Lemon balm

FAMILY: Labiatae.

HABITAT: Native to Turkey, it grows in all countries of the Mediterranean basin and in Central and Eastern Europe in cool, semi-shady places.

USED PART: leaves.

RECOMMENDED PHARMACEUTICAL PREPARATIONS: nebulised dry extract titrated in rosmarinic acid min.2% (French Pharmacopoeia X). Its daily dosage ranges from 400 to 600 mg, divided into two doses, preferably between meals.

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION: contains about 0.05% essential oil, characterised by the presence of monoterpene aldehydes. It also contains triterpenes, phenolic acids, flavonoids and tannins.

THERAPEUTIC PROPERTIES:
Sedative action: is known to have sedative, anxiolytic and sleep-promoting actions on the central nervous system; it may also have a pain-relieving action. Animal experiments have shown that lemon balm has a central sedative action, as it reduces motor activity with a dose-dependent effect. It has recently been shown that certain flavonoids may have benzodiazepine-like activity because they are able to bind to benzodiazepine receptors located in the brain.
Spasmolytic action: possesses a valuable spasmolytic action on the smooth muscles of the digestive tract, which appears to be due to the essential oil and partly also to flavonoids, especially those containing apigenin. This alleviates abdominal pain typical of, for example, people suffering from spastic colitis.
Anti-radical action: Phenolic acids also have protective activity against free radical damage, in particular by significantly reducing lipid peroxidation processes. Therefore, this plant is currently used in the symptomatic treatment of anxiety in adults and children and in psychosomatic diseases affecting the digestive tract.

SIDE EFFECTS AND CONTRAINDICATIONS: use with caution in subjects with hypothyroidism. May cause mild drowsiness. In very rare cases it may cause allergic skin reactions. Do not use during pregnancy and lactation. It can be used in children from the age of 4 years.

It can be found in Elsa® - Relaxcol Junior® - Vagostabil®