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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Herbal Medicines: Boon or Bane for the Human Liver?

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Since ages, medicine is the most consistent companion of man. While in primeval time, disease was cured through natural preparations, onset of technology has made today’s formulations synthetic or nature derived. Across the ages, the plausibility of the “savior-turned-slayer” functionality of these drugs remained constant. With the increment in documentation, it becomes evident that many of the commonly used drugs are associated with toxicities. Thus, any drug, irrespective of its origin, needs to be thoroughly assessed. Rampant use of herbal drugs has often been a threat to human health owing to the scarcity in quality assessment. What needs to be understood is that everything natural is not safe. They may pose a threat and thus need to be verified before being touted as a healer. Herein, we discuss the toxicity quotient of herbal medicine in reference to the liver – the metabolic controller of our body. Liver holds a prime position owing to its multitudinal functionality. We attempt to present a brief overview of the mechanisms of hepatotoxicity and highlight the nexus between herbal medicines and liver injury. We discuss the potential ways that can assure quality check of herbal medicines through imposition of regulatory laws, databases, and resorting to toxicogenomics. While constant endeavors need to be made in the quest for novel and more effective drugs, at the same time, assuring its safety is of paramount significance. Thus, plants, which are a huge reservoir of drug leads, necessitate the need to examine products derived from them and subsequently propose their efficacies in human health.