In the past, herbal medicine was more frequently used compared with the present. More recently the interest in herbal medicinal products, especially in the field of healthy nutrition, dermatology and cosmetics, has risen enormously. Many plant-derived substances show photo protective properties in terms of absorption of UV radiation and preventing photo damage to molecular structures of human skin. Modern phytopharmaceutics as well as phytocosmetics have standardized, defined methods for the herbal matrix.
The pharmacological effect of the compounds could be foreseen from their chemical structure. The development of rational technology of pharmaceutical preparations follows the identification of active constituents in pharmaceutical herbs their good-to-excellent effect.
Numerous examples can be found in many literature citations, and in fact in many potions are used for different ailments e.g. The buckwheat herb (Fagopyrum esculentum is rich in flavonoids, which have been identified as potent antioxidants and have a high content of phenolics, and a low content of the phototoxic fagopyrin. the extractable matter, contains fagopyrin, rutin, and chlorogenic acid.
Pharmaceutical herbal preparations have been used for the treatment of respiratory diseases for a long time. Alongside with the well known herbs, there are many of crude drugs to be investigated and applied in therapeutics. Respiratory diseases are mainly treated by chemical medicines and antibiotics. The use of herbal preparations is limited and they are usually used as supplemental ones. Biochemical processes in plants, chemical compounds and information on their value in therapy were shown too beneficial. The pharmacological effect of the compounds often arises from their chemical structure elucidation and knowledge. Hence, the development of rational technology of pharmaceutical preparations follows the identification of active constituents in pharmaceutical herbs. The proper use of pharmaceutical herbs supplies the organism with the natural substances, thus preventing various diseases.
An anti-influenza virus agent contains the medicinal herb extracts including Houttuyniae herbal extract, Acanthopanax sessiliflorus, Seem extract, Saposhnikoviae Radix extract and Bupleurum falcatum L. extract, wherein the medicinal herb extracts are prepared by extracting the medicinal herbs with at least one solvent selected from C1-C4 lower alcohol, ethyl acetate, acetone, water and hexane.
The traditional Chinese herb tripterygium wilfordii contains diterpenoid triepoxides comprise triptolide, triptodiolide, triptonide etc. are used to prepare a drug for treating neoplasm.
A nutritious food composition containing an herbal extract as a main component isomaltooligosaccharide,, high fructose and other additives which supplies sufficient nutrients to a woman in childbed and improves the immunity and thus helps the child-bed woman maintain and improve the health. The nutritious food composition contains 10 to 20% by weight of a herbal extract e.g.arabic gum, taurine, silk peptide, polydextrose and herb flavors.These are but a few examples of the many that are developed, and introduced in the market instead as a subsidiary or complimentary medicine.
However, it is worthy to note, and in long time use, that some of these potions have side effects and slow toxic inducement, e.g. the Japanese star anise (Illicium anisatum L.), is known to contain a neurotoxin, and may have been inadvertently mixed into the herbal tea. In view of the severity of the adverse health effects and the clear association with consumption of a specific herbal tea, the suspected herbal tea was quickly withdrawn from the market. Consumption of the herbal tea caused required hospitalization of persons due to generalized tonic-clonic seizures. Morphologic and organoleptic investigations of the suspected herbal tea indicated that this possibly contained the neurotoxin anisatin, a non-competitive GABA-antagonist which can cause hyperactivity of the central nervous system and tonic-clonic seizures. Hence ingestion of a herbal tea containing anisatin caused the reported serious adverse health effects.
Our advice is that one has to treat these herbal drugs with caution and after considerable consultation lest serious adverse or allergic effects may arise during treatment and use.
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