The flowers and leaves of St. John's wort contain active ingredients such as hyperforin. St. John's wort is available as a supplement in teas, tablets, liquids and topical preparations.
Is it OK to use St Johns wort?
St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum) is a flowering plant.The flowers are used to make liquid extracts, pills, and teas. The popular herbal therapy is often used to ease symptoms of depression.
What exactly does St. John's Wort do?
St. John's Wort is an herbal antidepressant commonly used in the traditional pharmacopeia. The plant relieves nervous agitation and depression. The substances that contain (hyperforin and hypericin) are probably responsible. However, it is not yet known precisely how these products influence the psyche.
What is St. John's Wort and its benefits?
The oily extract of St. John's Wort soothes the skin, relieves irritations, accelerates healing, and moisturizes dry, irritated skin . St. John's Wort is also said to be effective against irritable bladder and bedwetting. St. John's Wort benefits appear throughout the archives of traditional German medicine for some of the following.
What are the traditional uses of St. John's Wort?
John's wort?
- Greek and Roman medical sources report the use of St. John's wort as a topical treatment for healing wounds and for treating kidney stones, sciatica, menstrual problems and snakebites.
- During the Middle Ages, St. ...
- In North America, the Cherokee used St. ...
- Physicians in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries used St. ...
See more
Who should not take St John's wort?
It can also interfere with anti-rejection medications, heart medications, and some drugs used for heart disease, HIV, and cancer. One 2011 study indicated the herbal supplement can reduce the effectiveness of Xanax, an anxiety medication. Wolf noted that pregnant or breastfeeding women should avoid St. John's wort.
What are the risks of taking St John's wort?
St. John's wort may cause increased sensitivity to sunlight, especially when taken in large doses. Other side effects can include insomnia, anxiety, dry mouth, dizziness, gastrointestinal symptoms, fatigue, headache, or sexual dysfunction.
What are the benefits of taking St John's wort?
What are the potential benefits of using St. John's wort?Reduction in symptoms of depression.Reduction in menopausal symptoms.Assistance with wound healing (when applied to the skin as a lotion)
What minerals are in St John's wort?
Major constituents of St. John's wort aerial parts are hyperforin, hypericin, pseudohypericin, rutin, hyperoside, isoquercitrin, quercitrin, chlorogenic acid and their derivatives (Agapouda et al. 2019), found in different kinds of extracts and consuming teas (Veljković et al.
What does St John's wort do to the brain?
Research suggests that St John's wort works in a similar way to standard antidepressant medication, by increasing the activity of brain chemicals such as serotonin and noradrenaline that are thought to play an important part in regulating our mood.
Does St John's wort make you gain weight?
John's wort causes weight gain directly. Still, a person might experience weight loss or weight gain after taking St. John's wort. This is because it could help improve symptoms of depression, a condition often associated with appetite and body weight changes.
Is St John's wort hard on the liver?
Despite wide spread use, there have been no convincing case reports linking use of St. John's wort and hepatotoxicity. In controlled trials, St. John's wort has not been linked to serum enzyme elevations or to clinically apparent liver injury.
What happens when you stop taking St John's wort?
John's wort causing withdrawal symptoms is mostly anecdotal. Some people report symptoms like sickness, dizziness and anxiety after they stop taking it abruptly. To be safe, it's generally recommended to slowly reduce your dosage before discontinuing your use of St. John's wort.
How does St John's wort make you feel?
St. John's wort is thought to work by keeping the brain from using up neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine, GABA, and norepinephrine. As a result, the neurotransmitters are more effectively used in the brain. This can have an antidepressant and overall feel-good effect in the brain.
Is St John's wort an anti-inflammatory?
Abstract. St. John's wort (SJW) has been described to show anti-inflammatory properties due to its inhibitory effects on the expression of pro-inflammatory genes like cyclooxygenase-2, interleukin-6, and inducible nitric-oxide synthase (iNOS).
