Standardization of a Polyherbal Formulation

Standardisation of herbal formulations is essential in order to assess the quality of drugs, based on the concentration of their active principles. The present paper reports on standardisation of Hingwashtak churna, a polyherbal ayurvedic medicine used as a carminative, digestive, astringent and as an antacid. Hingwashtak churna was prepared as per the Ayurvedic Formulary of India. In-house preparation and three marketed samples have been standardised on the basis of organoleptic characters, physical characteristics and physico-chemical properties. The set parameters were found to be sufficient to evaluate the churna and can be used as reference standards for the quality control/quality assurance laboratory of a Pharmaceutical house.