The use of herbal remedies has no guarantee of their safety as many herbs may contain toxic or carcinogenic substances, warns researchers.
According to the study,the long term use of these remedies are actually a health hazard. These remedies can cause acid nephropathy (AAN).The report has been published in journal European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) reports.
The symptons includes interstitial nephritis, renal failure and cancers of the urinary track.
The findings showed that in Taiwan, according to the national prescription database, between 1997 and 2003, eight million people were exposed to herbal products containing Aristolochia, the authors remarked.
Studies of patients with renal failure and cancer in Taiwan and China show that tens of millions of people in those countries are at risk of AAN.
In genetically susceptible people, consuming Aristolochia can lead to the formation of complexes between aristolactam, a compound in Aristolachia, and DNA in renal tissues.
These complexes lead to mutations in the TP53 tumour suppressor gene, which in turn initiate the process toward kidney cancer. Additional studies have shown that this process may also lead to the development of cancer in the liver and the bladder, researchers Donald Marcus, professor emeritus at Baylor and Arthur Grollman, distinguished professor of pharmacological sciences at Stony Brook University, explained.
Although Aristolochia has been used as a herbal remedy for more than 2,000 years, "the intrinsic toxicities were not recognised, owing, in large part, to the latency period between exposure and the onset of symptomatic disease, and, in part, to genetic determinants that confer susceptibility to only approximately five percent of those exposed to this herb", said the authors.
(With IANS report)
