Passionflower
The Herbal Medicine
Resources
Passionflower
or Passiflora incarnata is a wide researched botanical. We have given some of
the direct, practical to follow and relevant information about the history, the
books, the clinical usefulness, the toxicities, and some other interesting
points.
Historical References Of Passionflower:
The earliest reference on
American medicinal plants, Schoepf's Materia Medica Americana, a Latin
work, was published in Germany in 1787. It mentioned use of the plant to treat
the geriatric epilepsy. Later it was introduced into medicine in 1839 or 1840 by
Dr. L. Phares of Mississippi.
Dr. E. D. Stapleton presented
his experience in using P. incarnata tincture to treat insomnia in a 1904 issue
of the Detroit Medical Journal.
The dried flowering and
fruiting tops of Passiflora. incarnata were listed in National Formulary
from 1916 to 1936.
FDA & Passionflower & Herbal Research:
Prior to 1978 it was approved as
a sedative and sleep aid as OTC product. During 1978 review, FDA dropped it from
the list due to non-availability of proven medicinal values. It was mainly
because of the negligence of American Pharmacy companies as industry was
responsible for providing data on safety and usefulness of non-prescription
medicine during the review process. It is listed in GRAS or Generally regarded
as safe category.
This herb
is widely accepted and researched and used in European countries.
Books & Literature
About Passionflower:
Newall CA,
Anderson LA, Phillipson JD.
Herbal
Medicines: A Guide for Health-Care Professionals.
London: Pharmaceutical Press, 1996, 206–7.
Foster S.
Herbs for Your
Health.
Loveland, CO: Interweave Press, 1996, 68–9.
Ernst E, ed.
Passionflower.
The Desktop Guide to
Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
Edinburgh: Mosby; 2001:140-141.
Brinker F.
Herb
Contraindications and Drug Interactions.
2nd ed. Sandy, Ore: Eclectic Medical; 1998:109-110.
Blumenthal M,
Busse WR, Goldberg A, et al. ed.
The Complete German
Commission E Monographs.
Boston, Mass: Integrative Medicine Communications; 1998: 179-180.
Blumenthal M,
Goldberg A, Brinckmann J.
Herbal Medicine: Expanded
Commission E Monographs.
Newton, MA: Integrative Medicine Communications; 2000:293-296.
Mowrey, D. (1990)
Guaranteed Potency Herbs. A Compilation of
writing on the subject
Foster,
S. The
Herb Companion
(August/September): 18-23, 1991.
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The Clinical References & Research
Studies Of Passionflower:
Passionflower For
GAD Or Generalized Anxiety Disorder:
A double blind pilot trial was done by Akhondzadeh et al at Roozbeh Psychiatry
Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran. This study was
published in Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics. October 2001,
26-5-363-7. Its extract is given.
Extract: Passionflower was given a double blind trial for comparison
of its efficacy against Oxazepam for the treatment of GAD. The conclusion of
this study suggest that passionflower is effective for treatment of GAD. Its
onset of action is quite slow. The herbal extract has better advantage as the
job impairment was very little next morning. This study suggested to conduct
further bigger tests.
Akhondzadeh S, et al.
P. incarnata's usefulness for treating GAD: a pilot
double-blind randomized controlled
trial with oxazepam. J Clin Pharm Ther 2001;26:363-7.
Speroni E, et
al. Sedative effects of crude extract of passiflora incarnata after oral
administration.
Phytotherapy Res
1996;10:S92-4.
Dhawan
K, Kumar S, Sharma A.
Anti-anxiety studies on extracts of passiflora incarnata Linnaeus. Journal
of Ethnopharmacology, 2001;78:165-70.
Dhawan K, Kumar S, Sharma A.
Anxiolytic activity of aerial and underground parts of Passiflora incarnata.
Fitoterapia
2001;72:922-6.
Krenn L. Passion Flower
(Passiflora incarnata L.) - a reliable herbal sedative. [German] Wien Med
Wochenschr 2002;152(15-16):404-6
Wolfman C, Viola H, Paladini A,
Dajas F, Medina JH. Possible anxiolytic effects of Passiflora coerulea.
Pharmacol Biochem Behav 1994;47(1):1-4
Herb Clip:
Passionflower., "An Herbalist's View of Passionflower" American Botanical
Council, Austin, Texas April 10, 1996.
Bourin M, Bougerol
T, Guitton B, et al. A combination of plant extracts in the treatment of
outpatients with adjustment disorder with anxious mood: controlled study versus
placebo. Fundam Clin Pharmacol 1997;11(2):127-132.
