herb · for anxiety
Bacopa
Meant to act on the serotonin and calming systems without making you drowsy.
Say that in clinical terms
Modulates serotonin and GABA systems, providing anxiolytic activity without sedation.
How strong is the research?
Not verified evidence
Industry funded
1 paper read.
Who was studied: 17 healthy volunteers doing a computer task in a lab.
A single dose in 17 volunteers doing a computer task.
How much to take
daily
300–450 mg
Anxiolytic effects appear within 4-6 weeks. No sedation or tolerance.
Before you take it
- In vitro studies show Bacopa monnieri non-competitively inhibits CYP1A2, CYP2C9, and CYP2C19, and competitively inhibits CYP3A4; at gut concentrations modeled on 300 mg/day dosing, CYP3A4, CYP2C9, and CYP2C19 activity is reduced to <10% of baseline — clinically significant herb-drug interaction risk for medications metabolized by these enzymes, including warfarin, statins, SSRIs, antiepileptics, and benzodiazepines.
- Acetylcholinesterase inhibitor activity: may potentiate cholinergic drugs (risk of cholinergic excess/toxicity) and antagonize anticholinergic medications; a published case report describes malaise, nausea, and tachycardia attributed to a Bacopa–cevimeline interaction.
- Animal data (mice) show approximately 40% increase in circulating thyroxine (T4) following Bacopa monnieri administration; caution warranted in individuals with thyroid disorders or taking thyroid medications.
- The most commonly reported adverse effects are nausea, increased stool frequency, and abdominal cramps, particularly when taken on an empty stomach.
- No NIH/IOM Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) has been established for Bacopa monnieri.
- Insufficient clinical safety data exist for use during pregnancy or lactation; avoidance during these periods is generally recommended.
- Cholinergic mechanism of action may worsen bradycardia, gastrointestinal obstruction, peptic ulcer disease, asthma, or COPD.
- Animal studies report dose-dependent reductions in male sperm count, motility, and viability; reproductive safety in human males is not established from clinical data.
- This study tested acute single doses during a laboratory stress paradigm in healthy volunteers — the anxiolytic signal here is acute cortisol reduction and mood secondary outcomes, not treatment of ongoing clinical anxiety; this context distinction is relevant when presenting the evidence to users with chronic anxiety symptoms
What we make of it
A single dose in 17 volunteers doing a computer task.
The detail
The study gave one dose to 17 healthy volunteers and measured cortisol and mood during a multitasking exercise. That is a long way from anxiety as a persistent problem.