FLORA ST. JOHN'S WORT EXTRT 90CAPS - EXP 04/08

St. John's Wort Extract 430 mg

Made with sunshine to lift your spirits. Helps alleviate stress, anxiety, mild depression and sleeplessness.



St. John's Wort – Traditional healing flower

In the sun-drenched fields of the Mediterranean, there is a traditional way of making St. John's Wort oil. It's a way using time-honored natural methods, uncompromising standards and the sun. The mature golden flowers of wild St. John's Wort plants are harvested manually in the mornings, and are submersed that day in extra virgin olive oil, cold-pressed from the olives of certified organic origin. This mixture, sealed in glass jars, is then potentized in the intense sun for several weeks. It is this slow, painstaking process alone which maximizes the extraction into the oil of the full spectrum of active ingredients found in St. John's Wort—not just one!

Recent research studies

St. John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) has recently been recognized by the medical community as being an effective antidepressant for treating mild to moderate depression. This finding was recently reported in the British Medical Journal (August 3, 1996) based on 23 randomized trials including 1,757 outpatients with mainly mild or moderately severe depressive disorders. Side effects occurred in 52.8% of patients on standard antidepressants but only 19.8% of patients on hypericum.

It is important to note that side effects with St. John's Wort generally only occur with products standardized for high levels of hypericin. Hypericin was originally thought to be the active ingredient, but more recent studies have found it is the hypericin-related compounds and several flavonoids which are the active antidepressant principles. Traditional oil extracts contain little hypericin but are effective antidepressants because they contain the active compounds proto-hypericin, pseudo-hypericin, cyclo-pseudo-hypericin, hyperforins, hyperoside, rutin, quercetin, quercitrin, GABA, and chlorogenic acid.

Benefits

Many clinical studies are now confirming its use to relieve depressive disorders, with little side-effects. However, only Flora's sun-infused St. John's Wort offers additional benefits over standardized hypericin extracts, including the healing benefits of cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil. Some of the many testified uses include: Relaxant – especially when tension and exhaustion are a combined problem.

Nervine tonic/restorative – for debility, depression, neurosis, insomnia and convalescence.

Menopausal symptoms – hot flushes, night sweats, depression, fatigue, irritability and fluid retention.

Pain – topical application for neuralgia, shingles, fibrositis, sciatica and rheumatic pain.

Anti-inflammatory/healing actions – topical applications for wounds, injured nerves, bruises, mild burns and especially sunburn.

Digestive anti-inflammatory – use internally for gastritis, ulcers, dyspepsia, hiatus hernia and irritable bowel syndrome.

Immune function – recent research indicates the anti-vital properties of St. John's Wort.

Qualities

• Full-spectrum extract of wild-crafted, St. John's Wort flowers & certified organic olive oil

• Traditionally sun-extracted – without chemicals or solvents

• Helps alleviate stress, anxiety, mild depression, internal inflammation, & immune dysfunction

• May also be applied externally to heal burns, wounds, or muscular pain

(adapted from AHP – St. John's Wort Monograph)

CONSTITUENTS ACTIVITY Amentoflavone Anti-inflammatory, antiulcerogenic (13' 118- biapigenin) GABA Sedative Hyperforin Neutotransmitter inhibitor, antibacterial against gram-positive bacteria, wound-healing and potential anti-carcinogenic Hypericin Antiviral 13' 118-biapigenin Probably sedative 2-methyl-butenol Sedative Proanthocyanidins Antioxidant, antimicrobial, antiviral vasorelaxant Pseudohypericin Antiviral Quercitrin In vitro MAO inhibiting activity Xanthones Antidepressant, antimicrobial, antiviral, cardiotonic, MAOA inhibitor



References:

American Herbal Pharmacopoeia™ and Therapeutic Compendium 1997. St. John's Wort, Hypericum perforatum Monograph:, Quality Control, Analytical and Therapeutic Monograph. Published in Sept./Oct. 1997 issue of Herbalgram. Linde, M. et al. 1996. St. John's Wort for depression – an overview and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. British Medical Journal 313: 253-258. Maisenbacher, P. and K.A. Kovar 1992. Analysis and Stability of Hyperici Oleum. Planta Med. 58 (1992) pp. 351-354. Wichtl. M. 1994. Hyperici herba – St. John's Wort, in Herbal Drugs and Phytopharmaceuticals. Ed. by Norman Grainger Bisset. Publ. by medpharm Scientific Publishers, Stuttgart 1994. CRC Press. (English translation of Teedrogen. Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Stuttgart 1984). Reuter, H.D. 1997. KongreBberichte: Hypericum als pflanzliches Antidepressivum. 2nd International Congress on Phytomedicine and 7th Congress of the Germany Society of Phytotherapy, Munchen 1996. pp. 45-52. Reuter, H.D. pers. comm. Professor Dr. phil. Hans D. Reuter. Siebengebirgsallee 24, D-50939 Koln.