Guanajuato, Gto., July 24, 2018.- Due to high consumption that exists in Mexico of infusions using various plants or herbs to 'heal' ailments, researchers at the University of Guanajuato (UG) have taken on the task to clear whether this consumption really help people or by the otherwise affects your health.

The Head Professor of the Department of Pharmacy in the Division of Natural and Exact Sciences, Dr. Ángel Josabad Alonso Castro reported that in his research he currently works with the pharmacology of natural products, i.e. with medicinal plants.

He began searching in the plants' extract, so then, with some chemical help he could isolate the main metabolites of the "medicinal plants".

Within the research lines he has, there is the central nervous system, many plants are used as anxiolytics or tranquilizers when there is nervousness, anxiety, or stress. The researcher assured that these are even prescribed in the country's traditional medicine –more than a hundred plants can be used as remedy— "which can become a danger to the population since some of these are probably toxic".

For this reason, he and his peers who work together as a multidisciplinary group, seek to know if these anxiolytic plants really have the expected effect, making several lab trials with the purpose to have the anxiety indicators, and validate the information in a scientific manner.

"We go beyond the traditional knowledge, this can tell you, two tiny leaves, a bunch, a branch, we want a scientific knowledge to then find a medicine", affirmed the researcher.

One of the plants they have worked with is mistletoe and found that it is one of the most dangerous, and also the most used for treating cancer, they've stopped working with it due to its high toxicity.

Based on the results of his research, they seek to develop the phytomedicine –herbal medicines—in tablets to control these ailments, likewise, they want to know the toxicity through the standardized extract of these plants to see if they affect other organs. He warned that the fact that it is natural, it doesn't mean it's safe to use plants to heal an ailment since they may have an adverse effect.

At the same time with this research, they also seek to know, in the Mexican population, what is the amount used in the passionflower and valerian tea, if it is prescribed by a physician or not, this, with the objective to have a record that lets them make research according the measurements of consumption from people.

Currently, they have an agreement with the ISSSTE clinic to begin a survey in Guanajuato, then they will visit other states to know all the traditional medicine in the country.

The research line in which Dr. Ángel Josabad Alonso Castro collaborates in, is from the academic body 141 of clinical and chemical pharmacy; they are several members, there are doctors who work with biomedicine, formulations, clinical and chemical part to produce more assertive information.

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