Abstract
Classical Siddha medicine recommends the usage of functionally parallel substitute raw drugs in the scarcity of the original material. The concept of standard raw drug substitution is designated by the Tamil term Matru sarakku, which emphasizes selecting alternatives either in herbal or non-herbal sources based on certain attributes. Functionally similar materials are suggested for balancing the deficit based on such parameters. Literature sources from Siddha medicine and other allied subjects were explored and documented for the inclusive understanding of the concept of ideal substitution. Few of the standard substitutes mentioned in the classical Siddha literature were evaluated in a scientific account for its justification. An outlook on different specimens as described in the ancient texts of Tamil medicine indicates the usage of substitutes from numerous plants, animals, and other metallo-mineral ingredients. The rationale of selecting alternatives primarily depends on the equivalent following traditional attributes like organoleptic entities, potency, division, general properties, specific actions, and medicinal uses of the material shared between the raw drugs. This must undergo a systematic evaluation by pharmacognostic and phytochemical studies to justify current practices of substitution. A systematic document in these lines will give a proper guideline for the effective employment of substitute drugs in the current scenario of dwindling official botanical sources for many Traditional Siddha formulations.
Highlights
The global renaissance in indigenous medicines and therapies has escalated the herbal commodity market. [1] The effectiveness of traditional medicine is contingent upon the proper use of sustained availability of genuine raw materials
The rationale of selecting alternatives primarily depends on the equivalent following traditional attributes like organoleptic entities, potency, division, general properties, specific actions, and medicinal uses of the material shared between the raw drugs
(9) Herbal products are the key entity to any sort of remedial measures affirmed by the practitioners of Shyamala Rajkumar et al, Concept of standard raw drug substitution in Traditional Siddha Medicine - A Review
Summary
The global renaissance in indigenous medicines and therapies has escalated the herbal commodity market. [1] The effectiveness of traditional medicine is contingent upon the proper use of sustained availability of genuine raw materials. [3] Only less than 10% of the cultivated source is available in the market and fact, most of the ingredients either fresh or dry are procured directly from its natural habitat. This resulted in massive depletion of resources. Medicinal plants and their by-products to be used in its exquisite formulary arsenal.[10,11] The notion of using genuine replacements to the unobtainable herbal resources are documented in the classical Siddha texts. The treatise about raw drug substitution by sage Agathiyar, in his Tamil medical text Agathiyar Vaidhya Chinthamani (AVC) throws light on the numerous prospects of using tributary herbal and non-herbal resources in the absence of original materials. As numerous substitutes mentioned in the classical books, an attempt was made to document a few of the established substitute pairs and their rational part in the light of scientific understandings done in this review paper
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