Combined treatment with valerian and lemon balm provides a viable option in addition to counselling and education. - GreenMedInfo Summary
Hyperactivity, concentration difficulties and impulsiveness improve during seven weeks' treatment with valerian root and lemon balm extracts in primary school children.
Phytomedicine. 2014 Jul-Aug;21(8-9):1098-103. Epub 2014 May 15. PMID: 24837472
Jürgen Gromball
BACKGROUND: Valerian root and lemon balm extracts have previously shown efficacy and excellent tolerability in children<12 years suffering from restlessness and insomnia. We now examined whether treatment with a fixed combination of both may also improve concentration, hyperactivity and impulsiveness.
METHODS: 169 primary school children suffering from hyperactivity and concentration difficulties but not meeting ADHS criteria were treated in an observational study by 27 office based pediatricians with a recommended daily dose of 640 mg valerian root extract WS(®) 1014 and 320 mg lemon balm extract WS(®) 1303 (Sandrin(®)), and evaluated by pediatricians and parents using standardized questionnaires at baseline, weeks 2 and 7.
RESULTS: The fraction of children having strong/very strong symptoms of poor ability to focus decreased from 75% to 14%, hyperactivity from 61% to 13%, and impulsiveness from 59% to 22%. Parent rated social behavior, sleep and symptom burden showed highly significant improvements. Only in two children mild transient adverse drug reactions were observed.
CONCLUSION: In primary school children with restlessness, concentration difficulties and impulsiveness treatment with WS(®) 1014 and WS(®) 1303 (Sandrin(®)) provides a viable option in addition to counseling and education.
