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The ayurvedic medicine system, is regarded as India’s oldest and most holistic approach towards treatment of diseases, and elimination of its root cause while causing minimal to no damage to rest of the body. However, as these products are extremely vulnerable to microbial contamination during the process of procurement, and later on processing, which involves several stages such as handling, processing and packaging of the raw material. This study is aimed at evaluating the microbial load present in Ayurvedic medicines, beverages, and food products, and identifying pathogenic contamination.
Several types of commercially available products which include tablets, syrups, and health tonics, were analysed using standardized microbiological procedures such as Total Yeast and Mold Count (YM) and Total Pathogen Count (TPC). Further, confirmatory biochemical and selective media tests were performed for detection of pathogens such as Escherichia Coli, Salmonella Typhimurium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Staphylococcus aureus. To test the presence of yeast and mould, gram staining and lactophenol cotton blue staining were performed.
Results revealed that a few products exceeded the permissible microbial limit according to the ayurvedic conventions. Some select samples were detection with the presence of pathogens and mould. Syrup and powder-based formulations demonstrated a significantly higher pathogen count then the dry tablets, which could be possibly due to moisture content and handling. These finding highlight the critical gaps that arise in production hygiene and storage protocols.
This study puts a critical emphasis on the necessity of regular monitoring and stringent quality control protocols in the Ayurvedic industry. Adapting strong microbial testing frameworks is crucial to safeguard public health and preserve the credibility of ayurvedic system.
Keywords: Ayurvedic medicine, microbial contamination, samples, biochemical testing, pathogens.
