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Bacopa and Anxiety
In 1980, a one month
limited clinical trial of 35 patients with diagnosed anxiety
disorders was conducted by Singh and Singh. Patients were given 35 ml
twice daily of Brahmi syrup (the equivalent of 12 grams of dry crude
extract of Bacopa) in divided doses. All patients exhibited marked
improvements in levels of anxiety, levels of disability and mental
fatigue and enhanced their memory and attention span. In addition,
body weight, along with a decrease in respiration rate and systolic
blood pressure (Singh
RH, Singh L. Studies on the anti-anxiety effect of the Medyha
Rasayana drug, Brahmi (Bacopa monniera Wettst.)--Part 1. J Res Ayur
Siddha 1980;1:133-148).
A 1998 study involving
rats who were given a 25% bacoside A dose of Bacopa extract showed
that anxiolytic activity was enhanced as much as if the drug
Lorazepam were administered. The treatment with Bacopa extract
exhibited none of the side effects of Lorazepam, such as amnesia
(Bhattacharya
SK, Ghosal S. Anxiolytic activity of a standardized extract of Bacopa
monniera in an experimental study. Phytomedicine 1998;5:77-82)
Research
Abstracts
Herbal
remedies for anxiety - a systematic review of controlled clinical
trials.
*
Ernst E.
Complementary
Medicine Peninsula Medical School, Universities of Exeter Plymouth,
UK. edzard.ernst@pms.ac.uk
Anxiety
is a prominent indication for herbal medicine. This systematic review
was therefore aimed at summarising the evidence for or against the
anxiolytic efficacy of such treatments. Six databases were searched
for all randomised clinical trials testing herbal monopreparations in
the alleviation of anxiety. Seven such studies and one systematic
review were located. Eight different herbals were studied. The herbal
medicines, which, according to these data are associated with
anxiolytic activity in humans, are Piper methysticum and Bacopa
monniera. Only for kava were independent replications available. It
was concluded that there is a lack of rigorous studies in this area
and that only kava has been shown beyond reasonable doubt to have
anxiolytic effects in humans.
PMID:
16428031 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
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