# Andrographis (Andrographis paniculata) *Kalmegh, Bengali *kalmeg*, Hindi *kiryat*; Chinese *chuan xin lian*; *Andrographis paniculata* Nees; in pharmacy *Andrographidis paniculatae folium** **Known today as.** *Andrographis paniculata*, a bitter herb of the family Acanthaceae found wild or cultivated throughout India. The European Medicines Agency’s assessment report names its diterpene lactones, andrographolide chief among them and considered the most active, as its major constituents. Kind: Plant > **Caution.** A 2021 meta-analysis of its safety found serious adverse events very rare but non-serious ones very common, chiefly of the gut and the skin, and advised that users be closely monitored. Its safety has not been evaluated in children and adolescents, nor studied in pregnancy and breast-feeding, the European assessment report notes. ## What was it used for? A bitter for the bowels in Bengal, and in modern use a remedy for colds. Dutt, in 1877, found it “well-known in Bengal under the name of kalmeg” as the principal ingredient of a domestic medicine for infants called *alui*, the juice of the leaves with powdered cardamoms, cloves, and cinnamon, given for griping, irregular stools, and loss of appetite. ## What does modern science say? The European Medicines Agency’s herbal committee declined to adopt a monograph on the leaf (public statement of 2013): appropriate studies for well-established use were lacking, and no single-herb preparation had fifteen years of medicinal use in the European Union. A 2017 meta-analysis of thirty-three randomised trials in 7,175 patients, most of commercial preparations seldom described in detail, found that andrographis improved cough and sore throat against placebo and shortened the duration of symptoms, but warned that the findings “should be interpreted cautiously owing to poor study quality and heterogeneity.” ## Pharmacognosy and toxicology - **andrographolide**: the chief diterpene lactone, considered the most active **Mechanism.** Not established in the sources read for this entry. **Standing.** There is no European monograph: the European Medicines Agency’s herbal committee declined to adopt one (public statement of 2013). A 2017 meta-analysis of thirty-three randomised trials found benefit for cough and sore throat, from studies of poor quality. ## What did the older authorities say? **Dutt, *The Materia Medica of the Hindus* (1877).** There was some doubt about its Sanskrit name: a plant called *yavatikta* was said by some to be this herb, but Dutt had never met that name in a prescription, and the synonym usually meant another plant, “so that I am inclined to think *Andrographis paniculata* was not used in Sanskrit medicine.” Dymock, Warden, and Hooper add that both Hindu and Muslim writers seem to have confused it with chiretta. ## Sources - Dutt, U. C. (1877). *The Materia Medica of the Hindus*, “Andrographis paniculata.” Internet Archive, materiamedicaofh00duttuoft. - Dymock, W., Warden, C. J. H., & Hooper, D. (1893). *Pharmacographia Indica*, vol. 3, “Andrographis paniculata.” Internet Archive, b20413415_003. - European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products. *Public statement on Andrographidis paniculatae folium (Kalmegh)*. EMA/HMPC/709282/2012, 17 September 2013. - European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products. *Assessment report on Andrographidis paniculatae folium*. EMA/HMPC/320433/2012, 27 August 2014. - Hu XY, et al. (2017). Andrographis paniculata (Chuān Xīn Lián) for symptomatic relief of acute respiratory tract infections in adults and children: A systematic review and meta-analysis. *PloS one*. PMID 28783743. - Worakunphanich W, et al. (2021). Safety of Andrographis paniculata: A systematic review and meta-analysis. *Pharmacoepidemiology and drug safety*. PMID 33372366. - European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products. *Public statement on Andrographidis paniculatae folium (Kalmegh)*. EMA/HMPC/709282/2012, 17 September 2013. - European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products. *Assessment report on Andrographidis paniculatae folium*. EMA/HMPC/320433/2012, 27 August 2014. - Hu XY, et al. (2017). Andrographis paniculata (Chuān Xīn Lián) for symptomatic relief of acute respiratory tract infections in adults and children: A systematic review and meta-analysis. *PloS one*. PMID 28783743. - Worakunphanich W, et al. (2021). Safety of Andrographis paniculata: A systematic review and meta-analysis. *Pharmacoepidemiology and drug safety*. PMID 33372366. --- *Andrographis.* In *Materia Medica*, edited by B. C. P. Statema. Version 1, revised 2026-10-17. The Thinking Press. https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/andrographis Historical description, not medical advice.