St.John's Wort and Depression

St. John’s wort ( Hypericum perforatum) is a herbaceous member of the Clusiaceae family of plants. Its origins can be traced to Europe and Asia and it’s considered a weed in many places. Although used to treat skin and other conditions, in the United States, St.John’s wort is mainly used to treat depression. Depression is usually attributed to low dopamine levels in the brain, which causes apathy, anxiety, and depression among other things. Coincidentally, St. John’s wort contains a compound called hypericin which is considered to possibly increase dopamine levels in the body. For this reason some choose St.John’s wort supplements. Additionally, taking prescription drugs may not only result undesired side effects, it can be more costly as well.

As far as its efficacy in treating depression, there are definitely studies that support this idea. In a study conducted by a German university, 332 human participants were given 650 mg and 1200 mg doses of St. John’s wort extract for a period of 6 weeks. Another group was given the placebo. The results showed those given the extract exhibited improvement in mood, as compared to those given the placebo. The people given 1200 mg doses showed the greatest improvement. This study, however ,was based on the Hamilton Scale for Depression, which basically uses a rating system to measure depression. No chemical and neurological studies were conducted to measure actual dopamine levels. There are, however, other studies available that coincide with the results of this particular study. In the end the best thing to do is to try for yourself and see if it works for you.

If you’ve wanted to try St. John’s wort, different forms of supplements can be found online or in health stores. Whether it’s in capsule, extract or the dried herb form, the plant parts contained in the supplements are usually the aerial parts. If taken in tea form you will find it is very bitter tasting. Adding more water, however, will help this effect .If you are trying to enhance your mood, try to find a supplement with a higher dosage.

Kava

Kava (Piper methysticum) is an herbal plant from the piperacea family, originating in the Pacific. The plant has been traditionally used for its calming properties. As a result it has been increasing in popularity in the West. Although traditionally made by regurgitating the chewed up root into coconut water, in the West kava is taken in tea or capsule form acquired directly from manual or mechanical grinding of the plant.

Studies performed on kava categorize it as a psychoactive plant that has shown to have anxiolytic effects. The effects do not alter cognition so people are still able to function normally. Because of these properties many people suffering from mild anxiety choose to take kava supplements.

I have tried kava in Yogi Stress Relief tea. However, it contains a mix of mainly kava root, with stevia, carob, licorice root and other ingredients. It is very delicious tasting this way as well as relaxing. I have heard another account from someone who’s had pure kava and this person said it wasn’t as tasty this way. So I would definitely recommend a mix like the Yogi tea for anyone who wants to start using kava.

Herb gardening

Starting an herb garden is very simple. You don't need much space or materials. Just figure out which herbs you enjoy and start planting. I don't have a big yard, instead I have a paved back area so I have a garden made up of pots. Right now I am enjoying my rosemary, oregano, basil, parsley , and peppermint. Although, the mint is not looking so great. Other things that I love such as cilantro I can not grow right now in the South Florida weather where I live. I will have to wait a few months and buy it from the supermarket in the mean time. I have also grown thyme which is yummy in salads. I find that thyme and basil start out pretty good but tend to get pests and disease after a few months, so these two are fairly high maintenance herbs. Rosemary and oregano are fairly low maintenance and grow pretty nicely most of the year. You can let the oregano flower and you will have little bees dining everyday in your garden. When rosemary flowers it looks especially beautiful with little purple flowers ( you must trim them regularly to encourage flowering) that attract adorable lady bugs. In order to start your herb garden you can buy seeds of the herbs you want to plant, or you can plant cuttings. Get some small to medium sized pots with good draining soil, all of these things can be bought at home depot or a nursery, and start planting. If you do cuttings just cut off a piece of the stem pull of most of the leaves, leaving only the last few rows and plant. If you have a yard and want to plant in the ground the same rules apply. In both instances the seeds should not be planted too deep into the soil. Be patient and your herbs should germinate in few days to weeks. Basil germinates and grows very quickly. I suggest planting a bunch of basil and harvesting it when it's young. Use it for sauces and refrigerate it or dry the herb in bulk because like I mentioned before it tends to become problematic later. Of course when starting a garden be sure to consider the weather and environment where you live and plan accordingly. Don't forget to water daily especially in the hot summer months!

Tea for appetite suppression

As I had mentioned in an earlier post, I was going to start drinking garcinia tea more regularly in order to see if it really had any effects on my appetite. The tea I got is not 100% pure garcinia it is a blend of a different number of herbs but it is mostly garcinia with about 72mg of it. In general, garcinia supplements come from the fruit of the Garcinia cambogia plant which is in the Clusiacea family which has some very delicious tropical fruit plants like mamey. Usually the way it works is that hydroxytric acid is extracted from the fruit and this is what is added to supplements and other garcinia products. If hydroxytric acid seems familiar it's because it is one of the ingredients in hydroxy cut. Studies conducted on obese rats show that the ones given hydroxitric acid extract ate less and therefore gained less weight. Also levels of tryglicerides,glucose, and insulin levels decreased for the rats on hydroxitric acid.

I have been drinking 3 cups of Yogi fasting(slimming) tea with 72 mg of garcinia extract per tea bag for about 1 week now. According to the box I can drink up to 10 cups a day but I knew I wasn't going to be doing that. I have felt like it has had some effect. I have been eating less and I lost 2.5 pounds since last week. Is it because of the tea...?? I'm not really sure. However, the rats in the study were given about 500 mg /kg of body weight of extract per day and then the dose was increased to 1500 mg. The tea that I have been drinking has 72 mg per tea bag, if I am drinking 3 per day that is 216 mg which is a huge difference especially considering my human size. Hydroxy cut has around 1.32 g( over 1000 mg) of some type of garcinia mix, the label is a bit vague so I don't know what to make of it. In any case maybe what I am experiencing is psychosomatic. Either way it is working for me. Not to mention that the tea tastes delicious and naturally sweet, no sugar needed! Although I never sweeten my tea!

