St Johns Wort
- Thread starter Justin30
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Sushi
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Have a look at this thread.
@Justin30
Why do you want to take SJW?
Are you already on an antidepressant? If you are taking SJW with a prescribed antidepressant you can get serotonin syndrome which is serious.
If you are taking SJW for depression there is little evidence that it is effective. If it does have an effect, it would have the same side effects of a regular AD depending on the dosage.
There's also the problem that herbal products are not regulated so the actual dosage can change from bottle to bottle, contain harmful fillers or even no SJW in any of the product.
I had a student whose parents substituted SJW for his AD and later tried to commit suicide. While this is anecdotal it's in sync with the studies that show it most likely won't work or for it to work the amount of the SJW could be dangerously high for a prodct that isn't regulated nor the dose guaranteed.
Good luck.
Why do you want to take SJW?
Are you already on an antidepressant? If you are taking SJW with a prescribed antidepressant you can get serotonin syndrome which is serious.
If you are taking SJW for depression there is little evidence that it is effective. If it does have an effect, it would have the same side effects of a regular AD depending on the dosage.
There's also the problem that herbal products are not regulated so the actual dosage can change from bottle to bottle, contain harmful fillers or even no SJW in any of the product.
I had a student whose parents substituted SJW for his AD and later tried to commit suicide. While this is anecdotal it's in sync with the studies that show it most likely won't work or for it to work the amount of the SJW could be dangerously high for a prodct that isn't regulated nor the dose guaranteed.
Good luck.
Dr Jay Goldstein said it was one of the best natural herbs for several symptoms.
I am currently not taking any ADs.
Thanks for the reply I had SS mildly from another comboof meds when forst sick so I really check now.
Thanks for the response
JES
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Not true. SSRI's for example work by inhibiting re-uptake of serotonin, other types of ADs work in different ways and produce different types of side effects. There is no proof that SJW works the same way as SSRI's. Herbs are usually less selective and affect more things, but the effect doesn't necessarily come from inhibiting serotonin uptake as in SSRI's.
There is also evidence and studies have been conducted on use of SJW in depression. In Germany psychiatrists actually prescribe SJW as primary drug for treating depression, obviously they wouldn't do it if there was no evidence.
This may be possible indeed although unlikely. In my country SJW is only sold in drugstores, which have pharma grade quality control on all sold products, including herbs.
Do we know herbs may affect more things and if true is this necessarily good thing? Usually the reasons the herbs may or may not work are known through basic chemistry.
About 40% of prescription medications are derived from herbs/plants but the difference is that the herb is analyzed to find the active ingredient(s) that produce a therapeutic response so the drug does not contain other ingredients in the herb that may be harmful or not needed. Then they go through trials to assess safety and efficacy.
Herbal products are not regulated so you don't know what they contain, what fillers are used or if the herb has been exposed to things such as pesticides or molds. You also don't know if the lab where the herbal product is made follows the standard recommendations that labs should follow. In other words there is no quality control over the product nor are there any incentives to do so.
There are no requirements for studies.
While no medication comes without side effects, regulations reduces the chances of adverse side effects happening and for the most part they're already known before the drug is marketed. The safety and efficacy is also known from the studies required before marketing.
This is not a guarantee because of this and this. As far as I know psychiatrist in the states do not use SJW but need to check this.
I want a medication that has been through the most rigorous process for effectiveness and safety.
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Sushi
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Hence, in the case of St. John's Wort, I would choose medical grade hypericum--the active ingredient. It is formulated to have standardized dosing.
While prescition grade may be a safer choice, I still would worry about the issue that some have self diagnosed that they have depression, anxiety and you really need a professional to do this as well as a complete physical workup. Unfortunately this is not done as frequently as it should be. I went to my Psychiatrist because I thought my depression was coming back and it turned out I needed to up my Thyroid medications.
That being said, I don't know how many doctors actually sugest SJW. From what I've read, the big problem is side effects especially with other medications. However so do ADs. They only mention a couple of side effects that are greater than a prescribed AD.
I just found this which was enlightening and includes both positive as well as negative outcomes. However, it looks like this study was done in 2001. I would think that there have been studies since then. Yet the article was published yesterday.:thumbdown:
With a few exceptions such as when a health decision affects others, people have the right to choose what they do with their bodies. I also, again with a few exceptions, am not trying to change others opinions.
So basically I add things for infomational purposes. At the same time I try, emphasis on try, to keep an open mine by reading information of all the different sides of a question.
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