In the course of greater interest in natural sources and a conscious and healthy lifestyle, people have been turning towards traditional medicinal products as they are both effective and have relatively few side effects. Traditional medicinal products represent a significant share of the global pharmaceutical market. The demand for medicinal plant-based raw materials is growing at the rate of 15 to 25 per cent annually. According to the estimate of the World Health Organization (WHO), the demand for medicinal plans is likely to increase from the current $14 billion a year to $ 5 trillion in 2050. The global trade in medicines and food supplements made out of herbs is, however, higher at $ 60 billion a year, of which India’s total turnover is only Rs. 2,300 crore. India is also developing strategies to capture the $ 14 billion global market for medicinal herbs (plant raw materials) and $ 60 billion market for herbal medicines and food supplements. With the global expansion of traditional medicine the safety, efficacy and quality control for traditional medicine have become important concern. There is need to ensure uniform quality of clinical trials and Good Clinical Practices (GCP) are standards that ensures their credibility. By conducting clinical trials as per these standards set by ICMR and WHO for doing research in traditional medicines, we will one day succeed in making a niche for ourselves in the global market. This book is intended to be a handy reference book for all those who want to conduct clinical trials in traditional system of medicine. This book underlines a step wise approach towards planning, designing, conducting and reporting of a clinical trial to make it simple and uncomplicated for the non specialist in this field. An attempt has been made to simplify the whole procedure of conducting clinical trial in traditional system of medicine and to cover all the problems usually faced by research workers.
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