TEHRAN- The list of traditional and herbal medicines approved by the Iranian Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will be published by the end of the Iranian month of Tir (July 22), said the director of FDA’s department for natural and traditional supplements. 

According to Mahnaz Khanavi, the list will be available to the public after its completion, IRIB reported on Sunday.

“80% of the traditional medicines and 50% of herbal medicines are now on the list, and the rest will be added by the end of Tir,” said Khanavi.

“All the traditional and natural supplements that have received license for production or being imported into the country, will be on this list and if any new items are to be added, they first need to be examined by the council; if any supplement already exist we won’t issue permit for their production or import,” she added.

“The list of all natural and traditional medicines and food supplements are already available on the FDA’s website and the list is updated every three months, but the new list will be an official document and guideline to the public, with the history and facts about every item,” said Khanavi. 

In mid-April, the national council for science and technology development of medicinal and aromatic plants and traditional medicine announced that it supports over 170 innovative products in over 150 knowledge-based companies. 

Meanwhile, the vice president for science and technology Sourena Sattari has announced that 170 knowledge-based companies active in medical herb industry are influential in value-added chain.

According to the World Health Organization, traditional herbal medicines are naturally occurring, plant-derived substances with minimal or no industrial processing that have been used to treat illness within local or regional healing practices. Traditional herbal medicines are getting significant attention in global health debates.

SJ/MQ/MG