
- Contact messages: as long as needed to reply and keep a normal business email record.
- Sessions: until they expire after about two hours of inactivity, or you log out.
- Server logs: for a limited period for security and debugging, then rotated.
- Analytics: according to our Google Analytics retention settings.
We may keep information longer when the law requires it, or to resolve disputes and prevent abuse.
Security
We use HTTPS, hashed passwords, protection against cross-site request forgery, and role-based access so only administrators can use editorial tools. No website can guarantee perfect security. Never send medical records, government ID numbers, or payment card details through the site. If you think your account has been misused, change your password and contact us.
Children’s privacy
Index of Herbs is written for a general adult audience and is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has created an account or sent us personal information, contact us and we will delete it. Herb pages discuss cautions for children as education, not as guidance for treating a child.
Your choices and rights
Everyone
- Read the entire library without creating an account.
- Block or clear cookies in your browser, or use Google’s Analytics opt-out add-on.
- Update your name and email, or delete your account, from your profile.
- Contact us to request access to, correction of, or deletion of personal information we hold about you.
U.S. state privacy rights
Depending on where you live (for example California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, and other states with consumer privacy laws), you may have the right to:
- know what personal information we collect and how we use it (this policy is that notice);
- access a copy of the personal information we hold about you;
- correct inaccurate personal information;
- delete personal information, subject to limited legal exceptions;
- opt out of the “sale” or “sharing” of personal information (we do not sell or share in that sense);
- not be discriminated against for exercising these rights.
To make a request, contact us with “Privacy request” in your message and enough detail for us to find your information, such as the email on your account. We will verify your request before fulfilling it. You may use an authorized agent where the law allows.
We do not currently respond to “Do Not Track” browser signals, because there is no consistent industry standard for them.
International visitors
Index of Herbs is operated from the United States. If you visit from another country, your information may be processed in the United States and in other countries where our service providers operate, which may have different data-protection rules than your own.
If you are in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or Switzerland, we process personal information to provide the services you request (such as accounts and replies to messages), for our legitimate interest in running a secure and useful website and understanding aggregate traffic, and to comply with the law. You may have rights to access, correct, delete, restrict, or object to processing, and to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy when the site or the law changes. When we do, we will change the “Last updated” date at the top of this page. If a change is significant, we will post the revised policy here and, where appropriate, give additional notice.
Contact us
Privacy questions, requests, or complaints:
Please remember that we cannot answer personal medical questions.
Related: Terms and Conditions