Herbal Products: Benefits, Limits, and Applications in Chronic Liver Disease

Abstract

Complementary and alternative medicine soughts and encompasses a wide range of approaches; its use begun in ancient China at the time of Xia dynasty and in India during the Vedic period, but thanks to its long-lasting curative effect, easy availability, natural way of healing, and poor side-effects it is gaining importance throughout the world in clinical practice. We conducted a review describing the effects and the limits of using herbal products in chronic liver disease, focusing our attention on those most known, such as quercetin or curcumin. We tried to describe their pharmacokinetics, biological properties, and their beneficial effects (as antioxidant role) in metabolic, alcoholic, and viral hepatitis (considering that oxidative stress is the common pathway of chronic liver diseases of different etiology). The main limit of applicability of CAM comes from the lacking of randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials giving a real proof of efficacy of those products, so that anecdotal success and personal experience are frequently the driving force for acceptance of CAM in the population.

Hepatoprotective and Renoprotective Effects of Lavender (Lavandula stoechasL.) Essential Oils Against Malathion-Induced Oxidative Stress in Young Male Mice

“…The phytochemical screening of this plant revealed that it is rich in bioactive molecules, such as phenolic compounds present a high scavenging capacity. 17 Therefore, owing mainly to their antioxidant 18,19 and anti-inflammatory 20 properties, lavender extracts or its essential oils are known to exhibit antidiabetic, 21 neuroprotective, 22 antiallergic, 23 antimicrobial, 24 and anticancer 25 activities. Recently, we have shown that L. stoechas essential oils (LSEO) protect against reproductive damage and oxidative stress in alloxan-induced diabetic rats.…”

Glycyrrhiza uralensis 甘草 (Gancao, Licorice)

“…Stronger neominophagen C (SNMC), containing 0.2 % GA, 0.1 % cysteine, and 2 % glycine in physiological solution and administering intravenously 80-200 mg/day, is used in Japan for the treatment of acute and chronic hepatitis [30].…”

Hepatoprotective properties of extensively studied medicinal plant active constituents: Possible common mechanisms

“…Curcumin was suggested to counteract the adverse hepatotoxic side effects of antituberculosis drug combinations, a possible valuable hepatoprotective application (Singh et al, 2012). In fact, clinical trials are underway using these plant constituents for various health applications including liver diseases (Del Prete et al, 2012;Egert et al, 2009). Clinical trials on licorice or glycyrrhizin are increasing specifically in viral hepatitis adjuvant therapy and autoimmune hepatitis (Orlent et al, 2006;Yasui et al, 2011).…”