Latest St. John’s Wort News Not Depressing
Used for centuries to treat everything from burns and wounds
to malaria and sleep disorders, St. John’s wort is perhaps
best known as a treatment for mild to moderate depression.
While it is not prescribed for such purposes in the United
States, it is widely prescribed to treat less-severe depression
in Europe, an area of the world that has also conducted a
couple of dozen studies on the herb that back up its reputation
as an effective mild/moderate antidepressant. A recent study
published in the online edition of The British Medical Journal
seems to indicate that St. John’s wort can also be effective
in treating more severe depression, with many fewer side effects
than traditional antidepressant medications.
The study in question was conducted by the Germany-based
Dr. Willmar Schwabe Pharmaceuticals and involved 301 volunteers
aged 18-70. The patients were first “weeded out”
for placebo effect when they were given a placebo for a seven
day period. Those that showed improvement in their Hamilton
depression scores (a system to gauge a person’s depression
level – 10 or lower is healthy, 14 and up into the 20’s
indicates mild to severe depression) were dropped from the
study, leaving 251 volunteers in all. All remaining had a
Hamilton depression score of at least 22.
The actual study itself pitted the St. John’s wort
extract hypericum (marketed, it should be noted, by the study’s
authors) against the medication paroxetine, more commonly
known as Paxil. The two were randomized in the study group,
who took their respective medications for a total of six weeks.
At the end of the second week, those who’s Hamilton
scores had not decreased by 20% had their dosages doubled.
At the end of the six week study, it was found that those
taking the St. John’s wort/hypericum had an average
decrease of 14 points on the Hamilton scale, while those taking
the Paxil/paroxetine had an average decrease of only 11. Additionally,
those taking the hypericum had much lesser occurrences (55%
to 76%) of side effects such as diarrhea, nausea, dizziness,
sweating and upper abdominal pain.
There is some caution to be noted here, though. This is the
first study to show any kind of a link between St. John’s
wort and severe depression – past studies have shown
no such link. There is also no way to determine exactly how
much hypericum you’re putting into your system. Commercial
St. John wort teas, capsules and extracts can be easily found,
but are notoriously inconsistent in exactly how much hypericum
they contain.
Most importantly, a number of studies exist that seem to
indicate that St. John’s wort can adversely affect or
nullify the effects of a number of different types of medications,
including those used to treat HIV, cancer and even anti-rejection
drugs used after organ transplantation. Make sure you check
with your doctor before trying this treatment method yourself.
Find St. John’s Wort Online
You can buy St. John’s wort teas, capsules and extracts
online at a number of different sites. We recommend the following:
