Growing interest in herbal medicines in veterinary health-care

In response, more and more veterinarians and animal owners worldwide are recognising herbal alternatives as a safer and more sustainable therapeutic option for animal health issues. Let's take a look at the benefits of herbal veterinary medicines!

Benefits of herbal veterinary medicines

Medicines derived from plant extracts offer many advantages over synthetic medicines. Firstly, herbal alternatives are considered safer for use in animals. Because they are derived from natural sources, they have a lower risk of side effects than synthetic medicines. This is particularly important for animal welfare and health. An additional advantage is that only negligible residues may remain in animal products, which can address concerns about food safety and consumer health.

Plant-based alternatives are considered more sustainable and environmentally friendly than synthetic compounds because they are derived from renewable plant sources, reducing dependence on synthetic compounds and the negative environmental impacts associated with their production and use. By using plant-based alternatives, livestock production can contribute to the conservation of natural resources and minimise the environmental footprint of production systems.

Complex mechanism of action

Medicinal plants contain bioactive compounds with various beneficial properties such as antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory and antioxidant compounds. These natural compounds can support the immune system, improve gut health and help prevent and treat many common diseases in animals. By harnessing the power of these bioactive compounds, herbal alternatives can help maintain animal health and well-being, resulting in improved productivity and performance.

The use of herbs can help reduce stress and improve the overall well-being of animals. Herbal alternatives can help create a more balanced and harmonious environment for animals, supporting their stress tolerance and overall physical well-being. This is also consistent with the ethical aspects of animal husbandry and contributes to improved animal welfare and more economical and efficient production.

Understanding how medicinal plants work

A medicinal plant is a plant or part of a plant that is used in medicinal preparations or cosmetics for its fragrance, taste or therapeutic properties. Herbal medicines are a group of dietary supplements. Herbal medicine uses the therapeutic properties of different parts of plants, including leaves, stems, flowers, roots and seeds. Herbal medicines can serve a variety of purposes: treating specific conditions such as digestive and respiratory disorders, promoting general health and well-being, boosting immune function, and providing relaxation and stress reduction.

Plants synthesise hundreds of chemical compounds that perform a range of functions, including defence against insects, fungi, pathogens and herbivorous mammals. These compounds are biologically active substances found in plants that have specific chemical structures and properties that allow them to interact with biological systems and exert desired physiological effects. Such active compounds can include alkaloids, flavonoids, terpenes, phenolic compounds, glycosides, saponins, tannins and many others. These compounds often contribute to therapeutic effects and potential health benefits. Their activities can range from antioxidant and anti-inflammatory to antimicrobial, analgesic and immunomodulatory. The specific active compounds in a plant can vary depending on the plant species, plant parts and environmental factors.

Medicinal plants contain a wide range of pharmacologically active compounds and each medicinal plant has its own unique combination of compounds and properties. Many medicinal plants contain compounds that have multiple actions combined in a single medicine. The vehicle for the medicinal compounds may be a whole plant or parts of a plant.

Herbal preparations

Herbal medicines are medicines made from individual medicinal plants or combinations of several medicinal plants. These preparations may be prepared by various methods to extract the desired active ingredients from the medicinal plants in the most effective way and to use them in combination with other active ingredients in a defined proportion. The aim of herbal medicines is to use the synergistic and complementary effects of several herbs to create a product that provides comprehensive therapeutic benefits.

Properties of herbal medicinal products:

1. Synergistic effect: When different herbs are combined in a preparation, they may have a synergistic effect, i.e. the combination may increase the overall therapeutic benefits compared to the use of individual herbs alone.
2. The presence of multiple active ingredients. This multi-component approach may result in the presence of a wider range of bioactive compounds, potentially targeting different pathways and mechanisms in the body, ultimately resulting in a more comprehensive therapeutic effect.
3. Balanced formulations. The careful selection and proportioning of herbs is based on traditional knowledge, clinical experience and modern scientific research.
4. Targeted mechanism of action: Herbal formulations are formulated to target specific health conditions or systems in the body through their mechanism of action. The combination of herbs can be chosen to address multiple aspects of a condition simultaneously, such as inflammation, immune response or organ function.
5. Increased absorption and bioavailability: Certain herbs, when combined in a formulation, can increase the absorption and bioavailability of active ingredients. Some herbs may contain constituents that enhance the absorption of other botanicals or inhibit certain metabolic processes that might otherwise reduce the bioavailability of these compounds.

6. Holistic approach: Herbal preparations often take a holistic approach to health, considering the overall wellbeing of the individual. They may aim not only to support specific symptoms or conditions, but also to promote balance and harmony in the body as a whole.
7. Customisation: Herbal preparations can be tailored to individual needs and circumstances. Trained professionals can adjust the composition and dosage of the herbs in the preparation to the individual's health status, taking into account factors such as the person's constitution, existing medications and possible contraindications.

Ayurvet Ltd. offers natural and clinically researched formulations for the most common veterinary conditions. Ayurvet products help to increase productivity in animal production and support environmental, consumer and animal welfare objectives.

Plant-based veterinary medicines can also help to curb the phenomenon of antimicrobial resistance, one of the biggest health challenges of our time. If you are interested in how exactly herbal medicines can help control AMR, click here to read more!