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Tibetan Herbal Tea Agar-35 Reduces Negative Affect and Anxiety: A Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study
Abstract
Introduction:
Herbal medicine and other forms of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) are used to treat symptoms of psychiatric disorders in the United States, including anxiety and mood problems. In Traditional Tibetan Medicine anxiety and depression are commonly treated with an herbal compound known as Agar-35.
Objective:
The objective of this pilot study was to explore whether Agar-35 tea would improve anxiety, affect, stress, and rumination.
Methods:
Undergraduate psychology students (N=14) were randomized to drink either Agar-35 tea (n=6) or placebo tea (n=8) for 7 nights.
Results:
The results indicated that Agar-35 significantly reduced participants' negative affect compared to placebo, U = 6.0, p = .019, effect size, r = .63. Further, Agar-35 also reduced anxiety (trending toward significance), U = 10.0, p = .071, effect size, r = .48.
Conclusion:
In accordance with its use in Tibetan Medicine, these preliminary findings suggest that Agar-35 may benefit aspects of psychological health.
... For example, some researchers have discovered that certain chemical extracts from Chinese eaglewood can act as an analgesic and a calming agent; hence, the extractives can be used as an anesthetic (Bhuiyan et al. 2009). Some investigators (Lin et al. 2016;Martin et al. 2017) have also studied the effects of Chinese eaglewood extracts on the nervous system of mice as test subjects. These investigators found that Chinese eaglewood not only can sedate the central nervous system, but also to some extent it can restore its functions. ...
There are few reports on the effect of Chinese eaglewood extractions on the relationship between a stroke-induced nerve and the motor dysfunction caused by the nerve dysfunction. In this study, lipids were successfully induced from white eaglewood, and the cause of extraction were analyzed. Controlled clinical experiments were conducted to study the effects of Chinese eaglewood extracts as a drug therapy on the recovery of nerve and motor function of stroke patients. Such effects were further analyzed using the electroencephalograms (EEGs) test, the Fugl-Meyer upper extremity scale, and the Fugl-Meyer lower extremity scale. The results of the study showed that the nerve function recovery of stroke patients through compensatory effects was promoted by using Chinese eaglewood extracts, and the motor function recovery of patients was further improved. Thus, from the results of the Fugl-Meyer upper extremity and lower extremity scales, the motor functions of the stroke patients were gradually recovered during the clinical experiments, which indicated nerve function recovery. The RNA extraction results showed high RNA purity without the presence of proteins and that interfering substances can be obtained by using the mixed inducer agent. This study demonstrated the feasibility for the application of Chinese eaglewood extracts and its therapeutic efficacy.
... 4,5 Several reports have described the efficacy of complementary and alternative medicine for reducing fatigue, 6 including herbal teas, which reportedly improve fatigue, sleep impairment, and anxiety. 7,8 However, few studies have evaluated an herbal tea formulated in accordance with Traditional East Asian Medicine (TEAM). ...
Introduction
Prolonged fatigue is common among adults, yet only a small percentage of affected individuals seek medical attention. Following findings that complementary and alternative medicine can be effective strategies for improving fatigue, we evaluated the effect of an herbal tea regimen on prolonged fatigue.
Methods
In this pilot randomized controlled trial, participants with prolonged fatigue were randomly allocated to either a tea (n = 20) or control (n = 20) group. The tea group consumed herbal tea consisting of Astragali Radix, Angelicae gigantis Radix, and Zizyphi Fructus twice daily for 4 weeks, whereas the control group received no intervention. Outcomes were assessed at baseline and 4 and 8 weeks. The primary outcome was fatigue severity, measured using the Chalder Fatigue Scale. Secondary outcomes included sleep quality, depression symptoms, and quality of life.
Results
Among the 40 individuals screened, 35 completed the study. Fatigue severity was significantly lower in the tea group than the control group at 4 weeks, and within the tea group, fatigue severity and sleep quality improved at the 4- and 8-week follow-ups vs. baseline in the tea group. Depression also significantly improved in the tea group at 8 weeks. There were no changes within the control group on any measure.
