ABSTRACT
Polyherbal formulation is the use of more than one herb in medicinal preparation which provides effective therapeutic effect and decreased toxicity when consumed. The Polyherbal formulation in this study involves four medicinal plants (Hibiscus sabdariffa, Zingiber officinale, Syzygium aromaticum and Cinnamomum tamala). Proximate analysis and mineral content was carried out on the formulation of the four plants, aqueous and hydroethanol. The moisture content was determined by gravimetric method, crude protein was determined using Kjeldahl method, fat content was determined using soxhlet method, fibre content was determined using enzymatic gravimetric method and carbohydrate content was determined by obtaining the difference after adding up the percentage (crude protein, crude fibre, ash and crude lipid) contents and then subtracting from one hundred (100). Mineral content was determined using flame photometer and spectrophotometer. In the preparation of this Polyherbal formulation, 2308.24g of Hibiscus sabdariffa, 461g of Zingiber officinale, 115.38g of Syzygium aromaticum and 115.38g of Cinnamomum tamala was used in both aqueous and hydroethanol formulation. The combination of these plants was extracted with 18L of distilled water (aqueous) and 12.6L of distilled water ix and 5L of ethanol (hydroethanol). Proximate analysis test carried out on the Polyherbal formulation shows 26% moisture, 8.83% ash, 0.13% fat, 16.85% fibre, 0.10% protein and 46.85% carbohydrate. The result on mineral content shows the presence of Iron, Sodium, Potassium, Calcium, Phosphorus and Manganese. The results showed, it could be deduced that the Polyherbal formulation (Hibiscus sabdariffa, Zingiber officinale, Syzygium aromaticum and Cinnamomum tamala) is high in moisture, fibre and carbohydrate content and low in fat content which indicates its nutritional value and benefit when c onsumed and there is a significant amount of mineral in the aqueous extract than in hydroethanol extract of the Polyherbal formulation.
