Efficacy and Safety of Iranian Poly Herbal Formulation (Compound Honey Syrup) in Pediatric Patients with Mild to Moderate Asthma: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Background: Asthma is a chronic relapsing airways disease that represents a major public health problem worldwide. With the high incidence of asthma, there has been a surge in the use of complementary therapies, such as compound honey syrup in Traditional Persian Medicine, in the treatment of asthma. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Iranian poly herbal formulation (compound honey syrup) in the treatment of mild to moderate pediatric asthma. Materials and Methods: The study was a randomized clinical trial that was conducted on 80 patients with mild to moderate asthma assigned to two groups (n=40 for each group) for eight weeks. Control and experimental groups received classical treatment of asthma with fluticasone spray; in case of worsening of symptoms, salbutamol spray was used for short term. The experimental group also received compound honey syrup (the combination of honey and an extract of the following five medicinal plants: ginger, cinnamon, saffron, cardamom, and galangal). Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) items and total scores of ACQ were evaluated before and after treatment. Results: To this end, 72 patients completed this study. There was no significant difference between the experimental and the control groups in baseline data such as age, sex, body mass index, ACQ items, and ACQ scores. Total scores and all items of ACQ, with the exception of forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1%), were significant between groups (P<0.05). No serious adverse effects were observed in the two groups. Conclusions: The results of this study reveal that compound honey syrup can be a safe and effective complementary drug for the treatment of pediatric asthma.