adulterations of herbal drugs

3.2.2  Reasons of Adulteration

Adulterations have caused a major problem in the research of commercial natural products. Due to the failure of research-

ers to recognize the importance of identifying the correct source of test materials, the results of studies on unidentifiable, 

adulterated commercial herbal products, for example, “Ginseng capsule” or “Aloe vera” are not reproducible. Irrespective 

of claims by individual suppliers, manufacturers, and associated trade groups on quality, no meaningful assay procedures 

or quality assurance methods have been introduced to guarantee the purity and quality of many natural ingredients.

Different procedures are available for the detection of adulteration and it is better to obtain confirmatory evidence by 

using as many different means of detection as possible to establish: (i) the identity of the adulterant and (ii) determine the 

quality of the drug. Ideally, the varied geographical sources of herbal medicine, including the various environmental and 

soil conditions under which it was grown, harvested, dried and stored, should be known. Even the chemical treatments that 

were made, if any, as well as the pesticides or fumigants, if any, that were used, should be studied. The appropriate level of 

testing must therefore be carefully assessed before using the raw materials based on the monographs available in different 

official books as well as various regulatory guidelines, including the 

WHO (1992)

.

3.2.2.1  Confusion in Vernacular Names

Medicinal plants have existed in different traditional systems of medicines, such as Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, and Traditional 

Chinese Medicines (TCM). Now, the problem is that the prescribed names of different medicinal plants sometimes resem-

ble each other, although they are not same species. One such example is Parpata (an Ayurvedic term, suggesting Fumaria 

parviflora

) and Parpadagam (Siddha, suggesting Mollugo pentaphylla). It has been practically observed that in the South 

Indian states, where the Siddha system of medicine is quite popular, M. pentaphylla is more commonly used, whereas in 

North India, F. parviflora is more easily available. Differentiating between them may be accomplished by identifying their 

leaves and stems. M. pentaphylla possesses pale yellow or mild brown colored stems and small, simple leaves, whereas 

F. parviflora

 possesses dark brownish and digitate leaves.

---

3.2.2.2  Lack of Knowledge About Authentic Sources

Nagakesar (Mesua ferrea) is widely prescribed in the Ayurvedic system of medicine in India. Samples of M. ferrea are 

often adulterated with Calophyllum inophyllum flowers. M. ferrea is collected from the Himalayas and the Western Ghats. 

However, due to some restrictions in the collection of plant samples from the forest, C. inophyllum, available in the plains, 

is adulterated to Nagakesar. Authentication of the genuine drug may be done through microscopic studies, in which the 

presence of a two-celled ovary represents the original flowers and a single-celled ovary represents C. inophyllum.

3.2.2.3  Similarity in Morphology

Mucuna pruriens

 is a plant belonging to the Papilionaceae family, whose seeds are used as medicines. Seeds from other 

plants, such as M. utilis and M. deeringiana (Papilionaceae), are often admixed with the seeds of M. pruriens. The authentic 

seeds of M. pruriens may be identified using microscopic techniques. The authentic seeds of M. pruriens are about 1 cm in 

length, whereas the seeds of M. deeringiana and M. utilis are slightly elongated (1.5–2 cm), and buff colored.

3.2.2.4  Similarity in Color

One of the important morphological characteristics used for identification of drugs is the color of the drug. Drugs having 

almost the same color are sometimes misidentified and adulterated. The original source of “Ratanjot” is Ventilago ma-

draspatana

 roots, and its adulterant is Arnebia euchroma var euchroma. Both of these are capable of producing a red dye. 

Presently, the former one is not available in the market, and by the name of Ratanjot, the latter one is most commonly used.

3.2.2.5  Careless Collections

Some adulterations also occur due to the carelessness of the collector. Parmelia perlata, commonly known as Shaileya, 

is a commonly prescribed drug in the Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani systems of medicine. Market samples of this drug are 

routinely adulterated with P. perforata, P. cirrhata, and Usnea sp. In this case, the authentication of the plant is performed 

by the thallus nature of the plant.

3.2.2.6  Other Unknown Reasons

Vidari is an authentic plant obtained from Pueraria tuberosa, which is substituted with Ipomea digitata. The gymnosperm, 

Cycas circinalis

 (originating from Kerala, India) is sold under the name of Vidari. Thus, it has become another source of 

adulteration.