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Formulation

Tulsi-based syrups

Branded Ayurvedic cough syrups that contain tulsi, such as Honitus, Koflet, Kofol and Swasari. Each is a different mix.

Also written: Tulsi syrup,Tulsi cough syrup,Holy basil syrup,तुलसी सिरप

Pending review

The short answer

There is no single tulsi syrup. Each brand is its own mix, and none follows one official recipe. Dabur Honitus has tulsi, mulethi, vasaka, pippali and other herbs in honey. Himalaya Koflet lists holy basil, honey and licorice. Charak Kofol lists tulsi with five other herbs. Patanjali's Divya Swasari Pravahi has sixteen herbs. We have not yet found a published trial of any of these syrups.

Swasari Pravahi also contains ephedra (somlata, Ephedra gerardiana), and about 4 g of sugar in every 5 ml. Most of these syrups contain mulethi (licorice), and tulsi and mulethi each have interaction pages, including blood thinners, diabetes and blood pressure medicines. Read the label, and show it to your doctor if you take regular medicines or have diabetes, high blood pressure or heart disease.

What is in it

These are proprietary products with no shared formulary recipe, so there is no single ingredient table. What each label lists is in the safety notes below. Check the label of the bottle you have.

What it is used for

  • No formulary entry covers this group of branded syrups, so there is no official list of uses. We do not repeat the makers' claims.[1]

What the evidence says

We have not found a study of this formulation itself that we could check. That says nothing either way about whether it works.

Safety notes

  • Ephedra: Divya Swasari Pravahi lists somlata (Ephedra gerardiana, branches), 1.83 g in each 250 ml. Ephedra is not tulsi and needs its own review. If you have high blood pressure or heart disease, or take heart medicines, show this label to your doctor before using it.[4]
  • Sugar: Swasari Pravahi lists 201.68 g of sugar in each 250 ml, about 4 g in every 5 ml. This matters if you have diabetes.[4]
  • Honey: Dabur Honitus lists 1.75 g of honey in every 5 ml, and Himalaya Koflet lists honey among its key ingredients. The Honitus label gives a children's dose; ask your child's doctor before giving any honey syrup to a young child.[1]
  • Mulethi (licorice) is in Honitus, Swasari Pravahi and Kofol, and licorice is in Koflet. See Mulethi and blood pressure medicines, Mulethi with water pills and digoxin, and Mulethi and steroid medicines.[3]
  • Tulsi has its own pages, including Tulsi and blood thinners like warfarin and Tulsi and metformin.[2]
  • Honitus and Swasari Pravahi also contain pippali (chhoti pipal on the Swasari label). See Pippali and phenytoin.[1]

Who makes it

Sold in India by makers including Dabur (Honitus), Himalaya (Koflet), Charak (Kofol), Patanjali (Divya Swasari Pravahi). We list names so you can match your bottle to this page. We do not recommend or sell any brand.

Withheld until review

Dose, anupana (what to take it with), duration, contraindications, and pregnancy and children's notes appear only after a vaidya on our medical board has reviewed this page. Until then, ask the vaidya who prescribed it. Why we hold these back

Questions people ask

Is Honitus the same as Koflet or Kofol?

No. Honitus lists tulsi, mulethi, banafsha, kantkari and talispatra with smaller amounts of sunthi, pippali, vasaka, shati and mint extract, in honey. Koflet lists holy basil, honey and licorice. Kofol lists tulsi, shunthi, yashtimadhu, vasa, bibhitaki and haridra.[1][2][3]

Which tulsi syrup contains ephedra?

Of the labels we checked, Patanjali's Divya Swasari Pravahi, which lists somlata (Ephedra gerardiana). The others we checked did not list it, but we have not seen every brand.[4]

Related

Interaction

Tulsi and blood thinners like warfarin

A man on warfarin had a high INR after a herbal kadha that included tulsi. Tulsi's own role is not clear, and it has not been studied alone.

Interaction

Tulsi and metformin

Holy basil leaves lowered blood sugar in a 1996 trial in type 2 diabetes. With metformin, sugar could fall further. The pair has not been studied.

Interaction

Mulethi (licorice) and blood pressure medicines

Glycyrrhizin in mulethi raises blood pressure and lowers potassium. It can work against blood pressure medicines, as a regulator and a case report show.

Formulation

Sitopaladi Churna

A classical cough powder, about half sugar by weight. It contains pippali; piperine, a pepper compound, raised phenytoin levels in a small study.

Sources

  1. Dabur. Honitus cough syrup, product page with composition per 5 ml. Opened 4 November 2026.
  2. Himalaya Wellness. Koflet syrup, product page with key ingredients. Opened 4 November 2026.
  3. Charak. Kofol syrup, product page with key ingredients. Opened 4 November 2026.
  4. Patanjali Ayurved. Divya Swasari Pravahi, product page with composition per 250 ml. Opened 4 November 2026.

Updated 4 November 2026

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