WHAT IS A MEDICINE AND WHAT IS NOT A MEDICINE ?
by Mary Boughton of Dorwest Herbs
Member of the British Herbal Medicine Association's Veterinary Committee

There are many products on the market that are presented and advertised as medicines, claiming to cure or control various ailments and problems. This can be very confusing for the consumer who can get bogged down in the quagmire of products available. A medicine, however always has a Product Licence (PL) number on the label; if it doesn't then it is being sold as a dietary supplement. This sounds simple, but many people are confused - after all if you buy something advertised to improve your dog's health which is recommened for rheumatism, arthritis, skin disorders, nervousness etc. surely you can expect it to be effective ? Yes, of course you can providing that you ensure that the product you buy has a PL number which means that it is a Licensed Medicine and that it is strictly controlled by the terms and conditions of its licence under the Medicines Act 1968. It must conform to specific controls regarding what it contains, the conditions in which it is manufactured, where it may be sold and for which conditions it is recommended.

These controls cover the ingredients which must meet strict criteria on purity by conforming to the specifications for each constituent - in the case of herbal medicines the active ingredients or plant materials will conform to either a British Pharmacopeia or British Herbal Pharmacopeia specification. This is of paramount importance for a medicine containing botanic ingredients where natural variation in the plant is normal and depends on the country of origin, environmental conditions and seasonal variations. Manufacture of medicines must be undertaken in a licensed factory where the equipment, methods and controls are inspected and approved by Ministry inspectors to ensure that they conform to the Good Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Practice code. Total quality control is exercised at every stage of manufacture and quality is checked and rechecked. These technical controls continue right through to the finished product and afterwards to the packaging, labelling, shelf-life, transportation and storage.

Of most interest to the consumer however, is the efficacy of the medicine and in the case of veterinary medicines this will have been proved and approved by practising veterinary surgeons and the Veterinary Medicines Directorate to confirm its effectiveness in treating the conditions for which it is recommended before a licence is granted.

Many people do not realise that herbal medicines have to conform to the same criteria
as any other pharmaceutical medicine. The only exception being that because of their traditional use and well documented effects over hundreds of years, they are not subject to animal testing or double-blind trials. This makes them a particularly suitable form of medicine that is in line with today's growing concern over unethical testing procedures.

To obtain a Veterinary Product Licence a great deal more information is required by the authorities than for a comparable human medicine - this is something which is perhaps quite the opposite to what most people would expect. The basis for this is similar to that which requires only qualified veterinary surgeons to treat an animal that is not their own. It is to protect the animal. After all we, as people, can decide whether to take a medicine by considering the facts and the implications; an animal cannot and therefore a great many more safeguards have to be in place to protect our dogs and cats.

You can see that the PRODUCT LICENCE NUMBER on a medicine really does tell you a lot about the product you purchase. It gives a strong assurance that proper care has been taken to achieve purity, quality and the highest level of manufacture, as well of course telling you that it is a medicine that will be suitable to treat the condition for which it is advertised and recommended. On the other hand, a product without a PL number which is sold as a supplement, will not have had to conform to any of these criteria. It can be manufactured anywhere in any conditions, the ingredients do not have to meet any specifications of quality

or purity, the finished product is not subject to veterinary scrutiny and the quantity of ingredients do not have to be declared. It can only be sold as a dietary supplement and should not be advertised or recommended to treat any medical condition, although it is sometimes difficult to identify this as advertising can be ambiguous. Of course, many products we buy for our dogs are excellent food supplements and they are useful in maintaining good health and providing a balanced diet, particularly for dogs who may need supplementation, such as the young, old, bitches in whelp or just those that need something to boost their condition.

But it may be disappointing to purchase these supplements expecting them to act as if they were medicines to treat specific medical conditions - for that you need a Licensed Medicine, then you can be sure of getting the result you expect with the assurance of the quality and effectiveness of a product which has been thoroughly investiaged and approved.
When buying dietary supplements it is wise to always purchase from an established and reputable manufacturer who will want to safeguard their reputation by ensuring that the same controls are used for their supplements as for their medicines.