Hypericum perforatum extract health benefit, menopause, hot flashes depression

Hypericum perforatum herb for depression treatment - Benefits and side effects of Hypericum perforatum extract 0.3 percent at 300 mg taken once daily, twice daily or three times a day
Feb 28 2016

Hypericum perforatum, also known as St-Johns-Wort extract, is an herb sold as a supplement that helps improve mood and is often used to treat depression. For more herb and herbal information. Hypericum perforatum is the botanical name for St. John's wort herb. Most people do well taking one pill each morning. Other natural depression treatment supplements include 5HTP and SAM-e.

Zhejiang Da Xue Xue Bao Yi Xue Ban. 2013 Nov. Synergic antidepressive effect of quercetin and Hypericum perforatum extract in mice. To explore the synergistic antidepressant effect of quercetin and hyperforin (HF, extracted from Hypericum perforatum). Methods: Male ICR mice were divided into nine groups:blank control, positive control (Paroxetine, 10 mg/kg), quercetin groups (A: 5 mg/kg, B: 10 mg/kg, C: 20 mg/kg), Hypericum perforatum extract (HF 10 mg/kg),combination groups (A: quercetin 2.5 mg/kg + HF 5 mg/kg,B:quercetin 5 mg/kg + HF 5 mg/kg,C: quercetin 10 mg/kg + HF 5 mg/kg). All drugs were administered intragastrically. Reserpine reversal tests were used to compare the reversal effects of drugs on body temperature decline, eyelid ptosis and akinesia. Tail suspension test was used to compare immobility time in each group. Results: Combination group B showed no significant difference (P>0.05) compared with combination group C in reserpine reversal tests and tail suspension test. However, its body temperature reversal effect was significantly higher (P<0.01) than that of quercetin group B, and its effect in shortening immobility time was stronger than that of HF 10 mg/kg group (P<0.05) and quercetin group B (P<0.01). The combination of quercetin and Hypericum perforatum extract in certain ratio has significant synergistic antidepressant effect in ICR mice.

Depression
St. John's wort extract LI160 for the treatment of depression with atypical features - A double-blind, randomized, and placebo-controlled trial.
J Psychiatr Res. 2010. Mannel M, Kuhn U, Schmidt U, Ploch M. Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany.
Preliminary data suggest that hypericum extract LI160 is effective in atypical depression. Reported is the outcome of an 8-week double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial of 600mg LI160 vs. placebo in patients with vegetative features of atypical depression, i.e. hyperphagia or hypersomnia. One-hundred (100) patients with mild and 100 patients with moderate severity of a major depression according to ICD-10 were randomized. Patients needed to meet a score of 2 in at least one of the items 22-26 of the Hamilton-Depression-Rating-Scale (HAM-D) 28-item version and episode duration of at least 3months. The primary outcome variable was the relative change of the HAM-D(17) from Baseline. Secondary outcome variables were the depression sub-score of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the Clinical Global Impression (CGI), a patient's satisfaction scale, the Hamilton-Anxiety-Scale (HAM-A) and the sum score of atypical vegetative symptoms of the HAM-D(28). Confining the analysis to moderately depressed patients, a highly significant benefit for the primary outcome variable was revealed. The study supports the beneficial effect of LI160 in depression with atypical features and the validity of the definition of atypical depression on the basis of reversed vegetative signs. Further, it identifies the PHQ-9 as a useful outcome variable in this population.

Hypericum perforatum for hot flashes
Effects of Hypericum perforatum (St. John's wort) on hot flashes and quality of life in perimenopausal women: a randomized pilot trial.
Menopause. 2009. Al-Akoum M, Maunsell E, Verreault R, Provencher L, Dodin S. From the Centre de Recherche, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire du Québec, Québec, QC, Canada; Unité de Recherche en Santé des Populations, Affilié Universitaire du Québec, Québec, QC, Canada; Unité de Recherche en Gériatrie, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre des Maladies du sein Deschênes-Fabia, Hôpital St.-Sacrement du Centre Hospitalier Affilié Universitaire du Québec, Québec, QC, Canada.
The aim of this pilot double-blind, randomized clinical trial, which initially targeted breast cancer survivors, was to obtain preliminary evidence of the effect of Hypericum perforatum extract (St. John's wort extract) compared with placebo on symptoms and quality of life of symptomatic perimenopausal women. Symptomatic perimenopausal women aged 40 to 65 years who experience hot flashes (three or more per day, Heart and Estrogen / Progestin Replacement Study scale) were randomly assigned to receive ethanolic Hypericum perforatum extract (900 mg TID) or placebo. After 12 weeks of treatment, a nonsignificant difference favoring the Hypericum perforatum extract group was observed in the daily hot flash frequency and the hot flash score. After 3 months of treatment, compared with the placebo group, women in the Hypericum perforatum extract group reported significantly better menopause-specific quality of life and significantly fewer sleep problems. Hypericum perforatum may improve quality of life in ways that are important to symptomatic perimenopausal women, but these results need to be confirmed by a larger clinical trial.

Hypericum perforatum compared to Prozac
Hypericum perforatum versus fluoxetine in the treatment of mild to moderate depression.
Adv Ther. 2002.
In a randomized, controlled, double-blind trial, 70 patients (mean age,50 years) suffering from mild to moderate depression received one tablet of either Hypericum perforatum extract (Calmigen) or fluoxetine hydrochloride (Prozac) twice a day for 6 weeks. Efficacy was determined according to the 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD), the von Zerssen depression scale (DS), Clinical Global Impression (CGI), and patients' overall evaluation. Significant decreases of 50% in the Hypericum perforatum and 58% in the fluoxetine group in the HAMD score and of 42% and 52% on the DS spoke to the efficacy of both medications. The Hypericum perforatum extract achieved 83% of the efficacy of fluoxetine on the HAMD and 78% on the DS. Assessments by physicians (CGI) and patients indicated considerable improvement with no between-treatment differences. Of the 9 dropouts (13%), 2 in the Hypericum perforatum group and 2 in the fluoxetine group were due to adverse reactions. Safety evaluations demonstrated only minor changes. The Hypericum perforatum preparation tested in this study is therapeutically equivalent to fluoxetine and is therefore a rational alternative to synthetic antidepressants.