Holistic Health Articles and Research Related to Herbal Medicines, Foods and Phytochemicals : Popular #Herbs

Thursday, 31 October 2013

Popular #Herbs - Lavender (Lavandula)

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Lavender is a flower plant of the genus Lavandula, belonging to the family Lamiaceae, native to Asia. The herb has been used in traditional medicine to treat painful bruises and aches, to relieve various neuralgic pains, sprains, rheumatism, etc.

Health Benefits
1. 'Subsyndromal' anxiety disorder
In the investigation of orally administered Lavandula oil preparation and its effect on'subsyndromal' anxiety disorder, found that Lavandula oil preparation had a significant beneficial influence on quality and duration of sleep and improved general mental and physical health without causing any unwanted sedative or other drug specific effects. Lavandula oil preparation silexan is both efficacious and safe for the relief of anxiety disorder not otherwise specified. It has a clinically meaningful anxiolytic effect and alleviates anxiety related disturbed sleep, according to "Silexan, an orally administered Lavandula oil preparation, is effective in the treatment of 'subsyndromal' anxiety disorder: a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled trial"by Kasper S, Gastpar M, Müller WE, Volz HP,
Möller HJ, Dienel A, Schläfke S.(1)

2. Sedative and Hypnotic Activities
In the evaluation of evaluate the sedative and hypnotic activities of the methanolic and aqueous extract of Lavandula officinalis L. on central nervous system (CNS), found that The methanolic extract produced significant sedative effect at the doses of 200, 400, and 600 mg/kg (by oral route), compared to reference substance diazepam (DZP), and an hypnotic effect at the doses of 800 and 1000 mg/kg while the treatment of mice with the aqueous extract at the doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg via oral pathway significantly reduced in both the reestablishment time and number of head dips during the traction and hole-board tests. In conclusion, these results suggest that the methanolic and aqueous extracts of Lavandula officinalis possess potent sedative and hypnotic activities, which supported its therapeutic use for insomnia, according to "Sedative and Hypnotic Activities of the Methanolic and Aqueous Extracts of Lavandula officinalis from Morocco" by Alnamer R, Alaoui K, Bouidida el H, Benjouad A, Cherrah Y.(2)

3. Diuretic activity
In the classification of the diuretic activity of an infusion of Lavandula officinalis in the Wistar rat found that The stability of the aldosterone concentrations in the plasma and the absence of correlation with plasma sodium concentrations, coupled with the observed clearance of the free water (0.055+/-0.007 vs. 0.045+/-0.012 mL x min(-1)) show that the increase in diuresis and the moderate increase in sodium excretion are of tubular origin. The result of the phytochemical analysis of hexane extracts in the infusion and in urine indicated that four or five chemical factors may be involved in the diuretic effect of lavender, according to "[Diuretic activity of the infusion of flowers from Lavandula officinalis].[Article in French]" by Elhajili M, Baddouri K, Elkabbaj S, Meiouat F, Settaf A.(3)

(4) Antibiofilm activity
In the examination of the antibiofilm activity of major constituents: linalool, linalyl acetate, alpha-terpineol, terpinen-4-ol of selected essential oils (EO): Lavandula angustifblia (LEO), Melaleuca alternifolia (TTO), Melissa officinalis (MEO) found that The killing rate studies of S. aureus biofilm treated with TTO, LEO, MEO and some of their constituents revealed that partial (50%) destruction of 24-h-old biofilms (MBEC50) was achieved by the concentration 4-8 x MIC after 1 h, whereas 2-4 x MIC was enough to obtain 90% reduction in biomass metabolic activity (MBEC90) after just 4 h of treatment, according to "Antibiofilm activity of selected plant essential oils and their major components" by Budzyńska A, Wieckowska-Szakiel M, Sadowska B, Kalemba D, Rózalska B.(4)

5. Antioxidants
In the observation of total phenolics and total flavonoids for the extracts of three medicinal plants including oregano (Origanum vulgare L.), lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) and lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) found that Origanum vulgare and Melissa officinalis extracts present the most effective antioxidant capacity in scavenging DPPH radicals, while Lavandula angustifolia is less active. High performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis was used to identify the components of extracts. Major phenolic acids identified in the analysed species were ferulic, rosmarinic, p-coumaric and caffeic, while predominant flavonoids were quercetin, apigenin kaempherol, which were present as glucosides, according to "Antioxidant capacity and total phenolic contents of oregano (Origanum vulgare), lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) and lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) from Romania"by

