ADULTERATION OF HERBAL MEDICINES AND DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS WITH UNDECLARED SYNTHETIC DRUGS: DANGEROUS FOR HUMAN HEALTH

摘要

The popularity of using herbal medicines, nutraceuticals or food supplement is increasing all over the world due to the obligatory side-effects, in some cases tremendous side-effects, of synthetic medicines. The vital concept in favour of the huge consumption of herbal medicine is that the marketers and manufacturers deliver the message that herbal medicines and dietary supplements are free from all sorts of side-effects and the general people believe on that perception. It is very much true that herbal medicines contain several medicinal plants which may contain lot of bioactive therapeutic molecules by dint of which the preparations exert therapeutic effects for the treatment and mitigation of diseases. Health benefit of herbal medicines and other alternative medicines from dietary or natural sources is scientifically evident from many scientific studies. Besides, herbal medicines have less or minimal side-effects compared to synthetic drugs