Evidence based traditional anti-diarrheal medicinal plants and their phytocompounds

Traditional medicines are an integral component of alternative health care systems used by millions of the people worldwide. Traditionally used herbals are multi-constituent medications, safety and efficacy of which is based on experiences of the practitioners, whereas modern drugs are single molecules, rigorously tested, structurally optimized and toxicologically cleared. Plants are being recognized as potential source of drug discovery and more than 80% of modern drugs are derived directly from natural sources (plants, microbes, cells etc.) or their molecules/compounds. A large number of traditional medicinal plants are used for the treatment of diarrhea and related gastrointestinal disorders. Many of these plants have been scientifically validated in animal models of diarrhea. However, very few of these have been clinically tested through controlled trials. The article highlights various traditional anti-diarrheal medicinal plants, which are shown to have high efficacy in in-vivo models. It was noticed that few active phytomolecules have been also identified from these plants however these have not been substantially explored in terms of their clinical efficacy and safety. This review also describes the potential herbal extracts which may be investigated for identification of novel active molecules against diarrhea and other gastrointestinal disorders. Robust clinical trials of lead plants/phyto-molecules will be needed to develop novel, effective and safe phyto-medicines for combating diarrhea and associated disorders.