Determining Undeclared Synthetic Pharmaceuticals as Adulterants in Weight Loss Herbal Medicines
Background: The popularity and use of herbal medicines and supplements are growing worldwide. Herbal anti-obesity products have been considered as suitable alternatives to synthetic pharmaceuticals as they are introduced as harmless natural products. However, some manufacturers often add undeclared...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Shaheed Beheshti University of Medical Sciences
2020-01-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Medical Toxicology and Forensic Medicine |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journals.sbmu.ac.ir/ijmtfm/article/view/26253/pdf |
| _version_ | 1828471403508137984 |
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| author | Babak Salahshour Sajjad Sadeghi Hajar Nazari Kambiz Soltaninejad |
| author_facet | Babak Salahshour Sajjad Sadeghi Hajar Nazari Kambiz Soltaninejad |
| author_sort | Babak Salahshour |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: The popularity and use of herbal medicines and supplements are growing worldwide. Herbal anti-obesity products have been considered as suitable alternatives to synthetic pharmaceuticals as they are introduced as harmless natural products. However, some manufacturers often add undeclared synthetic pharmaceuticals to the anti-obesity herbal medicine products to improve their efficacy and potency. The present study aimed to analyze herbal weight loss products collected from the drug market in Bojnurd City, Iran.
Methods: Ninety-six herbal drug samples, as weight loss products, were obtained from herb shops and pharmacies in Bojnurd City, Iran. All samples were analyzed to detect undeclared active pharmaceutical ingredients using High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with Diode Array Detector (HPLC-DAD) and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) techniques.
Results: Caffeine, trimethoxyamphetamine, and vitamin E were identified in herbal weight loss products. Caffeine was detected in 21.8% of the obtained samples, as the most common undeclared active pharmaceutical adulterant.
Conclusion: Undeclared active pharmaceutical ingredients in herbal weight loss products could threaten patients’ health. Thus, it is necessary to create awareness through health authorities in this regard. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T05:11:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-24fc1659e2f74bb7b415237664ec5f9a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2251-8762 2251-8770 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T05:11:49Z |
| publishDate | 2020-01-01 |
| publisher | Shaheed Beheshti University of Medical Sciences |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Medical Toxicology and Forensic Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-24fc1659e2f74bb7b415237664ec5f9a2022-12-22T01:19:54ZengShaheed Beheshti University of Medical SciencesInternational Journal of Medical Toxicology and Forensic Medicine2251-87622251-87702020-01-0110126253https://doi.org/10.32598/ijmtfm.v10i1.26253Determining Undeclared Synthetic Pharmaceuticals as Adulterants in Weight Loss Herbal MedicinesBabak Salahshour0Sajjad Sadeghi1Hajar Nazari2Kambiz Soltaninejad3Legal Medicine Center of North Khorasan Province, Bojnurd, Iran.Legal Medicine Center of North Khorasan Province, Bojnurd, Iran.Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.Department of Forensic Toxicology, Legal Medicine Research Center, Legal Medicine Organization, Tehran, IranBackground: The popularity and use of herbal medicines and supplements are growing worldwide. Herbal anti-obesity products have been considered as suitable alternatives to synthetic pharmaceuticals as they are introduced as harmless natural products. However, some manufacturers often add undeclared synthetic pharmaceuticals to the anti-obesity herbal medicine products to improve their efficacy and potency. The present study aimed to analyze herbal weight loss products collected from the drug market in Bojnurd City, Iran. Methods: Ninety-six herbal drug samples, as weight loss products, were obtained from herb shops and pharmacies in Bojnurd City, Iran. All samples were analyzed to detect undeclared active pharmaceutical ingredients using High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with Diode Array Detector (HPLC-DAD) and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) techniques. Results: Caffeine, trimethoxyamphetamine, and vitamin E were identified in herbal weight loss products. Caffeine was detected in 21.8% of the obtained samples, as the most common undeclared active pharmaceutical adulterant. Conclusion: Undeclared active pharmaceutical ingredients in herbal weight loss products could threaten patients’ health. Thus, it is necessary to create awareness through health authorities in this regard.http://journals.sbmu.ac.ir/ijmtfm/article/view/26253/pdfadulterationcaffeinetrimethoxyamphetamine |
| spellingShingle | Babak Salahshour Sajjad Sadeghi Hajar Nazari Kambiz Soltaninejad Determining Undeclared Synthetic Pharmaceuticals as Adulterants in Weight Loss Herbal Medicines International Journal of Medical Toxicology and Forensic Medicine adulteration caffeine trimethoxyamphetamine |
| title | Determining Undeclared Synthetic Pharmaceuticals as Adulterants in Weight Loss Herbal Medicines |
| title_full | Determining Undeclared Synthetic Pharmaceuticals as Adulterants in Weight Loss Herbal Medicines |
| title_fullStr | Determining Undeclared Synthetic Pharmaceuticals as Adulterants in Weight Loss Herbal Medicines |
| title_full_unstemmed | Determining Undeclared Synthetic Pharmaceuticals as Adulterants in Weight Loss Herbal Medicines |
| title_short | Determining Undeclared Synthetic Pharmaceuticals as Adulterants in Weight Loss Herbal Medicines |
| title_sort | determining undeclared synthetic pharmaceuticals as adulterants in weight loss herbal medicines |
| topic | adulteration caffeine trimethoxyamphetamine |
| url | http://journals.sbmu.ac.ir/ijmtfm/article/view/26253/pdf |
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