Conclusion
The findings suggest that our herbal tea formulation reduces fatigue severity and improves sleep quality in adults with prolonged fatigue.
Background
Depression has been identified as one of the most frequent predictors of CAM use. However, limited data exist about the use of CAM providers among people with anxiety/depression in Norway. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of CAM providers, and the use of CAM providers and psychiatric outpatient services in combination, among people with self-reported anxiety and/or depression. Methods
We used questionnaire data from 12,982 participants (30–87 years) in the cross-sectional sixth Tromsø Study (conducted in 2007-8). Eligible for analyses in our study were 1685 participants who reported suffering from anxiety and/or depression. By descriptive statistical methods, we estimated the use of CAM providers, psychiatric outpatient services, and the combination of these. By logistic regressions we studied the association between the use of these services and gender, age, income, education, and self-reported degree of anxiety/depression. ResultsDuring the previous year, 17.8 % of people with anxiety/depression visited a CAM provider once or more, 11.8 % visited psychiatric outpatient services, and 2.5 % visited both. Men with anxiety/depression were less likely to visit CAM providers compared to women (odds ratio [OR] 0.40, confidence interval [CI] 0.30–0.55), whereas higher educated people were more likely to visit compared to the lowest educated (OR 1.47, CI 1.02–2.13). The use of CAM providers was not associated with the degree of anxiety/depression. For those who used both CAM providers and psychiatric specialist services during the previous year, severe anxiety/depression was strongly associated with use compared to moderate disease (OR 7.53, CI 2.75–20.65). Conclusions
People with severe anxiety/depression seem to use CAM providers and psychiatric services additionally, whereas those with moderate disease seem to use these services more as alternative pathways. CAM provider treatment might be a substitute for conventional care, particularly in patients with moderate disease.
A distinction between ruminative and reflective types of private self-attentiveness is introduced and evaluated with respect to L. R. Goldberg's (1982) list of 1,710 English trait adjectives (Study 1), the five-factor model of personality (FFM) and A. Fenigstein, M. F. Scheier, and A. Buss's(1975) Self-Consciousness Scales (Study 2), and previously reported correlates and effects of private self-consciousness (PrSC; Studies 3 and 4). Results suggest that the PrSC scale confounds two unrelated motivationally distinct disposition-rumination and reflection-and that this confounding may account for the "self-absorption paradox" implicit in PrSC research findings: Higher PrSC sources are associated with more accurate and extensive self-knowledge yet higher levels of psychological distress. The potential of the FFM to provide a comprehensive Framework for conceptualizing self-attentive dispositions, and to order and integrate research findings within this domain, is discussed.
Objective-This report presents national estimates of the use of complementary health approaches among adults in the United States across three time points. Trends in the use of selected complementary health approaches are compared for 2002, 2007, and 2012, and differences by selected demographic characteristics are also examined. Methods-Combined data from 88,962 adults aged 18 and over collected as part of the 2002, 2007, and 2012 National Health Interview Survey were analyzed for this report. Sample data were weighted to produce national estimates that are representative of the civilian noninstitutionalized U.S. adult population. Differences between percentages were evaluated using two-sided significance tests at the 0.05 level. Results-Although the use of individual approaches varied across the three time points, nonvitamin, nonmineral dietary supplements remained the most popular complementary health approach used. The use of yoga, tai chi, and qi gong increased linearly across the three time points; among these three approaches, yoga accounted for approximately 80% of the prevalence. The use of any complementary health approach also differed by selected sociodemographic characteristics. The most notable observed differences in use were by age and Hispanic or Latino origin and race.
All material appearing in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission; citation as to source, however, is appreciated.
