Medicating Depression Naturally

If you are like me and prefer not to put any chemicals in your body in the form of drugs and medication, you need to find a natural alternative. But what if you suffer from depression that requires you to constantly take medication just so that you can function normally in life? Are there natural alternatives that can suffice as a replacement for prescribed anti-depressants?

Finding natural alternatives for any type of illness is harder than you may think but they are available. This is because people are under the impression that these natural alternatives just don't work. The problem is that they take time to work and often don't give instant relief to symptoms as their chemical counterparts do.

We live in a society where instant gratification is key and we will take anything prescribed by a doctor without taking into consideration the side effects or the long term damage the drugs can do to our bodies.

The most well known natural treatment for depression is St. Johns Wort. The active ingredients in the plant are hypericin and hyperforin. These two ingredients inhibit the uptake of serotonin in the brain in much the same way as chemical antidepressants work.

There are different ways in which you can take St. Johns Wort. Consuming the actual plant or drinking it as a tea has been found to relatively ineffective in treating depression. This is because you would need to consume a large amount of the plant to inter enough of the active ingredients to take effect.

It is therefore recommended that it be taken in pill or tablet form where the active ingredients have been extracted from the plant and can be consumed in a more concentrated manner. Taking these tablets does not however guarantee a result as some formulations don't work.

Read the label of any St. Johns Wort supplement that you are thinking of purchasing and using. Make sure that hypericin is mentioned on the label. In some cases hyperforin may also be mentioned but in most cases just the mention of hypericin if enough.

If the label states that the product contains Hyericum, do not think that this is a variation on hypericin or a spelling error. Hypericum is simply the Latin name for the genus of the plant species and may not contain the active ingredient in high enough dosages.

The active ingredient hypericin should be contained in a dosage of 0.2% or more and can constitute up to 0.28% of the formulation. hyperforin should constitute between 3 and 6 percent of the capsule or tablet.

It is important to follow the dosage instructions carefully for St. Johns Wort to be effective. Take the amount of recommended pills over a recommended period of time.

The effectiveness of St. Johns Wort as a replacement medication for antidepressants can vary when considering the severity and type of depression. It is important to consult with your health care professional when discontinuing or changing your current medication for a natural alternative.