Good Manufacturing Practices: A pathway towards quality ASU medicines
Kaushal Arushi and Arora Ravinder
Journal Title:International Journal of Ayurveda and Pharmaceutical Chemistry
Ayurvedic medicines are being used from time immemorial for prevention and cure of human beings, therefore the efficacy and safety of these medicines is undoubted. However, the quality of these drugs is still a challenge as far as international norms are concerned.1,2 Few ayurvedic herbo-mineral medicines have been banned in western countries and many surveys have reported the adulteration of herbal medicines. Herbal drugs contain numerous groups of compounds in complex matrices in which no single active constituent is responsible for the overall efficacy. This creates a problem in establishing quality control standards and standardization of herbal drugs1. Good manufacturing practice (GMP) is a system for ensuring that products are consistently produced and controlled according to quality standards. It is designed to minimize the production of adulterated and substandard medicines. GMP covers all aspects of production: - from the starting materials, premises and equipment to the training and personal hygiene of staff. GMP is the guidelines which, - governs the production, distribution and supply of the drug. These days, there is an increased concern for heavy metal toxicity with ayurvedic medicines. GMP also covers batch manufacturing records, distribution records and records of market complaints. Thus it ensures proper pharmacovigilance of ayurvedic medicines. It essential to produce high-quality and standardized medicines if we want global acceptance of Ayurvedic medicines which can be achieved by proper education and enforcement of GMP.