Adopting an information-oriented identity style is thought to be beneficial vis-à-vis adolescent well-being and identity consolidation. However, these associations have not been consistently replicated. Consequently, the present study aims to examine the possible moderating role of motivational (i.e., causality orientations) and cognitive resources (i.e., self-reflection–self-rumination) in this link. In line with hypotheses, moderated regression analyses in a sample of college students (N=263) indicated that, with respect to outcomes such as identity commitment, identity integration, depressive symptoms, and self-esteem, an information-oriented style was less optimal under conditions of low autonomy and high self-rumination and more optimal under conditions of high autonomy and high self-reflection. Limitations are discussed and suggestions for future research are provided.
The objective of the present study was to assess the anxiolytic and anticonvulsant activity of alcoholic extract of heartwood of Aquilaria agallocha (AEAA) in mice. Preliminary phytochemical studies revealed the presence carbohydrates, flavonoids, tannins, saponins and tri terpenoids in AEAA. LD50 study was conducted in albino mice as per OECD guidelines no 425 and it was found to be 1098mg/kg. Anxiolytic activity in mice of AEAA was assessed using elevated plus- maze (EPM), Open field test (OFT) and light-dark transition (LDT) test models and anticonvulsant activity in pentylene tetrazole (PTZ), maximal electroshock (MES) induced convulsion models. AEAA at lower dose (30mg/ kg, po) did not show any anxiolytic or anti convulsant effect. Pretreatment with AEAA (100 and 300 mg/kg, po) significantly (1) increased the total entries, number of entries into the open and closed arm and the time spent in the open arms in EPA, (2) increase total locomotion, time spent in central compartment and decrease the immobility time in OFT and (3) increase the latency to enter into the dark compartment and the time spent in the light compartment in LDT indicating that AEAA at these dose levels possess anxiolytic activity. Similarly pretreatment with AEAA (100 and 300 mg/kg, po) significantly delayed the onset of PTZ induced clonic convulsions and duration of extensor phase in MES induced convulsions indicating that this extract possess anticonvulsant activity. These results suggest that at doses 100 and 300mg/kg AEAA, exhibited both anxiolytic and anticonvulsant activities. The medium dose (100mg/kg) of AEAA showed more anxiolytic activity and less anticonvulsant activity than higher dose (300mg/kg).
In order to assess the psychometric properties and diagnostic utility of the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) with older adults, these measures were administered to 217 older adult outpatients with mixed psychiatric disorders. Both the BAI and STAI scales demonstrated high internal reliabilities. The BAI demonstrated good factorial validity, with a somatic anxiety and a subjective anxiety factor emerging. In contrast, the STAI did not evidence factorial validity, with analyses failing to support presence of state and trait anxiety factors. Both the BAI and Trait Anxiety scale of the STAI demonstrated discriminant validity in separating patients with a current anxiety disorder from patients without such a disorder. However, the State Anxiety scale of the STAI did not discriminate between these groups. When used to predict presence of an anxiety disorder, no single cutting score for either the BAI or STAI proved optimal, due to tradeoffs between sensitivity and specificity. Results suggest that both the subjective subscale and total score on the BAI can be somewhat useful as a quick screening instrument in detecting presence of a current anxiety disorder for older adult psychiatric outpatients, although results were not as strong as previous findings regarding screening tests for depression in the elderly.
In this study, the authors investigated the predictors of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and herbal supplement use among university students. They investigated demographic factors, trait affectivity, symptom reports, and individuals' worries about modernity as potential contributors to use of CAM and herbals. The authors surveyed 506 undergraduates at a large southeastern state universityand administered the following questionnaires to participants in a group setting: a CAM survey, an herbal use survey, a negative affect (NA) and positive affect (PA) scale, Modern Health Worries scale, and the Subjective Health Complaint scale. Overall, 58 % of the participants had used at least one type of CAM, and 79 % of the students had used at least one herbal substance in the past 12 months. A hierarchical regression determined that increased age, female gender, flu-like symptoms, musculoskeletal symptoms, pseudoneurological symptoms, and modern health worries were significantly related to students' CAM use. Herbal use was related to increased age, musculoskeletal, pseudoneurological, and gastrointestinal symptoms.
