Category:Nervine herbs

A nervine herb is a plant medicine that acts on the central or peripheral nervous system, traditionally divided into nervine relaxants (chamomile, lemon balm, passionflower, hops, skullcap, valerian, lavender, oats, vervain, motherwort), nervine stimulants (the methylxanthine plants and selected aromatics that increase wakefulness), and nervine tonics (the adaptogens and the long-term restoratives such as oat straw and St John's wort). The Western herbal tradition treats the nervines as a distinct category co-equal with the digestive herbs and the cardiovascular herbs; the Ayurvedic medhya rasayana (cognitive-restorative) category overlaps substantially.

The clinical use of the nervine relaxants is for anxiety, insomnia, restless agitation, and the various somatic expressions of nervous-system overactivity (nervous-stomach dyspepsia, tension headache, situational anxiety). The pharmacological mechanism of several is now well characterised. Valerian (Valeriana officinalis) contains valerenic acid and several iridoid esters; valerenic acid is a positive allosteric modulator at the GABA-A receptor (mechanistically related to but distinct from the benzodiazepine site). Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) contains rosmarinic acid and citral derivatives; it inhibits GABA transaminase and increases GABA concentration in vitro, and a small clinical-trial literature supports modest anxiolytic and cognitive-protective effects. Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) contains apigenin (the same GABA-A benzodiazepine-site ligand that drives chamomile's anxiolytic effect) and the controversial harmane β-carbolines; controlled-trial evidence supports mild-to-moderate generalised anxiety benefit. Chamomile (described under digestive herbs for its primary indication) is a nervine relaxant through the same apigenin mechanism. Hops (Humulus lupulus) contains 2-methyl-3-butene-2-ol, a sedative volatile; hops are most often combined with valerian or passionflower for insomnia.

The nervine tonic class is dominated by St John's wort (Hypericum perforatum), whose hypericin and hyperforin produce a serotonin, noradrenaline, and dopamine reuptake inhibition that has been validated in numerous meta-analyses for mild-to-moderate depression. The clinical-pharmacology challenge with St John's wort is its very substantial CYP3A4 induction (and parallel induction of CYP1A2, CYP2C9, and the P-glycoprotein efflux pump), producing interactions with cyclosporine, oral contraceptives, antiretrovirals, warfarin, and many others that have made the medicine a routine clinical concern. The adaptogen class (ashwagandha, rhodiola, ginseng, eleuthero, holy basil) is cross-listed under adaptogens and shares the nervine-tonic clinical positioning.

Valerian (Valeriana officinalis), lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), passionflower (Passiflora incarnata), hops (Humulus lupulus), chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla and Chamaemelum nobile), lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora), Chinese skullcap (Scutellaria baicalensis), oats (Avena sativa; oat straw and milky-oat tincture), vervain (Verbena officinalis), motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca), California poppy (Eschscholzia californica), St John's wort (Hypericum perforatum), wild lettuce (Lactuca virosa), kava (Piper methysticum, with its substantial hepatotoxicity caveat), Magnolia bark (Magnolia officinalis), the medhya rasayana group (bacopa, gotu kola, brahmi), and the calming TCM herbs Suan Zao Ren (jujube seed, Ziziphus jujuba) and He Huan Pi (mimosa bark, Albizia julibrissin).

The boundary of this category is "herb whose principal or important action is on the central or peripheral nervous system." The adaptogens are cross-listed under adaptogens; the herbs principally used in anxiety with a sedative/hypnotic emphasis are also cross-listed under anxiolytic herbs. Herbs whose nervous-system action is incidental to their primary indication (chamomile's anxiolytic action alongside its primary digestive use) are listed under their primary indication category with cross-reference. The pharmaceutical nervous-system medicines (antidepressants, the benzodiazepines and Z-drugs of Schedule IV, the antiepileptics, the neuroleptics) are listed under their own categories with cross-reference where relevant.

This category page is an encyclopedia article about its subject. The actual index of herbs belonging to the category is generated automatically by the wiki engine, from category-membership declarations on the individual herb pages, and appears at the foot of the page below the references.