Safety first

If you are one of the five adults in the UK who is now thought to use herbal remedies on a regular basis you would be forgiven for feeling baffled by the huge array of different products on health store shelves. And the confusion doesn’t always end there. There can be a big difference in prices and often it is not clear from the label what the product is actually meant to do, let alone if you should expect side effects or possible interactions with any other medications you may be taking.

But rest assured all this is about to change. Over the past few years it has become increasingly obvious that just like orthodox medicines, herbal remedies need to be regulated so that the public know that the products they are buying are safe, of consistent and appropriate quality, and that information about the product is reliable and accurate.

To this end new European legislation was introduced in 2004, which states that from 30th April 2011 all herbal medicines for sale in the UK will have to be approved for registration by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). This will mean that consumers, GPs, pharmacists and nurses will be able to choose and recommend the use of herbal products that they know have been assessed for quality and safety, and that also come with reliable and accurate approved in-pack product information. 

Registration under this scheme primarily means that herbal products are regulated and meet specific standards of safety and quality based on traditional usage. They must also be of pharmaceutical quality and manufactured to European Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) guidelines.

‘Herbal products don’t need the same stringent testing that conventional medicines have to comply with,' explains Dr Dick Middleton, Director of the British Herbal Medicine Association.  ‘Instead manufacturers will have to provide evidence that the herb in their product has been used at that dosage for at least 30 years in an EU country. The new directive also means manufacturers will have to make it clear how a herb should be used so you can be sure you are taking it in the right way,’ he adds.

So how you can you tell if a product has been registered under the Traditional Herbal Registration Scheme? ‘All herbal medicines registered under this scheme have a nine digit registration number on their packaging starting with the letters THR. This is proof that a product has met the MHRA’s agreed level of safety and quality and that the consumer information has been approved by the MHRA,’ explains Dr Middleton.
 
There are currently 28 traditional herbal medicinal products (THMPS) in the UK which hold a THR licence.  And herbfacts makes it easy for you to identify them.  Just click onto the THMPS button and you'll find one list that summarises all the available registered products.  This list is updated regularly.