A FOLK remedy for depression may really help to drive away the blues.
Doctors in Germany often prescribe extracts of St John鈥檚 wort (Hypericum
perforatum) for anxiety, depression and sleep disorders. German and
American researchers have now reviewed 23 previous trials of the plant involving
1757 patients and report their findings in the current issue of the British
Medical Journal.
The plant does seem to work, says Gilbert Ramirez of the Audie L. Murphy
Memorial Veterans Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. Depressed patients given
extracts of St John鈥檚 wort were 2.67 times as likely to improve as those given a
placebo. That makes St John鈥檚 wort as effective as standard antidepressants, but
with fewer side effects.
Eventually, St John鈥檚 wort could move from the apothecary鈥檚 garden to the
clinic. 鈥淭his research is raising a lot of eyebrows,鈥� says Ramirez.
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