How quickly does St John's wort start working?
John's wort is used in the short-term treatment of mild to moderate depression. It may take up to 2 to 3 weeks for St. John's wort to improve depressive symptoms. Not all preparations of St.
Does St John's wort balance hormones?
Top reasons why you may benefit from taking St John's Wort: May assist relieve of mild anxiety, worry about little things. May assist with hormonal balance, such as during premenopausal period and PMT.
Before Taking This Medicine
Many drugs can interact with St. John's wort, and serious drug interactions can occur when certain medicines are used at the same time. Do not take...
How Should I Take St. John's Wort?
When considering the use of herbal supplements, seek the advice of your doctor. You may also consider consulting a practitioner who is trained in t...
What Happens If I Miss A Dose?
Skip the missed dose if it is almost time for your next scheduled dose. Do not use extra St. John's wort to make up the missed dose.
What Should I Avoid While Taking St. John's Wort?
Do not take St. John's wort together with other herbal/health supplements without medical advice.Avoid exposure to sunlight or tanning beds. St. Jo...
St. John's Wort Side Effects
Get emergency medical help if you have signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficult breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.Al...
What Other Drugs Will Affect St. John's Wort?
Many drugs can interact with St. John's wort, and some drugs should not be used together. This includes prescription and over-the-counter medicines...
How does st. John's wort work?
St. John's Wort: The active constituents in st. John's wort -- hypericin and hyperforin -- appear to modulate the effects of serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, and may inhibit reuptake of these neurotransmitters. The serotonin activities are thought to be the most important in in working with depression. Hyperforin also induces some cyp450 enzymes, leading to reduced concentrations of certain drugs.
Can the medicine st johns wort work?
Depends: At johns wort is not a medicine, it is a supplement. It has shown to improve depression in people with mild depression. Please see a psychiatrist for further evaluation of your depression and appropriate treatment.
How should I take St. John's wort?
When considering the use of herbal supplements, seek the advice of your doctor. You may also consider consulting a practitioner who is trained in the use of herbal/health supplements .
What other drugs will affect St. John's wort?
John's wort, and some drugs should not be used together. This includes prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal products. Not all possible interactions are listed in this medication guide. Tell your doctor about all medicines you use, and those you start or stop using during your treatment with St. John's wort. Give a list of all your medicines to any healthcare provider who treats you.
What are the compounds in SJW?
Extracts of SJW contain several classes of lipophilic compounds with demonstrated therapeutic value, including phloroglucinol derivatives and oils. Hyperforin, isolated in concentrations of 2-4.5% (Chatterjee, Bhattacharya et al. 1998; Greeson, Sanford, and Monti 2001), is a prenylated phloroglucinol expanded into a bicyclo nonaendionol (2,1), substituted with several lipophilic isoprene chains (Nicolaou, Carenzi, and Jeso 2005). Hyperforin is unstable in the presence of both light and oxygen (Liu et al. 2005). Despite numerous attempts by various researchers, total synthesis of hyperforin has not been accomplished to date (Nicolaou, Carenzi, and Jeso 2005). Other phloroglucinols include adhyperforin (0.2%-1.9%), furohyperforin, and other hyperforin analogs (Hahn 1992; Barnes, Anderson, and Phillipson 2001; Greeson, Sanford, and Monti 2001; DerMarderosian and Beutler 2002). Essential oils are found in concentrations ranging from 0.05% to 0.9% (Greeson, Sanford, and Monti 2001). They consist mainly of mono- and sesquiterpenes, specifically 2-methyl-octane, n-nonane, α- and β-pinene, α-terpineol, geranil, and trace amounts of myrecene, limonene, and caryophyllene, among others (Hahn 1992; Reuter 1998).
What are the flavonoids in SJW?