Spiridon I, Colceru S, Anghel N, Teaca CA, Bodirlau R, Armatu A. (5)

6. Antibacterial activity
In the identification of antibacterial activity of essential oils from 10 commonly consumed herbs: Citrus aurantium, C. limon, Lavandula angustifolia, Matricaria chamomilla, Mentha piperita, M. spicata, Ocimum basilicum, Origanum vulgare, Thymus vulgaris and Salvia officinalis found that the highest and broadest activity was shown by O. vulgare oil. Carvacrol had the highest antibacterial activity among the tested components, according to "Antibacterial effects of the essential oils of commonly consumed medicinal herbs using an in vitro model" by Soković M, Glamočlija J, Marin PD, Brkić D, van Griensven LJ.(6)

7. Antifungal activities
In the assessment of comparison of alternative to synthetic fungicides currently used in the control of devastating fungal pathogen Botrytis cinerea, from (Origanum syriacum L. var. bevanii), lavender (Lavandula stoechas L. var. stoechas) and rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.), found that Essential oils of rosemary and lavender were inhibitory at relatively higher concentrations (25.6 μg/ml), according to "In vitro and in vivo antifungal activities of the essential oils of various plants against tomato grey mould disease agent Botrytis cinerea" by Soylu EM, Kurt S, Soylu S.(7)

8. Antidepressant-like effect
In the classification of the antidepressant effects of essential oils of Anthemis nobilis (chamomile), Salvia sclarea (clary sage; clary), Rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary), and Lavandula angustifolia (lavender)found that clary oil could be developed as a therapeutic agent for patients with depression and that the antidepressant-like effect of clary oil is closely associated with modulation of the DAnergic pathway, according to "Antidepressant-like effect of Salvia sclarea is explained by modulation of dopamine activities in rats" by

Seol GH, Shim HS, Kim PJ, Moon HK, Lee KH, Shim I, Suh SH, Min SS.(8)

9. Acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity
In the identification ofAcetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity of the essential oils extracted from Artemisia dracunculus L., Inula graveolens L., Lavandula officinalis Chaix, and Ocimum sanctum L. found that Eugenol, in particular, was found to be a potent AChE inhibitor along with determination of the IC(50) value, a finding that has been reported for the first time in this study. However, the ratio of the contribution of the active components, including a novel AChE inhibitor, to the observed AChE inhibitory activity of the essential oils was not very high. The results of this study raise concerns about the AChE inhibitory activity of widely produced and readily accessible commercial essential oils, according to "Acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity and chemical composition of commercial essential oils" by Dohi S, Terasaki M, Makino M.(9)

10. Obesity
In the researches of the weight control of Slim339, a proprietary fixed combination of Garcinia cambogia extract with calcium pantothenate (standardized for the content of hydroxycitric acid and pantothenic acid) and extracts of Matricaria chamomilla, Rosa damascena, Lavandula officinalis and Cananga odorata, found that During a 60-day treatment period, the average reduction in body weight for the group receiving Slim339 (n = 30) was 4.67% compared with 0.63% for the placebo group (n = 28) (p < 0.0001). Weight losses of >or=3 kg were recorded for 23 subjects in the treatment group and only one in the placebo group. It is concluded that Slim339 represents a potential , according to "Efficacy of Slim339 in reducing body weight of overweight and obese human subjects" by Toromanyan E, Aslanyan G, Amroyan E, Gabrielyan E, Panossian A.(10)

11. Cognition and mood
In the evaluation of Aromas of rosemary and lavender essential oils and theirs effect on cognition and mood found that rosemary produced a significant enhancement of performance for overall quality of memory and secondary memory factors, but also produced an impairment of speed of memory compared to controls. With regard to mood, comparisons of the change in ratings from baseline to post-test revealed that following the completion of the cognitive assessment battery, both the control and lavender groups were significantly less alert than the rosemary condition; however, the control group was significantly less content than both rosemary and lavender conditions. These findings indicate that the olfactory properties of these essential oils can produce objective effects on cognitive performance, as well as subjective effects on mood, according to "Aromas of rosemary and lavender essential oils differentially affect cognition and mood in healthy adults" by Moss M, Cook J, Wesnes K, Duckett P.(11)

Side Effects
1. The herb may cause allergic effect
2. Lavender may interact with certain medication, including antidepressants, antihistamines, pain relievers, etc,.
3. Do not use the herb in children or if you are pregnant without approval from the related field specialist.
4. Prolonged period of using the herb may cause causes breast growth in male.
5. Overdoses may cause drowsiness.
6. Etc.

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