Pharmacognosy in Community Pharmacy: Pharmacovigilance Prospective of Herbal Medicine

On February 6, 2004, FDA issued a final rule stating that supplements containing “ephedra” present an unreasonable risk of illness to those taking them. This rule puts ban on manufacture and distribution of ephedra containing dietary supplements with effect from April 12, 2004. This was the first time in US that a supplement has been removed from the market under DSHEA (Dietary Supplement Health Education Act). This was an early warning to the pahrmacognocists world over. It is generally believed that the herbal medicines are safe and posses practically no side effect [1]. But in recent times pharmacognocists have become aware of the fact that much safety data is required for these complementary and alternative medicine. Many of herbal therapies fall under one single title, “Complementary and Alternative Medicines (CAM).”