Posted by bleauberry on December 21, 2010, at 17:53:34
In reply to Re: Non-prescription therapy for anxiety (GAD): ideas?, posted by Melanie-00 on December 15, 2010, at 20:09:16
> I've crossed passionflower off of my list for now. Not comfortable with the level of research backing this herb. (See my other thread on this board - titled "High-quality, Standardized Passionflower in the US".) But in the course of looking more into passionflower, I came across this abstract, which would seem to give quite a bit of support to the experience of bleauberry, as discussed in an earlier post on this thread.
>
> From: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18066140/
>
> Can J Physiol Pharmacol. 2007 Sep;85(9):933-42.
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> Effects of traditionally used anxiolytic botanicals on enzymes of the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) system.
> Awad R, Levac D, Cybulska P, Merali Z, Trudeau VL, Arnason JT.
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> Ottawa-Carleton Institute of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N6N5, Canada.
>
> Abstract
> In Canada, the use of botanical natural health products (NHPs) for anxiety disorders is on the rise, and a critical evaluation of their safety and efficacy is required. The purpose of this study was to determine whether commercially available botanicals directly affect the primary brain enzymes responsible for gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) metabolism. Anxiolytic plants may interact with either glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) or GABA transaminase (GABA-T) and ultimately influence brain GABA levels and neurotransmission. Two in vitro rat brain homogenate assays were developed to determine the inhibitory concentrations (IC50) of aqueous and ethanolic plant extracts. Approximately 70% of all extracts that were tested showed little or no inhibitory effect (IC50 values greater than 1 mg/mL) and are therefore unlikely to affect GABA metabolism as tested. The aqueous extract of Melissa officinalis (lemon balm) exhibited the greatest inhibition of GABA-T activity (IC50 = 0.35 mg/mL). Extracts from Centella asiatica (gotu kola) and Valeriana officinalis (valerian) stimulated GAD activity by over 40% at a dose of 1 mg/mL. On the other hand, both Matricaria recutita (German chamomile) and Humulus lupulus (hops) showed significant inhibition of GAD activity (0.11-0.65 mg/mL). Several of these species may therefore warrant further pharmacological investigation. The relation between enzyme activity and possible in vivo mode of action is discussed.
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>These kinds of studies are basically useless to you and me. They do not predict what will happen in your body or mine. They usually say what happened in rats or mice or lab dishes, which are very different than humans brains, and more especially very different from diseased human brains.
Here is an example. There are a handful of botanicals proving very effective in Lyme disease. However, there are ZERO studies on any of them in Lyme. There are a lot of studies and centuries of proof in real practice that they are effective against similar shaped bacteria. We're talking spirochetes. Wormlike bacteria with a tail basically. Since these herbs are effective against Leprosy and Syphillis, both caused by spirochetes, the assumption was that maybe they would be effective against Lyme spirochetes too. But zero proof. Anyone who said NO to those herbs because there wasn't enough scientific evidence would still be sick and getting worse by the year.
In our basic rudimentary limited knowledge of the brain, we tend to associate anxiety with GABA. In my view, that is grossly in error. That assumes we know more than we do. Anxiety comes from multiple avenues. Certainly the GABA avenues can calm some of it down, but to assume it is the heart of the machine is wrong I think.
The studies on chamomile, yeah, it is indeed a calming herb. But also to many who have tried it, it aggravates depression. That is the reason I did not include it in my list. I included herbs that I know for a fact work without worsening or causing depression. I don't know how they work and I don't care.
The Chinese use medicines they've used for thousands of years and they don't know how they work, only that they do work. That's the difference between Eastern medicine and Western medicine. In Western medicine, we are not comfortable with a treatment unless we can explain it. The Chinese explain it only symbolically, not scientificially, such as "clears heat" or "relieves dampness". They see psychiatric disorders originating in the kidney, liver, spleen, and gut, not the brain. In contrast, we totally ignore the entire body as if it were somehow unattached to the brain and can't possibly have any impact on it.
I'm just saying. Don't base your decisions on whatever science you can find. Just try stuff. You'll find something that works really well and agrees with you. You will likely never know how it works, why it works, or what it is doing. And quite frankly, it doesn't matter.
Passionflower may not be a great one for you. Or it could be a miracle. No study is going to tell you that. A personal trial will.
poster:bleauberry
thread:973355
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20101202/msgs/974229.html