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In Europe, It's St John's Wort for depression not Prozac The appeal of alternative medicine is growing in Europe more rapidly than in the United States. In parts of Europe, St. John's Wort grows wild, and scientists have been studying it for decades. It is available in herb shops in liquid, capsules, and dried form. While St. John's Wort may not be well known in the Uniteds States, doctors in Germany prescribe it for depression and insurance pays for it. Some scientific studies published in the British Medical Journal suggest that St. John's Wort is as effective as any other conventional antidepressant and has very few side effects. Listed below are some of the scientific studies on St. John's Wort from the MEDLINE database.

MEDLINE Cites

<1> Ozturk Y. Aydin S. Beis R. Baser KHC. Berbeoglu H. Effects of Hypericum Calycinum L. Extract on The Central Nervous System in Mice. Phytotherapy Research. 10(8): 700-702, 1996 Dec. <2> Houghton PJ. ST. John's Wort for Depression. British Medical Journal. 313(7066):1204-1205, 1996 Nov 9. <3> Schops K. Syrett P. Emberson RM. Summer Diapuses in Chrysolina Hyperici And C-Quadrigemina(Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae), in Relation to Biological Control of St.John's Wort, Hypericum Perforatum(clusiaceae) Bulletin of Entomological Research 86(5):591-597, 1996 Oct. <4> Ozturk Y. Aydin S. Beis R. Baser KHC. Berberoglu H. Effects of Hypericum Perforatum L and Hypericum Calycinum L Extracts on the Central Nervous System in Mice. Phytomedicine 3(2): 139-146, 1996 Sep. <5> Kerb R. Brockmoller J. Staffeldt B. Ploch M. Roots I. Single Dose and Steady-State Pharmakokinetics of Hypericin and Pseudohypericin. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 40(9):2087-2093, 1996 Sep. <6> Linde K. Ramirez G. Murlow CD. Pauls A. Weidenhammer W. Melchart D. St-John Wort For Depression -An Overview and Meta-Analysis of Randomised Clinical Trials. British Medical Journal. 313(7052):253-258, 1996 Aug 3. <7> Chizzola R. Franz C. Metallic Trace Elements in Medicinal and Aromatic plants from Austria. Angewandte Botanik. 70(1-2):52-56, 1996 May. <8>Ernst E. St.John's Wort an Antidepressant-A Systematic Criteria Based Review.[Review]. Phytomedicine. 2(1):67-71, 1995 Jul. <9> Cott J. NCDEU Update. Natural product Formulations Available in Europe for psychotropic Indications. Psychopharmacology Bulletin. 31(4): 745-51, 1995 <10> Diwu Z. Novel Theraputic and Diagnostic Applcations of hypocrellins and Hypericins. [Review]. Photochemistry and Photobiology. 61(6):529-39, 1995 <11> Sommer H. Harrer G. Placebo-Controlled Double Blind Study Examining the Effectiveness of an Hypericum Preparation in 105 Mildly Depressed Patients. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry & Neurology. 7 Suppl 1: S9-11, 1994 <12> Harrer G. Schultz V. Clinical Investigation of the Antidepressant Effectiveness of Hypericum. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology. 7 Suppl 1:S6-S8, 1994 <13> Woelk H. Burkard G. Grunwald J. Benefits and Risks of the Hypericum Extract L1 160: Drug Monitoring Study with 3250 Patients. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology. 7 Suppl 1:S34-8, 1994 <14> Payk TR. Treatment of Depression. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology. 7 Suppl 1: S3-5, 1994 <15> Harrere G. Hubner WD. Podzuweit H. Effectiveness and Tolerance of the Hypericum Extract L1 160 Compared to Maprotiline: A Multicenter Double Blind Study. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology. 7 Suppl 1:S24-8, 1994. <16> Vorbach EU. Hubner WD. Arnoldt KH. Effectiveness and Tolerance of the Hypericum Extract L1 160 in Comparison with Imipramine: Randomized Double-Blind Study with 135 Patients. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology. 7 Suppl 1:S19-23, 1994.