Feel Good Fridays: Melissa officinalis, Lemon Balm
FEEL GOOD FRIDAY// Melissa officilalis // LEMON BALM
Relax into the ultimate, easy-going [tastes delish], mild temperament [refreshing but not too cooling] and calming embrace of an old friend. Some allies are like family, you can actually take them for granted, or not pause to celebrate them as much, because they are such a big part of your life . Lemon balm, or #Melissa, is like that for me. A gentle #relaxant for the mind, carminative for #digestion and immune support hero.
#Lemonbalm is deliciously light, lemony (no surprise there) and YUMM to sip on hot or cold, on its own or with friends, of the botanical or human form. It is easy to grow and like other mints #Lamiaceae, and will spread if not contained. Opposite pairs of serrated heart shaped leaves shine with essential oil richness and are a pleasure to rub between your fingers and inhale (or my personal recommendation, stick your head in a whole bed of it or practice yoga tucked up against it).
Rosmarinic acid is one of the powerful constituents that has a ton of important and interesting research.
It can play a role in balancing autoimmune conditions, especially #overactivethyroids. It can help lower TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) from binding to the thyroid, inhibiting the production of T3 and T4 synthesis. By binding to the #thyroid it also blocks auto-antibodies (#gravesdisease) from creating more excessive stimulation of the thyroid tissue. The take home- melissa binds to the thyroid so your confused system can’t continue to be stimulated to overproduce, helping to break the storm. Because of this action, it should not be used in high doses daily or excessively in some hypothyroid conditions- but as a relaxing, occasionally ally, is still usually encouraged by me.
Essential oils citral, geraniol, linalol, citronellal, and eugenol etc provide the enticing smell and taste, as well as contributing to antibacterial, gut and immune actions.
Flavonoids, like isoquercitrin: anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-mutagenic, anti-depressant, hypotensive, hypolipidemic and anti-viral properties.
Bitter principles: stimulate digestion and balanced appetite.
And for my research based peeps— check out this trial PMID: 22207903
Who doesn’t love a little clinic trial confirming the way our grandmothers have used our ally herbs for ages? This one really shows Melissa as friend for those with mild to moderate and/or intermittent anxiety and insomnia. In these instances, the body and mind just needs a gentle “come this way hunny” to redirect brain chemistry and return to balance. Stronger medications risk addiction and often swing the pendulum too far. They should be saved the times when they are truly needed. Check out these staggering stats on the improvement of many parameters of anxiety and insomnia.
A small trial utilizing 300mg, twice a day of the supplement Cyracos® (a hydroalcoholic Melissa officinalis L. leaf extract). Standardized to consist of more than 7% rosmarinic acid and greater than 15% hydroxycinnamic acid derivatives.
20 Volunteers (6male, 14 females, 18-70 years old) who met the DSM-IV criteria for mild to moderate anxiety and sleep disorders and were otherwise healthy.
ANXIETY symptoms declined by 15%, from a mild-to-moderate level of symptoms to absent.
>Eating problems, lowered by 33%
> Emotional instability by 7%
> Fatigue by 18%
>Feelings of guilt by 15%
>Feeling of inferiority by 18%
>Intellectual disturbance by 28%
>Muscular reactions by 13%
>Poor interpersonal relationships by 13%
>Psychosomatic symptoms by 33%
>Obsessive–compulsive behavior by 5%
>Speech problems by 3% (
>Vague somatic symptoms by 8%
INSOMNIA
All volunteers demonstrated a clinically significant positive treatment response; 17 volunteers reached full remission of symptoms; 3 had significant symptom improvement but not full remission.
The exclusion criteria helps show how useful this ally can be for some of the unclear manifestations of these symptoms by excluding pregnancy, lactation, intention to become pregnant during the course of the study or volunteers of child-bearing potential not using adequate contraception; consumption of anti-anxiety drugs, antidepressants, hypnoinducers or sedatives 10 days before the start of the study; diabetes; asthma; hypo- and hyperthyroidism; depression; severe obsessive–compulsive disturbances; schizophrenia; psychosis in general; consumption of serotonin-reuptake inhibitors drugs.
It is proposed that it effects the GABAergic system to have these relaxing and sedating effects.
Another paper I often reference teaching is this one- showing its benefits on cognitive performance and mood.
Pilot trial of Melissa officinalis L. leaf extract in the treatment of volunteers suffering from mild-to-moderate anxiety disorders and sleep disturbances
Julien Cases,1 Alvin Ibarra,2 Nicolas Feuillère,1 Marc Roller,1 and Samir G. Sukkar3
Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer
This article has been cited by other articles in PMC.
Abstract
Botanicals are an alternative option to prescription drugs for the alleviation of symptoms due to anxiety disorders and insomnia. Melissa officinalis L. has been shown as an anti-stress and anxiolytic agent. We previously reported moderate stress improvement in mice in which Cyracos®, a standardized Melissa officinalis L. extract, was administrated. Cyracos® contains phytochemicals that inhibit gamma-aminobutyric acid catabolism. This was a prospective, open-label, 15-day study to evaluate the efficacy of Cyracos® on stressed volunteers, who have mild-to-moderate anxiety disorders and sleep disturbances. Using clinician rating criteria, primary outcomes showed improvement of symptoms. Cyracos® reduced anxiety manifestations by 18% (p < 0.01), ameliorated anxiety-associated symptoms by 15% (p < 0.01) and lowered insomnia by 42% (p < 0.01). As much as 95% of subjects (19/20) responded to treatment, of which 70% (14/20) achieved full remission for anxiety, 85% (17/20) for insomnia, and 70% (14/20) for both. Our study demonstrates, for the first time that chronic administration of Melissa officinalis L. relieves stress-related effects. It is critical that further studies incorporate a placebo and investigate physiological stress markers.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3230760/
And for kicks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W92GZBMXKFM. sweet melissa by the allman brothers :D