Possible carcinogenic potential of Mimosa Pudica seeds and various dyes

Indian herbs have been used for medicinal purposes since ancient times and masses of people still rely only on them to get cured of many ailments. However, very little knowledge has been sought about safety in using these herbs and thus rationalization of their use has become need of an hour. Present study has been undertaken to investigate the safety of Mimosa pudica seeds which have been utilized to treat various diseases.Considering the aesthetic sense, foods have been coloured naturally as well as artificially since long. The bad side of their toxicity is however forgotten many a times. Millions of people are also using hair dyes to improve their appearance and colourful festivals like 'Holi' (festival of colours in India) has no limits on sprinkling and colouring the body, thus leading to health and ecological problems. In present study, the possible carcinogenicity of the synthetic food colours, hair dyes, and 'Holi' colour is tested through genotoxicity on Salmonella typhimurium TA100 strain.