A Note from WHO guidelines on good manufacturing practices (GMP) for herbal medicines With the constant increase in the use of herbal medicines worldwide and the rapid expansion of the global market, the safety and quality of herbal materials and finished herbal products have become a major concern for health authorities, pharmaceutical industries and the public. The safety and efficacy [...]
Overview – European Regulations A wide variety of botanical and other substances have been sold as dietary supplement ingredients, including many that are considered to be medicinal substances under most regulatory regimes in EU countries. The report published by the European Association of Self-Medication Industry, titled 'Herbal Medicinal Products in the European Union' has found that there was no consistency [...]
Ayurveda is a 5,000-year-old system of natural healing that has its origins in the Vedic culture of India. Although suppressed during years of foreign occupation, Ayurveda has been enjoying a major resurgence in both its native land and throughout the world. Tibetan medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine both have their roots in Ayurveda. Early Greek medicine also embraced many [...]
Overview – American Regulations The United States of America introduced the Dietary Supplement and Health Education Act (DSHEA) in 1994, which allowed considerable flexibility between foods and medicines found in other parts of the world. Under DSHEA a dietary supplement may contain 'a herb or other botanical' or 'a concentrate, metabolite, constituent, extract or combination of any ingredient from the [...]
History, Industry Growth, and Future Trends Till about a decade ago, the global nutrition and supplements market functioned as a single, large entity. It was not uncommon to see global players straddling multiple regions with a wide range of products. But the scenario has since changed, with emerging regional markets now vying for a share of the global revenues and developed [...]