Cilantro and Parsley Dressing

Two of my favorite culinary herbs are Cilantro and Parsley. I especially love Cilantro and will put it on anything and everything from sandwiches to pasta. Besides being tasty these herbs have been shown to have great nutritional value. Cilantro (Coriandrum sativum) is high in vitamin A,K, folate, and lutein. Parsley(Petroselinum crispum) is high in vitamin A, C, and folate. Both have moderate amounts of of minerals such as Potassium and Calcium. In scientific studies these herbs have been shown to have strong antioxidant properties due to phenolic compounds they contain. So using these herbs is a win,win when it comes to taste and health!

Recipe:

I prefer homemade salad dressing and so one day decided to use things from my garden to whip up something tasty. I combined Parsley and Cilantro and basic salad dressing ingredients and it turned out pretty delicious. I am providing the recipe but I do not use measuring cups or spoon so the amounts are approximate and should be tailored to one's personal taste.

1 handful of cilantro
1 handful of parsley
1/4 of a small onion( more or less to own taste)
2-3 garlic cloves( add more or less to own taste or may substitute with garlic powder)

1-2 tsp. of black peppersalt (according to taste)

olive oil
vinegar
(3 to 1 ratio oil to vinegar or adjust to personal taste)

Combine all ingredients in a blender, and blend( less than 1 minute). The result will be a gorgeous bright green liquid. I like my dressing rather tart so I add more vinegar than oil but for a thicker consistency more olive oil can be added.

A few items from the health store

I went to the health store today and picked up a few things. I got some loose Senna tea, by Nature's Herb Co. I have never tried Senna or this brand of tea but the box says that Senna is a potent herbal laxative. I have been looking for a good natural laxative for when I am a detoxing as Epsom salt does not do the trick and Castor oil makes me gag, so I look forward to giving this a try at some point. The next thing I got was St. John's Wort tea by Alvita just because I have never tried it. It is supposed to be good for mild depression so I might try it at "that time" of the month when I am feeling the PMS blues. Finally, I picked up some more garcinia tea because, I only had one box and I am supposed to drink up to 10 cups a day in order for the appetite suppression properties to kick in. I have been eating a bit more lately since I have been a bit stressed so I will see how well this works when taken in adequate amounts.

Gotu kola

As mentioned in an earlier post I am a frequent user of gotu kola. I was first introduced to gotu kola through a Deepak Chopra book. It was recommended as a tea for my type of Dosha. I went to my local health store, and bought it in a loose form. I loved it as soon as I tasted it, since it had a very earthy taste which I particularly appreciate. In general, the tea is recommended as a sort of natural version of Ritalin. It calms the mind, and therefore one is better able to focus. You can sometimes find gotu kola and ginkgo biloba combos, for promotion of memory and general improved mental abilities. I have used it for years and swear by it. I have recommended it to friends who have since been frequent users of this herb. Gotu kola is available for purchase as a dried loose herb, prepared tea bags,in pill form, or as an extract. I have tried all these versions but I like the prepared tea bags best.Gotu kola is used extensively in Ayurveda and people use it to heal wounds, and GI problems and other issues but I have only used it for the purposes of memory and focus enhancing.

Botanical Info:
Genus: Centella

Species: C.asiatica

Family: Apiaceae/Umbelliferae (members of this family include cilantro,parsley,celery, etc.)

Subfamily: Mackinlayaceae

Common name: Gotu kola

Origins: India and surrounding S.E. Asia

Studies :
There are numerous studies published about gotu kola. I looked at a couple relating to memory, cognition, and dendritic development. The first article I looked at deals with dendritic development, branching and gotu kola. This article is free and available for viewing at PubMed central. Basically, researchers administered gotu kola leaf extract to rat pups. The extract was given at intervals of 2,4, and 6 weeks. The brains of the rats were then removed and were analyzed using different methods. The researchers found that the rats' brains treated with gotu kola extract exhibited greater dendrite length and branching as compared to the control group. The results also showed that longer times in dosage gave the same positive results as compared to shorter dosages of 2 and 4 weeks. The researchers concluded that their study supports previous claims that gotu kola may help improve learning and memory. The next article I looked was published in 2008 in the Journal of Ethno-pharmacology. It deals with cognitive function in the elderly. Gotu kola plant extract was given to 20 elderly patients with a mean age of 65 years, daily for 2 months at dosages of 250,500, 750 mg. The participants were evaluated for mood and cognitive abilities before and after trials. The results showed increased cognitive abilities, calmness, and alertness. Finally, the authors make a point to say that the mechanism by which the plant exerts its effects is still fairly unknown and more research is needed. There are number of interesting articles on the subject of gotu kola and memory, as well as Alzheimer's disease. However, more experiments need to be conducted in order to further validate the properties of this plant as well as to test any long term side effects if any. As for me, I will continue using it since I have experienced positive results as far as increased focus is concerned.

K. G. Mohandas Rao, S. Muddanna Rao, and S. Gurumadhva Rao. "Centella Asiatica (L.) Leaf Extract Treatment during the Growth Spurt Period Enhances Hippocampal CA3 Neuronal Dendritic Arborization in Rats." Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 3.3 (2006): 349.

Wattanathorn, Jintanaporn, et al. "Positive Modulation of Cognition and Mood in the Healthy Elderly Volunteer Following the Administration of Centella Asiatica." Journal of ethnopharmacology 116.2 (2008): 325-32.