CONCEPT OF ADULTERANTS AND SUBSTITUTES IN AYURVEDA

INTRODUCTION

History of drug unavailability is as old as Ayurveda. When a large number of rare drugs have
been referred, treatment should be done appropriately with the available drugs only.
Availability of quality raw plant material is a burning issue.

The idea of Pratinidhi dravya is as old as Ayurveda. Because of that, the first and foremost need
of the hour is to have a uniform pattern for the selection of various herbal sources of drugs.

In the light of current scarcity of several medicinal herbs, there is greater need to discover
suitable substitutes for them.

Reasons for adulteration and substitution of raw drugs are

 Increasing demand
 Deforestation Extinction
 Incorrect identification
 Controversy
 Commercialization
 Breakdown in chain of knowledge transfer

ADULTERATION -

It is a practice of substituting original crude drug partially or wholly with other similar looking
substances but later is either free from or inferior in chemical and therapeutics properties.
SUBSTITUTION – It occurs when some totally different substance is added in the place of
original drug.

Common terms used along with the term Adulteration in Pharmacognosy

●Adulteration involves different conditions such as deterioration, admixture, sophistication,

substitution, inferiority and spoilage.

●Deterioration is impairment in the quality of the drug

●Admixture is addition of one article to another due to ignorance or carelessness or by accident

●Sophistication is the intentional or deliberate type of adulteration,

●Substitution occurs when some totally different substance is added in place of

original drug

• Inferiority refers to any substandard drug.

●Spoilage is due to the attack of micro-organisms.

According to modern literature and legal aspect, all substitutes are considered as

adulterants,
TYPES OF ADULTERANTS

1. Substitution with standard commercial varieties

2. Substitution with superficially similar inferior drugs

3. Substitution with artificially manufactured substances

4. Substitution with exhausted drugs

5. Substitution with synthetic chemicals

6. Presence of vegetative matter from the same plant

7. Harmful adulterants

8. Adulteration of powders
1. Substitution with substandard commercial varieties

 Resemblance în morphological, chemical or therapeutic characters

 Substandard in nature
 Cheaper in cost
 Most common practice of adulteration e.g. Indian senna - Arabian senna and dog senna;
Medicinal ginger - its inferior varieties, viz. African. Japanese and Cochin ginger.

2. Substitution with superficially similar inferior drugs

 May or may not be having any chemical or therapeutic value

 Marketed as adulterants due to morphological resemblance eg. Saffron - Dried flowers
of Carthamus tinctorius, Clove - Mother cloves and clove stalks

3. Substitution with artificially manufactured substances

For costlier drugs e.g. Compressed chicory in place of coffee Shaped basewood for nutmeg.

4. Substitution with exhausted drugs

 Same drug but devoid of medicinally active constituents due to previous extraction
 Common practice in case of volatile oil containing drugs like fennel, clove, coriander,
caraway
  Manipulation in colour and taste of exhausted drugs by adding other additive e.g.
exhausted gentian made bitter with aloes, artificial colouring of exhausted saffron

5. Substitution with synthetic chemicals

To enhance the natural character eg. Addition of benzyl benzoate to balsam of Peru, Citral to
citrus oils like oil of lemon and orange oil etc.

6. Presence of vegetative matter from the same plant

Due to resemblance in color, odour in some cases constituents e.g. Mixing of Senna leaves and
stem

7. Harmful adulterants

 Collection and admixture of wastes from market

 Noticed for liquid or organised drugs eg. limestones in asafetida: Rodent faecal matter
to cardamom seed

8. Adulteration of powders

Frequent form of adulteration eg. powdered liquorice or gentian admixed with powdered olive
stones: Red sanders wood in capsicum
 HISTORICAL REVIEW

VEDIC KALA

 Kusha, Ashmantak, Bala vacha were used for Munja

 Kusha were used for Kusha

SAMHITA KALA

 The term Pratinidhi dravya was first introduced by Vangasen.

