Passion Flower Helps Anxiety, Insomnia, and Withdrawal
By Dr. Randi Fredricks, Ph.D.
Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) was used traditionally in the Americas and later in Europe as a calming herb for
anxiety, insomnia, seizures, and hysteria. It is still used today to treat anxiety and insomnia.
Scientists believe
passionflower works by increasing levels of a chemical called gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA) in the brain. GABA
lowers the activity of some brain cells, making you feel more relaxed.
Anxiety Disorders
Research has shown that passion flower has the ability to markedly reduce the symptoms of anxiety disorders.
A trial at the Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Iran studied 36 individuals with generalized anxiety disorder to compare passion
flower with the drug oxazepam, a medication used for anxiety. At the 4-week mark, both treatments proved equally effective. Moreover,
passion flower showed a comparative advantage in terms of side effects because oxazepam can cause considerable impairment of job performance.
A second follow-up study by the same researches had the same findings; that passion flower was as effective as the drug oxazepam.
Insomnia
Herbalists consider passion flower an important herb for insomnia caused by mental worry, overwork, or
nervous exhaustion. In the United Kingdom, passion flower is an ingredient in commonly-sold sedative preparations.
Passion flower has been used for minor sleep problems in both children and adults. It is an excellent sedative with no side effects.
Alcohol and Drug Withdrawal
Research has shown that passion flower is useful in withdrawal from opiates, marijuana, and alcohol.
Passion flower has sedative properties, and has been used as an aid to drug withdrawal. In one study, passion flower significantly
reduced the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal and associated anxiety in mice.
A 14-day double-blind trial of 65 men addicted to opiate drugs found that passion flower combined with the drug clonidine was more
effective in helping withdrawal than was clonidine alone.
References (To view, roll mouse over the "References" heading; to hide, click on the heading)
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Akhondzadeh S, Kashani L, Mobaseri M, Hosseini SH, Nikzad S, Khani M. Passionflower in the treatment of opiates withdrawal: a double-blind randomized controlled trial. J Clin Pharm Ther 2001 Oct;26(5): 369-73.
Akhondzadeh S, Naghavi HR, Vazirian M, Shayeganpour A, Rashidi H, Khani M. Passionflower in the treatment of generalized anxiety: A pilot double-blind randomized controlled trial with oxazepam. J Clin Pharm Ther 2001 Oct;26(5): 363-7.
Dhawan K. Drug/substance reversal effects of a novel tri-substituted benzoflavone moiety (BZF) isolated from Passiflora incarnata Linn.--a brief perspective. Addict Biol 2003 Dec;8(4): 379-86.
Dhawan K, Kumar S, Sharma A. Reversal of cannabinoids (delta9-THC) by the benzoflavone moiety from methanol extract of Passiflora incarnata Linneaus in mice: a possible therapy for cannabinoid addiction. J Pharm Pharmacol 2002;54(6): 875-81.
Dhawan K, Kumar S, Sharma A. Suppression of alcohol-cessation-oriented hyper-anxiety by the benzoflavone moiety of Passiflora incarnata Linneaus in mice. J Ethnopharmacol 2002 Jul;81(2): 239-44.
Fredricks, R. (2008). Healing & wholeness: Complementary and alternative therapies for mental health. Bloomington, IN: Author House.
Tierra, M. (1998). The Way of Herbs. New York: Pocket.
Wood, Matthew. Practice of Traditional Western Herbalism: Basic Doctrine, Energetics, and Classification. Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic Books, 2004.
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