Relieve pain and cure disease.

A new study by scientists from Pakistan shows that medicinal plant raw materials may instead harm human health.

The results of the latest work were published in the journal Fungal Biology..

Medicinal plant materials are used to treat most known diseases. This practice, known as herbal medicine, dates back to ancient times.. Phytotherapy is especially popular in Asia today.. According to Dr. Samina Ashiq from the University of Peshawar in Pakistan, about 64% of the local population uses medicinal plants..

Dr. Ashik says that due to the natural origin of these remedies, there is a misconception that they cannot harm a person.. But this is fundamentally wrong.. In particular, even well-dried plant materials can be contaminated with molds that produce dangerous mycotoxins..

At high doses, mycotoxins can cause dangerous side effects.. They have been linked to liver cancer, kidney damage, reproductive disorders, and immune system suppression..

Despite the potential danger and insufficient knowledge of medicinal plants, their use and sale are rather poorly regulated in many countries.. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classifies herbal remedies as food products that are not subject to the same rigorous testing and testing as traditional drugs..

The same goes for many countries in Asia, including Pakistan, where most people have been using herbal medicines for centuries.. Dr. Ashik says that in this country, people are used to buying herbal raw materials and ready-made products directly from local markets and special shops..

Dangerous mold found in 40% of samples of medicinal raw materials.

For their study, the scientists measured levels of a toxic mold in 30 samples of the most common medicinal plant material in Peshawar markets.. They found traces of mold in 90% of the samples, and in 70% of the samples its concentration exceeded the permissible limits..

Scientists have focused their attention on molds that produce dangerous mycotoxins, and even began to grow them.. It turned out that 31% of the detected species produced substances dangerous to humans: 19% produced aflatoxins (lead to liver cancer), 12% produced ochratoxin A (affects the liver and kidneys).

Harmful mold was found in 43% of samples. Aflatoxins were present in 30% of samples, in 26% of cases scientists isolated ochratoxin A. Licorice root, opium poppy and Withania coagulata (Indian rennet) were the most contaminated.

The researchers explain that medicinal plants can be contaminated with molds at any stage of the production of medicinal plants, including cultivation, harvesting, transportation and storage.. These plants are usually sold in the markets, which does not contribute to high quality and safety standards..

According to Dr. Ashik, in many Asian countries there is a need for more clear legal regulation of the circulation and use of medicinal plant materials: “There is growing concern in society due to the lack of data on the quality, safety, efficacy and interactions of medicinal plants. It's time for regulators to set limits and protect people who want to be treated with such drugs..

By establishing such a framework, Pakistan and other countries will be able to export medicinal plant materials to those countries where control has long been put on a higher level..

Better standards for processing, drying, storing and selling VP are important to protect patient health, which means significant savings for healthcare.

medbe. en.