Natural Coloring Agents for Fibers and Their Medicinal Values: A Review.

Natural coloring agents obtained from plants, insects, animals, and minerals are used to color faces, hairs, textiles, and food preparations for centuries. This current review explained the role of traditional natural coloring agents in ancient times. It encompasses the advantages of natural dyes over synthetic dyes, their classification, and medicinal properties. The objective of review is to provide a retrospective study of natural colors for fibers based on their therapeutic potential. For the preparation of this manuscript, all the relevant information was gathered from accessible and inaccessible resources (Web, Books, Thesis, etc.). The information included in the article was downloaded from scientific engines and databases (Google Scholar, Web of Science, Scifinder, Science Direct, Publons, Wiley Online Library, PubMed, Taylor & Francis online and Scopus indexed journals) using different keywords. Natural coloring agents like Carica papaya, curcumin, betalain, quercetin, lycopene, lawsone, crocin, juglone, anthocyanin, and several others are reported to have medicinal values. The present review summarizes the application of natural dyes for coloring fibers and pharmaceutical preparations is beneficial over synthetic dyes based on their additional therapeutic effects. The use of synthetic dyes for fibers can cause toxic effects as it contain heavy metals and causes pollution and damage the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]