I agree. There seems to be no happy medium here. The AMA and the FDA are quacks and to set into their profits to properly investigate alternatives that are cheaper. The health drug folks make bogus unsupportable claims that give people false hope. Yet what is one to do?
If an herb that costs pennies to grow is as effective as a $20 a pill lab concoction, how do we get it tested? There is no incentive here unless we force the health food folks to do scientific testing. The university and business labs have no profit motive in proving something that is basically unprofitable to them works. It is a big old mess.
There IS scientific testing on herbs/vitamins/supplements. The NHI itself does it as well as many European countries. Do your homework.