## 4 Discussion
This study's findings indicated that these extracts exhibit relatively strong antioxidant potential and can therefore be used as a natural source of antioxidants, offering the possibility of preparing high-value products helpful in the prevention of various oxidative stress-related conditions. Studies using the Folin-Ciocalteu technique have shown that the TPC in dried birch (_Betula pendula_) leaf extract is 128.45 mg GAE/lg. The investigators of this study assert that the elevated total phenolic content in birch extract is essential for significant antioxidant activity [16]. The total polyphenol content of ethanolic extracts from leaves, buds, and bark of _Cinnamomum cassia_ were 6.313-9.534 g GA/100 g dry weight, with bark extracts having the highest polyphenol content (9.534 g GA/100 g DW), followed by the leaf (8.854 g GA/100 g dry weight) and bud (6.313 g GA/100 g dry weight). In contrast, 95% ethanolic extracts from _Cinnamomum cassia_ leaves had a TPC (8.854 g/100 g dry weight) about twice as high as the total flavonoid content (3.348 g/100 g dry weight) [54]. Our study showed that ethanolic preparations of _Betula pendula_ leaves were characterized by more than five times higher polyphenol content (52 \(\pm\) 2 mg GAE/g dry raw material) than _Cinnamum cassia_ leaf extracts (Table 5). In the case of 50% ethanolic extracts of Chinese _Cinnamum cassia_ leaves, the content of polyphenols (which are secondary metabolites that show free radical scavenging and peroxide degrading capacity) was 1558.7 ug GAE/g dry weight, with a total flavonoid content of 981.1 ug/g dry weight [49; 55; 56; 57]. Recently, preparations with anti-ageing, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties derived from selected plant raw materials have become increasingly popular. Plant extracts containing phenolic compounds have been shown to reverse antimicrobial resistance and have a synergistic impact when paired with routinely used chemotherapeutics [38]. The authors of this paper postulate [58] that phenolic acids contained in plant extracts are likely to interact with antibiotics [58]. By examining the antimicrobial activity of antibiotics (erythromycin, clindamycin, and cefoxitin) alone and in an antibiotic-phenolic combo (using caffe acid as the phenolic compound) against strains of _Staphylococcus aureus_, it was shown that the interaction of caffe acid with antibiotics increased the antimicrobial activity of the antibiotic-phenolic combination [57; 59]. Other studies of the antimicrobial activity of caffe acid, EDHB, and catechin hydrate (CH) showed that it was the polyphenic compound that exhibited the strongest antimicrobial activity and the greatest synergistic effect with antibiotics, which may be due to the fact that caffe acid contains a propene side chain that affects the change in polarity [57; 58; 59]. Polyphenols' structures include phenolic hydroxyl groups, which means that they have a high affinity for binding to proteins and lipids in the cell membrane and thus can inhibit microbial enzymes while increasing their affinity for cytoplasmic membranes, thereby enhancing antimicrobial activity. The current research demonstrates that preparation is a promising source of effective, safe, and inexpensive compounds with antimicrobial potential, opening a wide range of possibilities for new antimicrobial therapies. The antimicrobial activity of the obtained preparation results from, among other things, the presence of phenolic acids (Figure 1), especially Cha and GA found in many plant species with proven antimicrobial activity. ChA is a component in cosmetics (dermatological) and pharmaceutical preparations, providing an alternative for strategies to combat microbial pathogenesis and chronic infections caused by microorganisms (such as bacteria, fungi,and viruses) [60]. GA is a bioactive phytochemical compound, and its derivatives are often present in cosmetic preparations and can be considered'safe' and 'natural' in the context of cosmetic manufacturing [60].