Posted 09 November 2019
Fresh research utilising DNA testing technology has highlighted ‘widespread’ global adulteration in herbal products, with almost one-third of items tested found to be fake.
The study, published in Frontiers in Pharmacology, analysed the authenticity of almost 6,000 herbal products sold across 37 countries using DNA testing. It concluded the content of a ‘substantial proportion’ – 27% – did not contain what was claimed on the label.
The researchers, led by Dr Mihael Cristin Ichim of the Romanian National Institute of Research and Development for Biological Sciences, stressed that the adulterated herbal products are distributed ‘across all continents and regions’. In Europe, the percentage of adulterated product stood at 47%, higher than North America at 33% and Asia at 23% but lower than Australia where 79% of products were found to be adulterated.
“Our results conrm the large-scale presence of adulterated herbal products throughout the global … Read the rest