 Detail description regarding Pratinidhi dravyas can be traced from Bhavaprakasha
Yogaratnakara and Bhaisajya-ratnavali,
NEED / CAUSES OF SUBSITUTIONAL DRUG

● non availability of drug

Ashtavarga Dravyas.

Talisa patra i. e. Abies webbiana Lindl. -Pinaceae , Taxus baccata Linn-(Taxaceae)

• Uncertain identity of the drug

Eg: - for the herb Lakshmana different species such as Arlia quinquefolia,Ipomea sepiaria
etc are considered For Soma different species such as Ephedra gerardiana, Ceropegia juncea
.Roxb, Sarcostemma brevistigma etc are considered.

• Cost of the drug-costly herb is substituted by cheaper herb

Eg. Kumkuma (Rs.1.50,000/kg) - Kusumbha (Rs.150/kg)

Ativisha (Rs.8000/kg) - Musta (Rs.80/kg)

• Geographical distribution of the drug

Eg. Rasna - Pluchea lanceolata is used in Northern India while in Southern parts Alpinia
galanga is considered as the source.
• List of region wise different botanical sources of plants
CRITERIA / PRINCIPLES OF SUBSTITUTION

Raspancak

In case of non-availability of any particular drug in the preparation of a compound one should
try to get another similarly potent drug having similar Rasa, Guna, Veerya, Vipak and Karma,

Upayuktanga

Therapeutic properties denoted for the particular plant are to be considered for the different
parts of the same plant und varieties of plants also. So. one drug may be replaced by other part
of plant of same Genus.

Concept of regional substitutes/Deshasatmya

Assessment, validation and if possible supplementation of rare classical drugs through local
folklore species is also a need of time, This is also supported by a principle stated in
Bhaavprakasha.

यस्य दे शस्य यो जन्तस्

ु तज्जं तस्यौषधं हितम ्।

TYPES OF SUBSTITUTION

• Substitution with totally different drug

Bharangi (Clerodendrum serratum) is substituted by root of Kantakari (Solanum xanthocarpum)

• Substitution by Dravyaprabheda (Different varieties)

Swet chandan (Santalum album) is substituted by root of Rakta chandan (Pterocarpus

santalinus)
• Substitution by different parts of the same plant

Use of roots and leaves of Rasna as a source of substitute

• Substitution by same parts of the different plants

Kumkow Keshar is substituted by Kushumbha Keshar.

• Substitution by different parts of the different plants

Root of Chitrak can be used instead of fruit of Bhallataka

•Context Specific Substitution

Bhallatak (Semicarpus anacardium) is substituted by root of Rakta chandan (Pterocarpus

santalinus)
CONCLUSION

1) In Ayurvedic classics, the concept of Pratinidhi dravya or Abhava Dravya is mentioned but the
concept of Apa Mishran or adulteration is introduced in new era along with their new criteria.
Hence both these entities must be considered separately and used accordingly, moreover the
legal aspect of adulteration-substitution should be reconsidered and reframed

2) The name of one drug may indicate multiple botanical sources on the basis of habitat.
climate, region, usefulness, availability etc. This is being successfully practiced in different parts
of the country. These substitutes should be legalized authenticated and incorporated in
pharmacopoeia to give wide acceptance and to combat the problems of its increasing demand

3) The criteria for selection of substitutes may vary according to the drug: either entire different
plant or plant part itself can be used as a substitute. No single criteria can be fixed for all the
drugs.

4) No substitute can be established merely on the basis of experimental evaluation

(Pharmacognosy, phytochemistry and pharmacology) until and unless screened for its
therapeutic properties (clinical evaluation).
 Bibliography

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Prakashan, Pune, 2007, 97-98.

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2002, 113-117.

 Anonymous, The Drugs and Cosmetics Act and Rule, The Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940,
The Drugs and Cosmetics Rule 1945, Government of India, Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare, chapter 2, 2003

 Dubey NK, Kumar R, Tripathi P. Global promotion opportunity. Current Science 2004;
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