A herbal treatment nicknamed ‘ pig pungent weed ’ has become the first traditional Chinese medicine to be approved for use in the UK . The plant Sigesbeckia , which has an unpleasant smell , is renowned for its ability to treat aches and pains – including those caused by arthritis . It is the active ingredient in Phynova Joint and Muscle Relief Tablets , which have just been licensed by drug safety watchdog the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency . Healing power : Sigesbeckia is the active ingredient in a new drug which have just been licensed by safety watchdog the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency . The tablets are expected to go on sale online within the next month . Many herbal products have vanished from sale in recent years after a 2004 EU directive banned any medicines that were not licensed from being sold . The directive also made it more difficult for medicines to get a licence as it demanded they had to have been in use for 30 years , of which at least 15 years had to be in the EU . Some Western herbal medicines have managed to gain licences in a process costing thousands of pounds to verify their ingredients . But the Phynova tablets are the first traditional Chinese medicine to be approved . Robert Miller , chief executive of Oxford-based Phynova , said he was ‘ extremely proud ’ , adding : ‘ This has come from years of working with our Chinese colleagues . Helping weed : Sigesbeckia is renowned for its ability to treat aches and pains caused by arthritis . ‘ Britain can now benefit from having access to high quality , regulated Chinese medicines. ’ He also said that the company is planning to apply for a licence for a second traditional Chinese medicine , a cold and flu remedy . Dr Chris Etheridge , a medical herbalist and adviser to Potter ’ s Herbals , celebrated the ‘ good news ’ , adding that Sigesbeckia , which is not commonly used in the West , ‘ offers an alternative to those who prefer not to take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for muscle and joint pain ’ . But Michael McIntyre , chairman of the European Herbal and Traditional Medicine Practitioners Association , warned that the new product demonstrates the difficulties the EU rules created for supplying herbal products safely to the public . He said it is ‘ almost impossible to satisfy the licensing conditions ’ . He added that some people have therefore turned to the internet to buy unlicensed products , but this means they have ‘ no idea whether they are safe or effective ’ . According to figures from market researchers Ipsos MORI , at least six million Britons have consulted a Western or traditional Chinese herbal practitioner in the last two years .
Drug containing ‘ pig pungent weed ’ has just been licensed . The drug is called ‘Pig Stench’. The weed is renowned for its ability to treat aches and pains .