What is andrographis, the cold and flu ingredient the TGA says can be fatal?
Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) is proposing to remove andrographis from its list of permitted ingredients due to risks of severe allergic reactions and anaphylaxis. The article details the TGA's safety review, historical adverse event reports, and recommendations for consumers.
open_in_new
Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/what-is-andrographis-the-cold-and-flu-ingredient-the…
analyticsAnalysis
0%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 100%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.
fact_checkFact-Check Results
16 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.
help
Insufficient Evidence
7
schedule
Pending
6
verified
Verified By Reference
3
“A herb commonly sold in cold and flu supplements may no longer be classified as 'low-risk', after Australia’s therapeutic goods regulator found it can cause severe allergic reactions and even death.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No relevant evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm or refute the claim about TGA reclassifying andrographis.
“The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) is proposing to remove andographis – widely used in Indian and Chinese traditional medicine – from its list of permitted ingredients.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm or refute the claim about TGA proposing to remove andrographis.
“A new safety review found the herb can cause 'rapid and unpredictable' anaphylaxis, the most severe type of allergic reaction.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm or refute the claim about TGA's safety review findings on anaphylaxis.
“Anaphylaxis can happen even if you’ve previously taken andrographis without any problems.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm or refute the claim about anaphylaxis occurring in previously unaffected individuals.
“Currently, products containing this ingredient can be purchased at supermarkets and pharmacies without a prescription.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm or refute the claim about OTC availability of andrographis products.
“In 2024, the TGA said more than 80% of the adverse event reports it received were for multi-ingredient preparations that included both andrographis and echinacea.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia results unrelated to andrographis or TGA (e.g., 'Inch', 'Killed in action') provide no relevant evidence to confirm or refute the claim about echinacea combinations.
menu_book
menu_book
wikipedia
NEUTRAL
— The inch (symbol: in or ″) is a unit of length in the British Imperial and the United States customary systems of measurement. It is equal to 1/36 yard or 1/12 of a foot. Derived from the Roman un…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inch
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inch
menu_book
wikipedia
NEUTRAL
— Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United S…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killed_in_action
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killed_in_action
“The TGA first began receiving reports of anaphylaxis and hypersensitivity in 2005, from people who’d taken andrographis.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia results unrelated to andrographis or TGA (e.g., 'Transient global amnesia', 'Truevision TGA') provide no relevant evidence to confirm or refute the 2005 reports.
menu_book
wikipedia
NEUTRAL
— TGA or tga may refer to:
Tonga, an IOC code
Sagalla language, an ISO 639-3 code
Tengah Air Base, an IATA Airport Code
Tandy Graphics Adapter for the Tandy 1000 computer system
Tasman Global Access, a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TGA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TGA
menu_book
wikipedia
NEUTRAL
— Transient global amnesia (TGA) is a neurological disorder whose key defining characteristic is a temporary but almost total disruption of short-term memory with a range of problems accessing older mem…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transient_global_amnesia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transient_global_amnesia
menu_book
wikipedia
NEUTRAL
— Truevision TGA, often referred to as TARGA, is a raster graphics file format created by Truevision (now part of Avid Technology). It was the native format of TARGA and VISTA boards, which were the fir…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truevision_TGA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truevision_TGA
“In 2015, the TGA published a public alert after a safety review found andrographis can cause serious allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia results unrelated to andrographis or TGA (e.g., 'Transient global amnesia', 'Truevision TGA') provide no relevant evidence to confirm or refute the 2015 public alert.
menu_book
wikipedia
NEUTRAL
— TGA or tga may refer to:
Tonga, an IOC code
Sagalla language, an ISO 639-3 code
Tengah Air Base, an IATA Airport Code
Tandy Graphics Adapter for the Tandy 1000 computer system
Tasman Global Access, a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TGA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TGA
menu_book
wikipedia
NEUTRAL
— Transient global amnesia (TGA) is a neurological disorder whose key defining characteristic is a temporary but almost total disruption of short-term memory with a range of problems accessing older mem…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transient_global_amnesia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transient_global_amnesia
menu_book
wikipedia
NEUTRAL
— Truevision TGA, often referred to as TARGA, is a raster graphics file format created by Truevision (now part of Avid Technology). It was the native format of TARGA and VISTA boards, which were the fir…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truevision_TGA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truevision_TGA
“In 2019 there was a sudden rise in adverse effects reported, with a large number of allergic and anaphylatic reactions.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm or refute the claim about 2015 anaphylaxis reports.
“The new, mandatory labelling was rolled out between December 2019 and May 2020.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm or refute the claim about 2015 anaphylaxis reports.
“Despite this labelling, the TGA recorded another spike in reported adverse events from May 2020.”
PENDING
“In June 2024 the TGA received a report that someone had died from anaphylaxis after taking andrographis.”
PENDING
“Another case involved drug-induced liver injury.”
PENDING
“There were significant adverse event spikes in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025, involving significant numbers of allergic reactions.”
PENDING
“The TGA has proposed to remove andrographis from its list of permitted ingredients.”
PENDING
“There is a gap in empirical evidence to support these benefits.”
PENDING
info
Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.