The Passionflower extracts enable the release of GABA in the brain. When GABA Proteins attach to the GABA receptor in the brain, it gives a calming, relaxing stress-free effect on your brain. This is how Passionflower helps in insomnia and Inducing sleep.
Passionflowers or passion vines (Passiflora incarnata) belonging to the family of Passifloraceae genus type of more than 500 species. The Passionflower can be easily identified with its vines bearing tendrils and some are also in shrubs and trees.
These species of flowers are mostly found in the southeastern United States, along with the Central and the South American regions.
The native people cultivate it for their ornamental use, edible fruits, and also to treat a variety of health conditions such as boils, wounds, liver problems, and earaches.
What are the benefits of passionflower?
The Passion flower has multiple health benefits. I will giving you a quick table of the health benefits. But if you have 2 minutes the keep on reading about the details given below the list 🙂
10 Health Benefits of Passionflower
- Reduces Stress.
- Reduces Muscle pain.
- Has anti-inflammatory effects.
- Helps in Insomnia
- Helps in Relieving Anxiety
- Reduces hypertension.
- Helps in ADHD.
- Reduces the duration of seizures in epilepsy.
- Heals Stomach Ulcer.
- Protects hair.
Now, you can read about the benefits in detail along with h relevant medical research studies.
The passionflower is used for reducing stress, muscle pain, hypertension, anxiety (anxiolytic effects), insomnia, or ADHD (attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder), and even anxiety before surgery.
Some researches showed that consuming the flower 30-90 mins before surgery can
reduce anxiety before the surgery.
Through a clinical trial of 2016, it was found that passionflower helped to relieve and
decrease anxiety and helped in improving the memory of the rats.
Such effects can be because of the GABA (Gamma-aminobutyric acid) level affected by the passionflower.
In another animal study, it was found that passionflower reduced the time taken by the animal to fall asleep. Through a study in 2007, it was found that passionflower increased the duration of seizures and can be used for epilepsy.
Another study evidenced passionflower to help in the reduction of symptoms of menopause like headache, depression, anxiety, insomnia. It can even be used for reducing the anti-inflammatory effect.
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Through a study reported in the Indian Journal of Pharmacology, it was stated by the
researchers that usage of passion flowers can potentially treat stomach ulcers, they found how it helped to reduce the ulcers in rats and a potential increase to antioxidant level.
Also, in another reported study, they created an extract from the leaves and stems of the flowering plant which showed promise to cure ulcers in rats as reported in BioMed Research International.
Nevertheless, say passionflower even plays a role in beauty over hundreds of years. The
rich essences and milk of passionflower are one of the best conditioners to hair, providing shine and a healthy look to hair by treating dry and damaged hair.
How passionflower can help to sleep?
The passionflower extracts have a calming effect by relieving muscle spasms and cramps and induce sleep in the body.
Evidence was reported to Anaesthesia and Analgesia journal where the purple passionflower helps to relieve anxiety and stress level and effect on patients scheduled for their surgery.
Through trial research published in Phytotherapy Research, a group of people participated
in it. The participants who drank the daily dose of purple passionflower as herbal tea had a better quality of sleep and found improved results.
Earlier research studies suggested for passionflower to help relieve insomnia by boosting the GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid) in the brain which subsequently relaxes the activity of the brain and improves the quality and level of sleep.
How can you consume passionflower?
Can you cook and eat passionflower?
Yes, you can cook delicious food items with passionflower to consume within your daily diet to maintain your body stress level with ease, and decrease the anxiety level, and have a sound sleep.
In various food and beverage items, the extracts of passionflower are used for flavoring. Prefer recommending to a doctor before starting the consumption of the flower. You
can consume passionflower in various ways like:
- You can add dried passionflower to boiling water for creating a herbal and healthy tea. It is available in the stores as dried passionflower or pre-packaged tea.
- You can buy even liquid extracts of flowers or even tablets and capsules.
What can You cook with Passion Flowers?
You can add passion flowers to your diet with a pure and herbal tea either plane or more enriched with herbs.
4 Easy Steps to make DIY Herbal Tea with PassionFlower:
Step 1 :
Boiling water for 6-8 minutes.
Step 2
Add dried passion flower or a mixture of herbs. (Read below)
Step 3
Strain the herbal tea.
Step 4
Add honey and drink it.
Keep on reading about how to make the herbal tea in details.
You can make herbal tea simply by adding dried passion flowers to boiling water and tea leaves and have it. Or else you can blend it like this,
You can blend passion flowers dried with other herbs to make herbal tea. Herbs like chamomile, lemon balm, valerian root, St. John’s Wort, Hops, lavender rose can be used in dried form or prepacked tea form available in the stores to blend with passion flowers to make a significant change in flavor and enhance the quality of tea.
You can make the tea by boiling water for 6-8 minutes in a pot and then adding the dried passion flowers and other herbs above mentioned with or without tea leaves.
Then strain the tea into a cup and add honey to taste and enjoy it either hot or let it settle down for a few minutes and enjoy it cold with ice cubes.
What are side effects of passionflower?
As recommended by NCCIH, passionflower is considered to be safe for consumption. Yet it may reflect a few of the side effects like:
Consumption by Mouth:
For most people consuming passionflower is relatively safer when used in an amount of food flavoring. It is safer for people possibly when consumed as night tea for 7 nights or in form of medicine for up to 8 weeks.
They may find it unsafe and causing side effects of dizziness, drowsiness, or confusion when consumed in a higher amount of up to 3.5gm of one specific extract (Sedacalam by Bipolus Healthcare) over a 2-days period.
Application over Skin:
Not much relevant information is found for the application of passionflower over the skin or open body area, or any side effects when the flower is applied over the exposed skin.
Pregnant women are advised to consult their doctors before consumption of passion flower by mouth or over the skin or exposed body areas. There is not sufficient evidence in support for usage to children or the side-effect to them.
Takeaways:
Passionflower may help to reduce anxiotic disorders and help to improve the sleep. It may even have other benefits for reducing the menopause epilepsy symptoms.
It can be used as supplement to anxiety treatment but only after proper interaction with the doctor or medical person.