critical approach to the quality control testing of herbal medicine

ABSTRACT

In the past few decades synthetic drugs have been condemned for causing many adverse reactions. This was the reason for the call back to nature for medication and the revival of the use of herbal medicines. Plant materials are used throughout developed and developing countries as home remedies, over the counter drug products, and as raw materials for the pharmaceutical industry. Today about eighty% of the world population relies on herbal medicines. Literature survey survey suggests that herbal remedies are not without problems. This caused a growing concern in the scientific community about potential hazards of herbal products in view of the lack of or inadequate quality assurance testing available for such products prior to their use by the consumer. Internationally recognized guidelines for the assessment of the quality of such products were suggested by a number of international health authorities. The present review is aimed at providing a summary of our present knowledge of the problem. The quality parameters of a dosage from [namely safety, efficacy and maintenance of stability during the shelf life of the product] as relevant to the quality assurance of a herbal product are critically discussed. Strategies for registration of herbal medicines to safeguard the consumer are presented