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Abstract
Medicinal Quality of Turmeric and Andrographis Raw Materials and Capsules Dispensed in
Regional Hospitals
Thidarat Boonruad*, Apirak Sakpetch*, Puritat Rattanasiri*
*Medicinal Plant Research Institute, Department of Medical Sciences, Ministry of Public Health,
Nonthaburi Province

This study was carried out to determine the chemical quality of the raw materials used and that con-
tained in capsules of turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) and andrographis herb (Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.)
Wall. ex Nees) currently produced and dispensed in 45 hospitals in 31 provinces of Thailand. The samples
were submitted in 2007 to the Medicinal Plant Research Institute, Department of Medical Sciences for quality
certification; of the 124 samples received, 40 and 24 of them respectively were raw materials and 35 and 25 of
them were medicinal capsules of turmeric and andrographis herbs. The results of the test revealed that 42.5
and 87.5 percent of the turmeric and andrographis raw materials, and 22.85 and 76 percent of the turmeric
and andrographis medicinal capsules, respectively, reached the standard specifications of the Thai Herbal
Pharmacopoeia (THP), showing that the chemical quality of about 75 percent of andrographis raw materials
and 85 percent of andrographis capsules precribed in those hospitals met THP standards, while the quality of
most turmeric raw materials and medicinal capsules posed a serious problem. In conclusion, the herbal
medicinal materials and herbal medicines produced and used in these hospitals need to be upgraded in quality
in order to comply with the government policy to lessen the use of modern pharmaceuticals and promote the
use of herbal medicines in the public health service of the country.
Key words: quality assessment, herbal medicine, turmeric, andrographis