Background & aim: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine and metabolic disorder. Recently, the tendency towards complementary therapies such as using herbs with anti-androgenic effects has been increased. This study reviewed the documents related to the effect of four types of herbal teas on the treatment of PCOS based on the literature review. Methods: The searched databases in...

Caffeine is the world's most popular drug and can be found in many beverages including tea. It is a psychostimulant that is widely used to enhance alertness and improve performance. This study was conducted to determine the concentration of caffeine in 20 assorted commercial tea products. The teas were brewed under a variety of conditions including different serving sizes and steep-times. Caffe...

What is herbal therapy? Herbs are plants that contain ingredients with active therapeutic properties. These active ingredients may be present in the whole plant or only in a specific part. Other parts of the same plant, or other plants in the same genus may have no activity or may in fact be toxic. An herb may be used in various forms, including teas, granular extracts (Chinese medicine), fresh...

AIM To determine the impact of health insurance and the government's Benefit Service Scheme, a system that provides free drugs to treat mostly chronic illnesses to persons aged 16 to 65 years, on the use of herbal remedies by Christian churchgoers in Barbados. METHODS The eleven parishes of Barbados were sampled over a six-week period using a survey instrument developed and tested over a four...