In recent studies of the structure of affect, positive and negative affect have consistently emerged as two dominant and relatively independent dimensions. A number of mood scales have been created to measure these factors; however, many existing measures are inadequate, showing low reliability or poor convergent or discriminant validity. To fill the need for reliable and valid Positive Affect and Negative Affect scales that are also brief and easy to administer, we developed two 10-item mood scales that comprise the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). The scales are shown to be highly internally consistent, largely uncorrelated, and stable at appropriate levels over a 2-month time period. Normative data and factorial and external evidence of convergent and discriminant validity for the scales are also presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)
Because of increased stress conditions in college students, updated psychometrics of the Perceived Stress Scale, 10-item version (PSS-10; S. Cohen & G. Williamson, 1988) are necessary. Participants were 281 undergraduates at 3 public universities. An exploratory factor analysis revealed a 2-factor structure measuring Perceived Helplessness and Perceived Self-Efficacy. Normative results, internal consistencies, and construct validity were supported. The current findings reveal that the PSS-10 is a reliable and valid instrument for assessment of perceived stress in college students. (Contains 2 tables.)
Anxiety, anger, depression, and curiosity are major indicators of psychological distress and well-being that require careful assessment. Measuring these psychological vital signs is of critical importance in diagnosis, and can facilitate treatment by directly linking intense emotions to the events that give rise to them. The historical background regarding theory and research on anxiety, anger, depression, and curiosity is briefly reviewed, and the nature and assessment of these emotional states and personality traits are examined. The construction and development of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the State-Trait Anger EXpression Inventory (STAXI-2), and the State-Trait Personality Inventory (STPI) to assess anxiety, anger, depression, and curiosity, and the major components of these emotional states and personality traits, are described in detail. Findings demonstrating the diverse utility and efficacy of these measures are also reported, along with guidelines for their interpretation and utilisation in research and clinical practice. Research with the STAI, STAXI and STPI over the last 40 years has contributed to understanding vitally important measurement concepts that are especially applicable to the assessment of emotions. These concepts included the state–trait distinction, item intensity specificity, and the importance of items that describe the presence or absence of emotions.
The aim of the present study was to identify formulas used at Men-Tsee-Khang (Tibetan Medical and Astrological Institute), India, for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders and to compare the Tibetan usage of particular ingredients with pharmacological data from the scientific database. Using ethnographic methods, five doctors were selected and interviewed. A correlation was observed between central nervous system disorders and rLung, one of the three humors in Tibetan medicine, which imbalance is the source of mental disorders, and ten multi-ingredient formulas used to treat the imbalance of this particular humor were identified. These formulas utilize 61 ingredients; among them were 48 plant species. Each formula treats several symptoms related to rLung imbalance, so the plants may have therapeutic uses distinct from those of the formulas in which they are included. Myristica fragrans, nutmeg, is contained in 100% of the formulas, and its seeds exhibit stimulant and depressant actions affecting the central nervous system. Preclinical and clinical data from the scientific literature indicate that all of the formulas include ingredients with neuropsychiatric action and corroborate the therapeutic use of 75.6% of the plants. These findings indicate a level of congruence between the therapeutic uses of particular plant species in Tibetan and Western medicines. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Anxiety disorders are common, costly and debilitating, and yet often unrecognized or inadequately treated in real world, primary care settings. Our group has been researching ways of delivering evidence-based treatment for anxiety in primary care settings, with special interest to preserving the fidelity of the treatment while at the same time promoting its sustainability once the research is over. In this paper, we describe the programs we have developed and our directions for future research. Our first study evaluated the efficacy of CBT and expert pharmacotherapy recommendations for panic disorder in primary care, using a collaborative care model of service delivery (CCAP). Symptom, disability and mental health functioning measures were superior for the intervention group compared to treatment as usual both in the short term and the long term, although also more costly. In our ongoing CALM study, we have extended our population to include panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and posttraumatic disorder, while at the same time utilizing clinicians with limited mental health care experience. In addition to pharmacotherapy management, we developed a computer-assisted CBT that guides both novice clinician and patient, thereby contributing to sustainability once the research is over. We have also incorporated a measurement based approach to treatment planning, using a web-based tracking system of patient status. To date, the computer-assisted CBT program has been shown to be acceptable to clinicians and patients. Clinicians rated the program highly, and patients engaged in the program. Future directions for our research include dissemination and implementation of the CALM program, testing potential alternations to the CALM program, and distance delivery of CALM.
