Prospects for Herbal Medicine
Herbal medicine and other plant-derived therapeutic or prophylactic products in
various forms have been available for many hundreds of years for the treatment of
diseases in both Eastern and Western cultures. About one-quarter of marketed or-
thodox pharmaceutical medicines are either derived from plant sources or from
derivatives of secondary plant metabolites. Some of the most economically impor-
tant pharmaceuticals or their precursors derived from plants as listed by several
workers are shown in Table 3.2 [3].
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has published guidelines for stan-
dardized multicomponent plant extracts referred as botanical drugs, thus making
it possible to market these products under the New Drug Administration (NDA)
approved process [16]. Common botanical dietary supplements sold in the USA are
Echinacea purpurea, Panax ginseng, Serono repens, Ginkgo biloba, Hypericum perforatum
(St. Johns wort), Valeriana officinalis, Allium sativum, Hydrastis canadensis,
Matricaria chamomilla, Silybum marianum, Trigonella foenum-graecum, Tanacetum
parthenium, Ephedra sinica, and Cimicifuga racemosa [3]. At present the basis for
marketing of these products in the US is the Dietary Supplements Health and Ed-
ucation Act (DSHEA) of 1994, which allows manufacturers to market products as
dietary supplements without the rigorous testing required for other drug products
The approach of the Canadian Health Protection Branch with respect to herbal
products is very similar to the FDA’s, whereas several European countries have
more advanced legislative regulations of herbal products. Rapid growth has been
62 3 Herbal Medicines: Prospects and Constraints
Table 3.1 Herbal medicinal products and supplements available in the USA [3].
Herbal medicine and other plant-derived therapeutic or prophylactic products in
various forms have been available for many hundreds of years for the treatment of
diseases in both Eastern and Western cultures. About one-quarter of marketed or-
thodox pharmaceutical medicines are either derived from plant sources or from
derivatives of secondary plant metabolites. Some of the most economically impor-
tant pharmaceuticals or their precursors derived from plants as listed by several
workers are shown in Table 3.2 [3].
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has published guidelines for stan-
dardized multicomponent plant extracts referred as botanical drugs, thus making
it possible to market these products under the New Drug Administration (NDA)
approved process [16]. Common botanical dietary supplements sold in the USA are
Echinacea purpurea, Panax ginseng, Serono repens, Ginkgo biloba, Hypericum perforatum
(St. Johns wort), Valeriana officinalis, Allium sativum, Hydrastis canadensis,
Matricaria chamomilla, Silybum marianum, Trigonella foenum-graecum, Tanacetum
parthenium, Ephedra sinica, and Cimicifuga racemosa [3]. At present the basis for
marketing of these products in the US is the Dietary Supplements Health and Ed-
ucation Act (DSHEA) of 1994, which allows manufacturers to market products as
dietary supplements without the rigorous testing required for other drug products
The approach of the Canadian Health Protection Branch with respect to herbal
products is very similar to the FDA’s, whereas several European countries have
more advanced legislative regulations of herbal products. Rapid growth has been
62 3 Herbal Medicines: Prospects and Constraints
Table 3.1 Herbal medicinal products and supplements available in the USA [3].
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