Herbal Product Contamination and Toxicity

Abstract

Herbal poisoning exposures reported to poison centers increased by 344% after passage of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, with 24412 exposures reported in 2003. Increased toxicity is speculated to be related to lack of child-resistant packaging, new issues of contamination, proliferation of multiple ingredient products, excessive concentration of active ingredients, and discovery of new drug-herb interactions. This review addresses contamination issues such as heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, homeopathic remedies, microbes, insects, environmental chemicals, and mis-identification of one plant for another. Toxicity issues covered include carcinogenicity, delay in seeking medical treatment when using herbs to treat serious illness, toxic components, hypersensitivity reactions, hepatotoxins, nephrotoxins, epileptogenic compounds, cardiac toxins, gastrointestinal toxins, and hematologic toxins. Common drug-herb interactions are discussed. The pharmacist plays an important role in patient education and evaluation of potential toxicities related to herbal supplements.

RETRACTED: Application of the Kombucha ‘tea fungus’ for the enhancement of antioxidant and starch hydrolase inhibitory properties of ten herbal teas

“…Kombucha tea is considered as the ultimate therapeutic agent 55 in countless diseases such as rheumatism, intestinal disorders, and cancer (Dufresne and 56 Farnworth, 2001). While the benefits outweigh the side-effects, the beverage is nevertheless 57 advised to be cautiously administered to immune-compromised individuals due to possibilities 58 of pathogenic contamination (Smolinske, 2005). This includes some allergic reactions and an 59 uncomfortable stomach as a result of consuming Kombucha tea by people with acid 60 sensitivities and renal insufficiencies (Kovacevic et al, 2014).…”

All the Lead in China

“…One of the most extensive of those reports was by Dolan et al (2003), who found lead levels in 95 dietary supplements collected from retail stores in Washington, DC, ranged from <20 to 48,600 ng/g, and then calculated that levels of lead in 11 of those products would result in daily exposures of 8-19 μg/day for individuals consuming recommended amounts of those products-exceeding the tolerable intake for sensitive populations (e.g., children and women of child-bearing age). Other reports include those by Bateman et al (1998), Bayly et al (1995), Chan (2003), Dolan et al (2003), Durgnat et al (2005), Ernst (1998Ernst ( , 2002Ernst ( , 2003Ernst ( , 2004, Fu et al (2009), Gardiner et al (2008, Garvey et al (2001), Grippo et al (2006), Guedon et al (2008), Haider et al (2004), Huggett et al (2000), Ko (2006), Levine et al (2004), Markowitz et al (1994), Raman et al (2004), Smolinske (2005), Yee et al (2005). Much of that interest has focused on products from China because of the large market for those products both within China (∼$US 10 billion/year) and internationally (∼$US 30 billion/year).…”

A mutagenicity and cytotoxicity study on Limonium effusum aqueous extracts by Allium, Ames and MTT tests

“…These toxic effects may generate diarrhea, sensitivity to allergens, nausea, vomiting, organtargeted toxicity, immunotoxicity, embryo and prenatal toxicity, mutagenicity, hepatotoxicity and nephrotoxicity in the present of epilepsy forming compounds, cardiac toxins and carcinogenic toxins. [16]. It was noticed that some of Limonium species were poisonous and toxic, too.…”