Flavonoids include flavonols (kaempferol, quercetin), flavones (luteolin), glycosides (hyperside, isoquercitrin, and rutin), biflavones (biapi-genin), amentoflavone, myricetin, hyperin, oligomeric proanthocyanadins, and miquelianin, all of which are biogenetically related (Reuter 1998; Barnes, Anderson, and Phillipson 2001). Rutin concentration is reported at 1.6% (Barnes, Anderson, and Phillipson 2001).
What are the constituents of H. perforatum?
The most common classes include naphthodianthrones, phloroglucinols, and flavonoids (such as phenylpropanes, flavonol glycosides, and biflavones), as well as essential oils (Bombardelli and Morazzoni 1995; Reuter 1998; Barnes, Anderson, and Phillipson 2001; DerMarderosian and Beutler 2002). Two major active constituents have been identified: hypericin (a naphtodianthrone; Figure 11.2a) and hyperforin (a phloroglucinol; Figure 11.2b). However, roughly 20% of extractable compounds are considered biologically active (Staffeldt et al. 1994; Nahrstedt and Butterwick 1997; Erdelmeier 1998).
What is SJW used for?
SJW is currently valued for treating depression and other mood disorders. Products containing SJW in the form of tablets, capsules, teas, and tinctures accounted for an estimated US$6 billion in Europe in the late 1990s (Ernst 1999; Greeson, Sanford, and Monti 2001). In the United States, annual sales reached a peak of US$315 million in 1998, but declined to approximately US$60 million by 2006 (Tilburt, Emanuel, and Miller 2008). SJW has been the subject of several pharmacopoeias and monographs, including the British Herbal Pharmacopoeia (1996), the European Scientific Cooperative on Phytotherapy (ESCOP 1996), the American Herbal Pharmacopeia (1997), and the European Pharmacopoeia (European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines (EDQM) 2000), among others (Parfitt 1999; Barnes, Anderson, and Phillipson 2001).
Why are SJW trials criticized?
Barnes, Anderson, and Phillipson (2001)noted that the trials comparing SJW to synthetic antidepressants were criticized because the dosages of the latter were unrealistically low. Spira (2001)pointed to the study's usage of somewhat outdated tricyclics and the short (6 week) duration of the analysis.
Is SJW a dietary supplement?
In the United States, SJW , like all herbal remedies, is listed as a dietary supplement by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Therefore, it is not subject to the strict scrutiny for safety and efficacy that standard pharmaceutical drugs are required to pass (Clement et al. 2006). The FDA mandates that all herbal remedies contain a disclaimer informing the consumer that any claims about the medicine’s therapeutic value have not been evaluated by that agency.
Is SJW a herbal remedy?
The widespread popularity of SJW’s use as an herbal remedy results from studies that appear to verify its efficacy in treating a variety of diseases, especially depression. In turn, the herb’s use has generated widespread interest among scientists seeking to firmly evaluate its effectiveness. Such studies include analyses on the effects of SJW extracts on isolated tissue samples, studies using animal models, and clinical analyses and meta-analyses of humans given SJW extracts.
L-Citrulline
L-citrulline is another compound studied in sexual health and its role as a key precursor of the nitric oxide cycle is well-studied. Nitric oxide is produced in blood vessels throughout the body and is the principal agent in getting and maintaining an erection .
Hyperforin
St. John’s wort (SJW) extracts, prepared from the aerial parts of Hypericum perforatum, contain numerous pharmacologically active ingredients, including aphthodianthrones (e.g., hypericin and its derivatives) and phloroglucinols derivatives (e.g., hyperforin).
What Is St. John’s Wort?
Well-known throughout both the naturopathic and medical communities, St. John’s Wort possesses a laundry list of benefits with a surprisingly safe herbal makeup. While its uses are widespread, it’s most famous for its ability to treat mental and emotional ailments.
Why is wort called wort?
It was named after St. John the Baptist as the flower bloomed around his birthday. In Old English “wort” means “plant.”. Today, it’s been successfully cultivated in other countries, including the United States, Russia and China. Fairly easy to care for, it’s a common favorite among backyard gardeners.
