Date:17/12/2004 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2004/12/17/stories/2004121700801300.htm

National

Heavy metals' level high in ayurvedic products sold abroad: study

By N. Gopal Raj

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, DEC. 16. Many packaged ayurvedic products being sold in the United States contain high levels of heavy metals, says a paper published in the latest issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

In the U.S., ayurvedic products are sold as dietary supplements, which do not require proof of safety or efficacy. Since 1978, at least 55 cases of heavy metal intoxication associated with ayurvedic products consumed by adults and children have been reported in the U.S. and other countries, say Robert Saper of the Harvard Medical School and fellow doctors in their JAMA paper.

The doctors analysed 70 ayurvedic products available from shops in the Boston area and found that 14 of them contained lead, mercury or arsenic. If the manufacturer's recommended dose was consumed, it would greatly exceed permissible levels, according to them.

This is not the first time that excessive quantities of metals have been reported in ayurvedic preparations. In a paper published in 2002, E. Ernst, currently with the Peninsula Medical School at Exeter in Britain, observed that ``some traditional Indian [herbal medicinal products] have been shown to contain dangerously large amounts of heavy metals [particularly lead] resulting in serious intoxication."

Metals and minerals are rarely used in south Indian ayurvedic formulations, but their addition is more common in north Indian ayurveda, says C.P. Ravindranathan Nair, formerly director of the the Indian Institute of Panchakarma, and currently chief physician at the Sri Dhanwantari Matam here. All the 14 ayurvedic products found in the JAMA paper to contain heavy metals were north Indian formulations, he said. Ayurveda prescribed elaborate detoxification procedures when metals were added but these procedures were not always strictly followed, especially during large-scale production, remarked Dr. Nair.

The Government is making efforts to improve the quality of ayurvedic products, according to Palat Mohandas, Secretary for Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) at the Union Health Ministry.

Claim rejected

UNI reports from New Delhi:

The Minister for Science and Technology, Kapil Sibal, today told the Rajya Sabha that reports that Ayurveda and other systems of Indian medicines were laden with poisonous substances were "motivated" and said that such disinformation would be stopped.