Phytochemical Screening and Safety Assessment of a Polyherbal Tea Formulation of Lippia Multiflora, Zinger Officinale and Mentha Piperita

Aims: Lippia multiflora, Zingiber officinale, and Mentha piperita are aromatic plants known for their health benefits. This study the phytochemical composition and evaluate the safety of a tea made from them for safe human consumption.

Methodology: For tea formulations, powder of each plant was prepared and weighed in specific proportions to formulate five different polyherbal tea. A hedonic test was then conducted on each formulation to evaluate consumer apprecation. Phytochemical composition was carried out by coloration and precipitation tests. This was followed by acute and subacute toxicity tests.

Results: Among the five formulations, formulation 4 consisting of “55% L. multiflora, 30% Z. officinale and 15% M. piperita" was the most appreciated tea with a value of 8.01. Regarding safety of the formulation 4, no deaths or signs of intoxication were observed. Subacute toxicity tests showed that the polyherbal tea 4 has no adverse effects on biochemical parameters. Apart from white blood cells for which there was an increasing number from 14.40 ± 0.50 103/uL to 19.30 ± 0.40 103/uL in comprarison to the control group (10.60 ± 0.90 103/uL), the haematological parameters were not significantly modified. This Tea formulation ²was rich in compounds such as alkaloids, polyphenols, flavonoids, saponosides, sterols and polyterpenes, leucoanthocyanins, and mucilages, which made its consumption more attractive.

Conclusion: The polyherbal tea 4 which was the most appreciated, was rich in secondary metabolites such as alkaloids, polyphenols, flavonoids, saponosides, sterols and polyterpenes, leucoanthocyanins, and mucilages, and was not toxic to wistar rats.