Reduce anxiety and improve sleep with passionflower

by: | January 14, 2017
Reduce anxiety and improve sleep with passionflower
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(NaturalHealth365) Anxiety and chronic insomnia affect all too many people in the modern world and Western medicine does little to help resolve these serious health issues. Sadly, while these two problems can be experienced separately, they often go hand in hand.

Over time, these maladies can dramatically affect mood and quality of life. Now an herbal remedy is showing promise against both anxiety and chronic insomnia.

The natural herb passionflower has been found in clinical trials to both reduce anxiety and offer relief to those who suffer from chronic insomnia. Passionflower (Passiflora incarnate) is a tropical flowering, climbing shrub that produces a fleshy, large, fruit. Its extract have been used by herbalists as a sleep aid and it has been shown particularly helpful for those with sleep disorders characterized by exhaustion and restlessness.

Reduce anxiety naturally: The effects of passionflower are experienced in 30 minutes or less

The effects of passionflower on mental state seem to positively impact both the chronic and acute forms of anxiety. It has been administered with success to those with generalized anxiety disorder, and to persons who are just about to undergo surgery and are feeling anxious. After 30 minutes, persons who took passionflower were found to be significantly less anxious compared with those who took a placebo.

Best of all, persons taking passionflower report zero side effects from taking the herbal remedy. They also do not experience a feeling of sedation or a reduction in muscle functioning, and their mental processes are not impaired.

Another study found passionflower to be as effective as the prescription drug benzodiazepine oxazepam when given to patients with generalized anxiety disorder. In a four-week double-blind study, 18 persons with GAD took 45 drops of liquid passionflower extract per day, while another 18 subjects took 30 mg of oxazepam.

Passionflower as effective as prescription drugs, but with no side effects

While oxazepam worked more rapidly, by the end of the trial, both treatments were considered equally effective. However, what set passionflower apart was the fact that it had no side effects, while oxazepam caused unwanted drowsiness during the day.

Studies have also shown that passionflower is effective against chronic insomnia while improving sleep quality. Persons who drink passionflower tea nightly before bed report much better sleep quality than those who don’t. Passionflower is often combined with valerian, lemon balm and hops by herbalists to help persons with sleep or insomnia issues.

A randomized, double-blind, controlled insomnia study compared the effects of the prescription insomnia drug Ambien (zolpidem) to passionflower combined with hops and valerian. Both remedies were found to have similar positive therapeutic effects against chronic insomnia.

Bottom line: There’s no reason to suffer with anxiety and chronic sleep problems when such an effective natural cure is close at hand.  Reduce your exposure to electronic devices and artificial white light – as you approach bedtime.  Get to bed at a reasonable hour (preferably before 10 pm) and avoid stimulating activities – late at night – like, drinking coffee or engaging in ‘heated’ conversations.

Note: The ideal way to take passionflower for anxiety is in an extract, tincture, capsule or tablet form.  And, as a reminder, passionflower for insomnia is most effective when combined with valerian, hops and lemon balm.

References:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11694362

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11679026

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18499602

Passion Flower Benefits: It Helps Anxiety and Insomnia, But Without the Side Effects

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