Is St John's Wort effective for Depression

The effectiveness of using extracts of St. John’s wort for depression has been questioned in some studies, but a recent German analysis showed promising results.

In a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized study published in the March, 2006, issue of Pharmacopychiatry, 368 German men and women diagnosed with a moderate depressive episode received a once-daily dose of either 900 mg of a St. John’s wort extract known by the trade name Laif, or 20 mg of a Celexa, a popular pharmaceutical antidepressant, or a placebo. Result: the extract was found to be therapeutically equivalent to Celexa, and both were better than the placebo.

What’s interesting and promising about this study is that fewer people receiving the extract reported adverse effects. It’s also encouraging that there appears to be a once-daily botanical that is effective against mild depression, because once-daily supplement regimes tend to have better compliance.