Review on Potential Applications of Indian Traditional Medicines to be used for Human Space Mission

With the advancement of technology, the pursuit of human exploration in space is going to be perpetual. Today, various space agencies across the globe are planning for the human-crewed Mars mission. However, the space environment consists of hazardous radiation apart from microgravity, which puts an astronaut at risk. Living cells do have a defense mechanism against ionizing radiation by balancing redox potential. Exposure to high energy space radiation with low doses can generate super active free radicals and induce extreme oxidative stress within cells, leading to amplified inflammatory responses, which ultimately lead to cell death. India is rich in its traditional medicinal knowledge; however, it has not been used effectively for health-related issues during short- and long-term human space programs. This review bridges the gap between the use of Indian traditional knowledge to mitigate health problems in the space environment and to explore the usefulness of traditional Indian formulations as a novel countermeasure against the ionizing radiation of space. Reported data of in-vitro, in-vivo, non-clinical, and clinical studies were collected, compiled, and analyzed from the available reported research. Polyherbal traditional formulations have the potential to be economically viable and clinically admissible radioprotectors. However, research data needs to be generated and evaluated to check its efficacy.