This paper presents evidence from three samples, two of college students and one of participants in a community smoking-cessation program, for the reliability and validity of a 14-item instrument, the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), designed to measure the degree to which situations in one's life are appraised as stressful. The PSS showed adequate reliability and, as predicted, was correlated with life-event scores, depressive and physical symptomatology, utilization of health services, social anxiety, and smoking-reduction maintenance. In all comparisons, the PSS was a better predictor of the outcome in question than were life-event scores. When compared to a depressive symptomatology scale, the PSS was found to measure a different and independently predictive construct. Additional data indicate adequate reliability and validity of a four-item version of the PSS for telephone interviews. The PSS is suggested for examining the role of nonspecific appraised stress in the etiology of disease and behavioral disorders and as an outcome measure of experienced levels of stress.
Agarwood (Jinkoh in Japanese) is an Oriental medicine for use as a sedative. Neuropharmacological studies have been conducted with the extracts of petroleum ether, benzene, chloroform, and water from agarwood (Aquilaria sp.; probably Aquilaria malaccensis Benth.) in mice. The benzene extract showed a reducing effect in spontaneous motility, a prolonging effect on hexobarbiturate-induced sleeping time, a hypothermic effect in terms of rectal temperature, and a suppressive effect on acetic acid-writhing by oral administration. Fr. 1 of the three fractions which were obtained from the benzene extract by column chromatography was found to produce more positive effects on these neuropharmacological tests than the original benzene extract. These facts suggest that the benzene extractable compounds of agarwood possess potent central nervous system depressant activities.
To evaluate the reliability and validity of the PANAS (Watson, Clark, & Tellegen, 1988b) and provide normative data.
Cross-sectional and correlational.
The PANAS was administered to a non-clinical sample, broadly representative of the general adult UK population (N = 1,003). Competing models of the latent structure of the PANAS were evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis. Regression and correlational analysis were used to determine the influence of demographic variables on PANAS scores as well as the relationship between the PANAS with measures of depression and anxiety (the HADS and the DASS).
The best-fitting model (robust comparative fit index = .94) of the latent structure of the PANAS consisted of two correlated factors corresponding to the PA and NA scales, and permitted correlated error between items drawn from the same mood subcategories (Zevon & Tellegen, 1982). Demographic variables had only very modest influences on PANAS scores and the PANAS exhibited measurement invariance across demographic subgroups. The reliability of the PANAS was high, and the pattern of relationships between the PANAS and the DASS and HADS were consistent with tripartite theory.
The PANAS is a reliable and valid measure of the constructs it was intended to assess, although the hypothesis of complete independence between PA and NA must be rejected. The utility of this measure is enhanced by the provision of large-scale normative data.
Essentials of Tibetan Traditional Medicine
- T Gyatso
- C Hakim
Gyatso T, Hakim C. Essentials of Tibetan Traditional Medicine. 1st
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Eng. dark-blue aconite, Tib. bong nga nag po) (32) Meconopsis sp. (Eng. blue poppy, Tib
- Aconitum Sp
Aconitum sp. (Eng. dark-blue aconite, Tib. bong nga nag po)
(32) Meconopsis sp. (Eng. blue poppy, Tib. tsher sngon)
Twelve-month and lifetime prevalence and lifetime morbid risk of anxiety and mood disorders in the United States
- R C Kessler
- M Petukhova
- N A Sampson
- A M Zaslavsky
- H U Wittchen
Kessler RC, Petukhova M, Sampson NA, Zaslavsky AM,
Wittchen HU. Twelve-month and lifetime prevalence and lifetime morbid risk of anxiety and mood disorders in the United
States. Int J Methods Psychiatr Res. 2012;21(3):169-184.