SYSTEMIC REVIEW OF MEDICINAL PLANTS USED FOR THE TREATMENT OF ANXIETY

Zeenath Banu*, Chapala Renu Sri, Asnia Inayet and Fazilath Unnisa Begum

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Anxiety is a medical state related to our psychological as well as physiological behaviour having numerous characteristics like cognitive, emotional, behavioural and somatic. Many allopathic drugs are available to treat anxiety disorders, among which benzodiazepines are most commonly used which possess various systemic side effects, which is why many patients prefer to use herbal products to treat anxiety. Here, we reviewed plants and products derived from them that are commonly used for the treatment of Anxiety. The purpose of this systematic review is to study anxiety and to summarise the available treatments for this disease, focusing especially on herbal medicine. Methods: An extensive literature search has been conducted regarding Anxiety and medicinal plants used in treating anxiety; using multiple databases (Google Scholar, Science Direct, Scopus, Springer Link, and PubMed) covering all published journals from 2010 to the most current. Key search items used in this study included, ―medicinal plants‖, ―medicinal herb‖, ―Anxiety‖, ―symptom‖, ―herbal‖, and ―treatment‖. Out of the 150 collected articles (published between 2010 and 2023), 69 were excluded due to non-relevance or lack of access to the original article. Results: Anxiety is generally associated with an imbalance in neurotransmitters, especially those like serotonin, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), norepinephrine, and dopamine. These neurotransmitters play a crucial role in regulating mood, emotions, and stress responses, Various plants contain bioactive compounds such as tannins, terpenoids, saponins, steroids, glycosides, flavonoids, and alkaloids which have been associated with potential anxiety-reducing effects. Conclusion: According to the published results, it can be said that medical plants are more affordable have fewer side effects compared to synthetic drugs, and are more effective in the treatment of anxiety.

Keywords: medicinal plants, anxiety, symptom, herbal, treatment.