The Safety Evaluation of Toxic Elements in Medicinal Plants: A Systematic Review

Background: Despite the widespread use of medicinal plants in the food basket of many families, using healthy herbs with safe nutritional standards is one of the necessities. Methods: In this review, the required data and related keywords (such as ldquo;latest methods of measuring and analyzing toxic elements in medicinal plants and foods, etc.) were collected from databases such as Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, Scopus, SID, PubMed, Elsevier, Springer, etc. Then we focused on accurate works related to toxic elements and medicinal plants. Results: First, we introduced the issue of toxic elements in foods, especially medicinal plants, with a new perspective. Then, some tools related to measuring toxic elements in herbs and some recent research were investigated. Further, an attempt was made to show the importance of the issue. Finally, the effects of toxic elements on various parts of the human body were discussed. Conclusion: An overview of using safe medicinal plants was presented while providing effective solutions such as identifying contaminated areas, using soil stabilizers, and preventing the leaching of toxic elements into farmland.