The American Botanical Council (ABC) announces the adoption of senna (Senna alexandrina) by K. Patel Phyto Extractions Pvt. Ltd. through ABC’s Adopt-an-Herb program. With its adoption, K. Patel Phyto Extractions helps ABC expand its nonprofit research and educational mission and keep its unique HerbMedPro database updated with the latest scientific and clinical research on these botanical ingredients.
HerbMedPro is a comprehensive, interactive online database that provides access to important scientific and clinical research data on the uses and health effects of more than 265 herbs, spices, medicinal plants, and medicinal fungi.
“Through the Adopt-an-Herb initiative we are proud to be a part of maintaining the database about senna and contribute to sharing information and knowledge about senna,” said Viraj Patel, director of business development for K. Patel Phyto Extractions.
“ABC is deeply grateful for the adoption of senna by K. Patel Phyto Extractions,“ said Mark Blumenthal, ABC’s founder and executive director. “Senna is an ancient and classical herbal drug, the medicinal properties of which have been recognized for millennia, including in official pharmacopeial monographs. Even today, senna extracts, and the sennosides found in senna leaf and fruit are approved by various government agencies and pharmacopeias as safe and effective stimulant laxatives.”
Blumenthal added: “The K. Patel adoption of senna on ABC’s powerful HerbMedPro database will ensure that new scientific and clinical research on this classic medicinal plant will be more available to researchers, health professionals, industry members, and other stakeholders in the international medicinal plant community.”
Native to tropical areas of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and India, senna is a drought-tolerant shrub that typically reaches 1 to 2 meters (3.3 to 6.6 ft) in height. The plant has small yellow flowers and compound leaves with four to eight pairs of leaflets that form sharp edges and branching stems that taper to a point. These features likely explain the plant’s common name, which comes from the Arabic word sanaa, meaning “thorny bush.”
Senna has been used in traditional medicine systems of Asia for centuries. Ninth-century Arabian physician Serapion the Elder is believed to be one of the first to recommend senna for use as a medicine. In Ayurvedic medicine, senna leaf formulations such as tea preparations are used to treat constipation and digestive diseases. Similarly, senna leaf is used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat excessive heat associated with constipation and abdominal pain.
Senna is still primarily used for its laxative properties. In the United States, senna is used in over-the-counter (OTC) nonprescription drug products for the treatment of constipation and irregularity. Modern research has examined the use of senna preparations — particularly the plant’s dianthrone glycosides sennoside A and B — for chronic constipation, medication-induced constipation, and colonoscopy preparation. Results from human clinical trials suggest that senna preparations are useful for these conditions.
The adoption page for senna can be found here, and its HerbMedPro record is available here.
About K. Patel Phyto Extractions Pvt. Ltd.
K. Patel Phyto Extractions Pvt. Ltd. has been in the business of Indian botanical extracts and phytochemicals for more than 14 years. It specializes in manufacturing innovative and quality-driven products, including its flagship senna extract, according to the company. K. Patel Phyto Extractions strives for a sustainable supply chain and runs various programs to educate farmers on best agricultural and plant collection practices. The company notes that it operates a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility that produces extracts and phytochemicals that meet the regulatory standards of various countries around the world.
About Adopt-an-Herb and HerbMedPro
K. Patel Phyto Extractions is one of 62 companies that have supported ABC’s educational efforts to collect, organize, and disseminate reliable, traditional, science-based, and clinical information on herbs, medicinal plants, medicinal fungi, and other botanical- and fungi-based ingredients through the Adopt-an-Herb program. This program encourages companies, organizations, and individuals to “adopt” one or more specific herbs for inclusion and ongoing maintenance in the HerbMedPro database. To date, 69 herbs have been adopted.
Each adopted herb is continuously researched for new articles and scientific and clinical studies, ensuring that its HerbMedPro record stays current and robust. The result is an unparalleled resource not only for researchers, health professionals, industry, and consumers, but for all members of the herbal and dietary supplements community.
HerbMedPro is available to ABC members at the Academic level and higher. Its “sister” site, HerbMed, is free and available to the general public. In keeping with the ABC’s position as an independent research and education organization, herb adopters do not influence the scientific information that is compiled for their respective adopted herbs.