Pharmaceutical Aids and Technical Products

Pharmaceutical Aids and Technical Products 

   A number of natural products find use in various fields in addition to medicine and pharmacy. These products are called technical products which are used in beverages, condiments, flavoring agent spices , paints ,varnishes and cosmetics.

pharmaceutical aids

Pharmaceutical aids 

For the production of drug various techniques like as purification, filtration, adsorption, solubilization, absorption, suspension, emulsification etc. are employed. A number of natural products are used in these techniques. Flavoring, coloring, coating and perfuming agents are used in drug industries. These agents possess little or no therapeutic value but they are used in the preparation of many pharmaceutical aids which may be of plant, animal, mineral or synthetic origin.
   In pharmaceutical industry Glucose and sucrose are sweeting and coating products. Agar is used as emulsifying agent & cultural media. Acacia and tragacanth are employed as binding suspending and emulsifying agents. Most of the volatile oils are flavouring products. Fixed oils like olive, Seasame, Cottonseed and castor oils act as emollients and vehicles for drugs. Chlorophyll, Cochineal and saffron are the natural dyes used as coloring agents. Shellac is used for coating confections and medicinal tablets. Kaolin is employed externally as dusting power , filtering and cleaning agent.

Technical Products 

    In perfumery the natural substances Lavender. Sandalwood , Citronella, Balsam of peru. Balsam of Tolu and storax are used as technical products. Soaps are prepared from fatty acids of Castor oil. Cottonseed oil and Peanut oil. Coconut oil, Castor oil and Henna find use in hair dressings. Benzoin is added in lotions.
In food industry Acacia, Agar, alginates, Starches and Sterculia gum are used in confection and bakery products.
  In Tobacco Glycyrrhiza and Vanilla are used in cigarettes, cigars, snuffs and other products. In textile industry Acacia, Agar, Alginates, Catechu, Cotton, Gambir, Rosin, Starch and Sterculia gum are employed.