REQUIMTE, LAQV/Department of Chemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal.
REQUIMTE, LAQV/Department of Chemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal.
Food Res Int. 2017 Oct;100(Pt 1):529-540. doi: 10.1016/j.foodres.2017.07.031. Epub 2017 Jul 19.
Herbs have been used from ancient times for infusion preparation based on their potential health effects. In particular, the consumption of Hibiscus sabdariffa L., Crataegus spp. and Panax spp. has been largely associated to cardiovascular benefits. In this work, the label information of 52 herbal products for infusion preparation containing the referred herbs was analyzed and discussed, taking into consideration the European Union regulation for herbal products, which intends to protect public health and harmonize the legal framework in Member States. Details about the cardiovascular-related statements and warning notifications about consumption were considered. Also, regulatory issues and possible herb-drug interactions were explored and discussed. A total of 14 of the 52 herbal products selected presented health claims/statements on the label. Hibiscus was present in the majority of the products and, in some cases, it was mentioned only in the ingredients list and not on the product front-of-pack. Despite the promising outcomes of these plants to modulate cardiovascular risk markers, consumers with some sort of cardiovascular dysfunction and/or under medication treatments should be aware to carefully analyze the labels and consult additional information related to these herbal products. Manufacturers have also a huge responsibility to inform consumers by presenting awareness statements. Lastly, health professionals must advise and alert their patients about possible interactions that could occur between the concomitant consumption of drugs and herbs. Overall, there is still a real need of additional studies and clinical trials to better understand herbs effects and establish a science-based guidance to assess their safety.
自古以来，人们就一直将草药用于浸剂的制备，这主要是基于它们的潜在健康影响。特别是，消费芙蓉（Hibiscus sabdariffa L.）、山楂（Crataegus spp.）和人参（Panax spp.）与心血管益处有很大关联。在这项工作中，分析和讨论了 52 种草药浸剂产品的标签信息，这些产品均含有上述草药，同时考虑到欧盟对草药产品的监管规定，该规定旨在保护公众健康并协调成员国的法律框架。分析和讨论了与心血管相关的声明以及关于消费的警告通知的细节。此外，还探讨和讨论了监管问题和可能的草药-药物相互作用。在所选择的 52 种草药产品中，共有 14 种产品在标签上有健康声明/陈述。芙蓉在大多数产品中都有出现，在某些情况下，它仅在成分列表中提及，而不在产品正面标签上提及。尽管这些植物有调节心血管风险标志物的良好前景，但有某种心血管功能障碍和/或正在接受药物治疗的消费者应注意仔细分析标签，并咨询与这些草药产品相关的其他信息。制造商也有责任通过提供意识声明来告知消费者。最后，医疗保健专业人员必须向患者提供建议并提醒他们可能会发生药物和草药同时使用的相互作用。总的来说，仍然需要更多的研究和临床试验，以更好地了解草药的作用，并建立基于科学的指导方针来评估其安全性。
