Antiaddictive plants
- Potential use of medicinal plants in the treatment of alcoholism.
Carai MA, Agabio R, Bombardelli E, Bourov I, Gessa GL, Lobina C, Morazzoni P, Pani M, Reali R, Vacca G, Colombo G.Bernard B. Brodie Department of Neuroscience, University of Cagliari, Via Porcell 4, 09124, Cagliari, Italy.
Fitoterapia. 2000 Aug;71 Suppl 1:S38-42
The present paper briefly reviews the most relevant experimental data on the reducing effect of some medicinal herbs on voluntary alcohol intake in animal models of alcoholism. Pueraria lobata, Tabernanthe iboga, Panax ginseng, Salvia miltiorrhiza and Hypericum perforatum proved to be effective in decreasing alcohol consumption. Reduction of alcohol absorption from the gastrointestinal system appears to be a common feature among most of the above plants. These data suggest that medicinal plants may constitute novel and effective pharmacotherapies for alcoholism.
- The effect of the complex plant preparation polyphytochol on the course of alcoholic hepatitis.
Rastitel’nye-Resursy. 1997, 33: 2, 64-68
AB: Polyphytochol is obtained from inflorescences of Helichrysum arenarium and Tanacetum vulgare, Mentha piperita leaves, Urtica dioica leaves, Glycyrrhiza glabra roots and Rosa hips, formulated according to a Tibetan medicinal recipe. In white rats, liver damage induced by 40% ethanol (0.7 ml/100 g) was accompanied by activation of lipid peroxidation in biological membranes of liver cells, development of cytolysis, and cholestasis (disturbance of the formation and secretion of bile). When polyphytochol was administered for 21 days in total dose 300 mg/kg (10% of LD50) to animals with alcoholic hepatitis, it inhibited the process of lipid peroxidation, stimulated the antitoxic functions of the liver, activated regenerative processes in cells and normalized the functional state of the liver.
