The Global Revival of Interest in the Herbal Medicine

Abstract

Herbal medicines and nutraceuticals are becoming increasingly popular and more and more individuals are turning to these products to tackle a wide range of health-related issues. In the last 10 years alone, the use of herbal medicine has spiked significantly in the world, where herbal and natural drug preparations have made their way into drug stores, food stores, and supermarkets. About 70% of the global population which make up about 4 billion people see herbal medicines as the primary source of health care. Orthodox medicinal practice and the use of herbs is an essential part of the culture of these communities

The United Kingdom, North America, Europe, and Australia are also beginning to recognize the benefits of herbal remedies and are working to bring Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) into mainstream therapeutics. UK and Europe, interestingly, have a well-reported history when it comes to the use of traditional herbal medicines. The primary school of thought behind the uplift in the use of herbal medicines is that it will promote a healthier lifestyle among the population of rich countries where obesity and sedentary lifestyle are bigger problems. Considered a moderate approach to healing, people in developed countries spend billions on herbal medicines as traditional home remedies and over-the-counter drugs. Henceforth, it is reasonable to conclude that the sales of traditional medicines will rise and this boom will allow herbal products to make a substantial chunk of the international drug market

With the advent of herbal medicines and their use becoming increasingly common, questions with regard to their safety are also being raised. Herbal medicines, even today, remain untested and most of their use goes unregulated despite the fact that they bear significant therapeutic potential. Henceforth, there is little information about the potentially harmful effects of these products and how their use can be rationalized. The safety of these traditional therapies is further questioned due to the absence of quality control, poor labeling, and insufficient patient information. It is vital that healthcare professionals and the general public both be made aware of the traditional medicines in order to ensure maximum health benefits for them as well as enhance the quality of these herbal products. However, challenges remain to tackle matters pertaining to the toxicity of herbal medicines as well as the factors that are associated with increasing/decreasing them. It is time to ensure the safety of these traditional herbal products by drawing the attention of the regulatory bodies to the need of making sure appropriate safety of public health.