Liquid Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (LC–MS): Approaches to Adulterant Detection in Herbal Products

An ever increasing global demand for herbal-based medicines in recent years has resulted in a serious public concern over its quality and safety. The consumption of adulterated herbal products can lead to unexpected and unpredictable pharmacological responses in the human body and various health-related risks. Adulteration of herbal products is a global concern and poses a major challenge for analytical laboratories to detect and characterize them. Liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC–MS) is widely used for screening of adulterants, mainly due to their high selectivity and sensitivity, which is crucial for analyzing complex natural product samples. The present article consists of an overview of drug adulteration and evaluation of herbal products with a special reference to the approaches in adulterant detection and regulatory perspectives to control such malpractices. Also, adulteration in slimming phytotherapeutic formulations, PDE-5 inhibitors in herbal formulations has been discussed.