Natural Standard: An
organization that produces scientifically based reviews of complementary and
alternative medicine (CAM) topics
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM):
A division of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services dedicated to
research
Dhawan K, Kumar S,
Sharma A. Comparative anxiolytic activity profile of various preparations of
Passiflora incarnata Linnaeus: a comment on medicinal plants'
standardization. J Altern Complement Med 2002;Jun, 8(3):283-291.
Zal HM. Five
herbs for depression, anxiety, and sleep disorders. Uses, benefits, and adverse
effects. Consultant. 1999;3343-3349.
Speroni, E. and
A. Manhattan. Neuropharmacological Activity of Extracts from Passiflora
incarnata. Planta Medica. 54: 488-491, 1988.
Passionflower In
Withdrawal Of Addictive Drugs:
Akhondzadem
S, et al.
P.
incarnata useful for treating opiate addiction: a double-blind randomized
controlled trial.
J Clin Pharm Ther 2001;26:369-73.
Soulimani R, et al.
Behavioral effects of passiflora incarnata l. and its indole alkaloid and
flavonoid derivatives and maltol in the mouse.
Journal of
Ethnopharmacology 1997;57:11-20.
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Adverse Effects &
Toxicities Of Passionflower:
Fisher A,
Purcell P, Le Couteur DG.
Toxicity of passiflora incarnata L.
J Toxicol Clin
Toxicol 2000;38:63-6.
Giavina-Bianchi PF Jr, Castro
FF, Machado ML, Duarte AJ. Occupational respiratory allergic disease induced by
Passiflora alata and Rhamnus purshiana. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol
1997;79(5):449-54
Fisher
AA, Purcell P, Le Couteur DG. Toxicity of Passiflora incarnata L. J Toxicol Clin
Toxicol 2000;38(1):63-6
For more detail re toxicity,
especially of the dangerous unripe fruit even in edible species, see
Passiflora toxicity.
Maluf E, Barros HMT,
Frochtengarten ML et al., (1991) Assessment of the Hypnotic/Sedative Effects and
Toxicity of Passiflora edulis Aqueous Extract in Rodents and Humans. Phytother
Res 5:262-266.
Passionflower Identification:
For expert seed ID I recommend
Dr John Vanderplank.
Passionflower In
Epilepsy:
Spinella M:
Herbal medicines and epilepsy:
The potential for benefit and adverse effects.
Epilepsy Behav 2001; 2(6):524-532. (PMID 12609386)
Reduction of stress and
sleeplessness may be expected to decrease seizures in some people with epilepsy.
Marker Compounds For
Passionflower Standardization:
The marker compounds in this
sample of passiflora incarnata are : Alkaloids .1%, Passiflorines (Iodoplatinate
positive, Dragendroff negative), Harman compounds absent (no fluorescence at
365nm), detection limit, (.0000001%). 1.95% flavone Glycosides: Iso-vitexin,
vitexin, orientin, Iso-orientin, Iso-schaftoside, schaftoside, other Glycosides.
|
Passion
Flower Standardized Extract |
|
Standardization |
3.54% (3.5
-4.0%) |
|
Characteristic |
light brown
amorphous powder |
|
Solubility:
in water (c=2)
in alcohol (50% v/v)(c=2) |
complies:
clear or opalescent solution
complies: clear or opalescent solution |
|
pH |
4.0
(4.0-6.0) |
|
Ash |
17.6%
(<=20.0) |
|
Heavy
Metals |
<100.0
(<100.00 ppm) |
|
Total
residual organic solvents |
0.01%
(<=0.05%) |
|
Ethanol |
<0.005
(<=0.5%) |
|
Methanol |
0.01%
(<=0.05%) |
|
Methylene
chloride |
<0.005%
(<=0.005%) |
|
Other |
<0.005%
(<=0.005%) |
|
Microbiological contents
|
|
Fungi |
<100.0
(<=100.0) cfu/g |
|
Staph
aureus, salmonella |
absent |
|
E. coli |
absent |
Source:
Your Guide to Standardized Herbal Products.
Rebecca Flynn, M.S. & Mark Roest
|
Passion-Flower
(Click Image)
|
Use Passionflower For:
- Generalized anxiety disorder.
- Insomnia.
- Adjuvant in seizures, Irritable bowel syndrome, asthma, cough.
- Visit Passionflower related pages on Holistic-Herbalist to get more
information.
- Take one vegicap once a day. Each vegicap contains
Passionflower 200 mg.
Buying Information:
We recommend the interested visitors to get Passion-Flower
supplements from this place. This is a good store, with reputable quality and one of the most
reasonable price. Get a pack of 90 capsules.
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Passionflower - The General Information
Benefits & Uses Of Passionflower
Passionflower Clinical Research Based Actions
P. incarnata
- The Clinical Research and Resources
P. incarnata - The Picture and Identification
Passionflower - The Side Effects, Allergies
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