Herbal remedies for hepatic diseases: A review of medicinal herbs in the treatment of liver disorders

Sep 22, 2026

Medicinal plants have been integral to human healthcare for centuries, offering a vast repository of bioactive compounds with therapeutic potential. This comprehensive review highlights the role of medicinal herbs in maintaining hepatic homeostasis and evaluates their efficacy against liver disorders, including cancer, hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver failure. The review first examines historical importance in traditional healing, then details hepatoprotective mechanisms such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-cancer, and immunomodulatory effects. It also discusses anti-fibrotic properties, hepatotoxicity concerns, and potential benefits for managing hepatic health across human and veterinary contexts.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages14

Reading Time35 min

AccessFree to download

Contents

1. Introduction

2. Overview of hepatic diseases and their prevalence rate

3. Historical evolution of medicinal herbs and popularization in therapeutic usage

4. Liver disorders and their management by herbal remedies and phytochemical-based therapeutic approaches

4.1. Herbal remedies for fatty liver disorders

4.2. Herbal remedies for viral hepatitis

4.3. Herbal remedies for liver cirrhosis

4.4. Herbal remedies for liver cancer

5. Hepatotoxicity of herbal medicines and considerations for safe use

6. Conclusion and future prospective

| Review
Herbal remedies for hepatic diseases: A review of medicinal herbs in the
treatment of liver disorders Istuti Saraswat, Anjana Goel ⁎, Jyoti Gupta Department of Biotechnology, GLA University, Mathura 181406, India | | | | --- | --- | --- | | a r t i c l e i n f o | | a b s t r a c t | | Article history:
Received 12 September 2024 Revised 5 February 2025
Accepted 12 February 2026
Available online 14 February 2026 | | Medicinal plants have been integral to human healthcare for centuries, offering a vast repository of bioactive compounds with therapeutic potential. This comprehensive review underscores the signiﬁcance of medicinal herbs in maintaining hepatic homeostasis and addresses their efﬁcacy in treating liver disorders, including cancer, hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver failure. The exploration begins with an examination of the historical importance of medicinal plants in diverse traditional healing practices, emphasizing their contributions to human well-being. Subsequently, the review delves into the speciﬁc hepatoprotective properties of herbs, unravelling their potential to mitigate liver disorders, their versatile antiinﬂammatory, antioxidant, and anti-cancer attributes, along with their immunomodulatory and antioxidant effects, set the stage for understanding their roles in managing hepatitis and other liver disorders. Furthermore, the review discusses anti-ﬁbrotic and hepatoprotective qualities, antioxidant-rich composition guarding against hepatotoxicity, and their anti-inﬂammatory and anti-cancerous actions relevant to liver disorders. Many medicinal plants, known for their hepatoprotective and anti-inﬂammatory properties, are explored for their potential therapeutic beneﬁts in liver failure. Understanding the pivotal role of medicinal plants in liver health enriches our appreciation for traditional healing practices and lays the groundwork for developing novel therapeutic approaches for both human and veterinary liver health.
© 2025 Tianjin Press of Chinese Herbal Medicines. Published by ELSEVIER B.V. This isan open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ([http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)). | | Keywords:
anti-inﬂammatory antioxidant hepatic homeostasis hepatoprotective liver disorders medicinal plants traditional medicine | | | | Contents
1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 329
2. Overview of hepatic diseases and their prevalence rate ...................................................................... 330
3. Historical evolution of medicinal herbs and popularization in therapeutic usage .................................................. 330
4. Liver disorders and their management by herbal remedies and phytochemical-based therapeutic approaches.......................... 332
4.1. Herbal remedies for fatty liver disorders ............................................................................. 332
4.2. Herbal remedies for viral hepatitis.................................................................................. 333
4.3. Herbal remedies for liver cirrhosis .................................................................................. 335
4.4. Herbal remedies for liver cancer ................................................................................... 337
5. Hepatotoxicity of herbal medicines and considerations for safe use ............................................................ 337
6. Conclusion and future prospective ....................................................................................... 338
CRediT authorship contribution statement ................................................................................ 338
Declaration of competing interest ....................................................................................... 338

FAQs

What liver disorders does the review focus on?

The review addresses liver disorders including liver cancer, hepatitis, cirrhosis, fatty liver disorders, and liver failure, discussing medicinal herbs relevant to each condition.

Which therapeutic properties of herbs are emphasized for hepatic protection?

The review emphasizes hepatoprotective effects alongside anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-cancer, immunomodulatory, and anti-fibrotic attributes that may help manage liver disorders.

Why does the review discuss hepatotoxicity and safe use?

It highlights that herbal medicines can have hepatotoxicity risks, so considerations for safe use are necessary when applying medicinal herbs in liver-related contexts.

Sep 22, 2026

Upload by Riley West