Understanding Complementary Medicines

Complementary medicines are therapeutic goods that are often derived from traditional medicine practices. You may also have heard them called ‘herbal’ medicines or ‘traditional’ medicines.

They include medicines with ingredients such as vitamins, minerals, plant or herbal material, microorganisms and homoeopathic preparations. They can usually be purchased from supermarkets, health stores and pharmacies without seeing a doctor or pharmacist.

However, just because a medicine is available without a prescription, or claims to be ‘natural’ or ‘healthy’, doesn’t mean it’s safe for you. There is a risk of side effects and health problems when taking any medicine, including complementary medicines. If your doctor prescribes a medicine to you, you should always tell them about any medicines you are already taking.

This includes any complementary medicines. Additionally, before undergoing surgery, make sure to tell your doctor about any herbal supplements or other medicines you are using. This is because there may be a risk of the complementary medicine interacting with your prescribed medicines or increasing the risk of you bleeding during or after surgery.

In general, all medicines have to be included in the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG) and must show their ARTG number, (starting with AUST) on their medicine label to be able to be legally sold in Australia.

We regulate most complementary medicines differently to prescription medicines. Most complementary medicines are listed medicines and are considered lower risk. These medicines have an AUST L number on the front of their label. 

Listed medicines are not pre-market evaluated by the TGA. This means they aren’t assessed by us before they are allowed to be sold. However, we regulate the safety and quality of these medicines by:

• limiting them to only use pre-approved low-risk ingredients
• allowing them to only have pre-approved low-risk indications (health claims)
• requiring them to be made under quality manufacturing principles.  

The person or company responsible for a complementary medicine (the ‘sponsor’) needs to have the required evidence that their medicine is safe for its intended use. We review, test and investigate listed medicines to ensure they meet regulatory requirements.

We also monitor Australian and international safety data to ensure complementary medicines aren’t causing health issues. If a health or safety issue is identified, we examine it and act if required, such as removing the product from sale.

You should also be careful about taking medicines that are advertised or promoted online. This includes those on social media sites, such as Instagram and TikTok. Some of these products are not approved in Australia. They can cause serious health problems, especially if they are taken without talking to your doctor.

When buying complementary medicines look for the ‘AUST’ number on the medicine label to make sure it is approved in Australia.

When it comes to complementary medicines:

• all medicines have risks even if they claim to be natural or healthy
• complementary medicines can:
  • interact with other medicines you are taking
  • have side effects
  • have an effect on medical procedures, such as increasing the risk of bleeding
• your doctor needs to know about all the medicines you are taking
• some medicines advertised online and on social media may be unsafe
• look for an ‘AUST’ number on a medicine label to make sure it is approved in Australia
• report a problem or side effect you experience to any medicine to us.

Want to know more about how we regulate medicines? Go to www.tga.gov.au/how-we-regulate.

Authorised by the Australian Government, Canberra