Rosemary Supplementation as an Adjunctive Therapy to SSRIs Reduces Anxiety and Depression Symptoms

by | Jan 10, 2023 | 2022, Botanicals, Brain Health, Depression

Written by Taylor Woosley, Staff Writer. 8-week supplementation of rosemary (capsule containing rosmarinic acid amounts of 21.13 ± 0.56) significantly decreased BDI-II scores (p-value = 0.001) and HADS-A scores (p-value = 0.001) compared to the control group. 

depressionMental health-related disorders are highly prevalent, disabling, and costly disorders that are linked with diminished role functioning and quality of life and mortality1. Depression affects approximately 280 million people and accounted for more than 47 million disability-adjusted life-years in 20192. Although the pathophysiology of depression remains incompletely understood, decreased functioning of neurotransmitters (serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine) in the brain has traditionally been implicated3. Furthermore, it is well established that chronic inflammation and dysregulation of both the innate and adaptive immune systems occur in depressed patients4.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) has been used in traditional medicine to alleviate symptoms of nervous agitation, physical and mental fatigue, and depression5. It is an aromatic herb rich in antioxidant compounds such as rosmarinic acid which is associated with anti-depressant and neuroprotective effects6. Mice studies have shown that rosmarinic acid significantly ameliorates depressive-like behaviors through the inactivation of inflammatory reactions in the hippocampus7.

Azizi et al. conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to evaluate the therapeutic effects of rosemary supplementation in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Subject inclusion consisted of being aged 18-55 years old, who were newly diagnosed with MDD, who were not receiving antidepressant medications, and were candidates for initiation of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) therapy. Participants (n=51) were divided into two groups: the rosemary group (n= 26) or the control group (n=25). The rosemary group received one capsule of rosemary (containing rosmarinic acid amounts of 21.13 ± 0.56) twice a day for 8 weeks. Demographic information and the type of SSRI prescribed to subjects was recorded.

Symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients was measured using the anxiety subscale of Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-A) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) before initiation of the treatment and four and eight weeks after the treatment. Mixed model analysis of variance method was used to compare the scores of each scale between the two groups during the trial. Independent samples t-test, Fisher’s exact test, and chi-square test were employed to assess the differences in demographic variables.

Mean age of participants was 30.67 ± 8.97 years, with 41 females (80.39%) and 10 (19.61%) males. There were no significant demographic differences between the two groups. Based on scores related to HADS-A, 37 (72.5%) of subjects were anxiety cases, 9 subjects (17.65%) were potential anxiety cases, and 5 (9.90%) had normal scores. Significant findings of the study are as follows:

  • Regarding BDI-II scores, there was a statistically significant decrease in the rosemary group 4 weeks (p-value = 0.001) and 8 weeks (p-value = 0.001) after the treatment.
  • Additionally, HADS-A scores in the rosemary group significantly decreased at week 4 (p-value = 0.001) and week 8 (p-value = 0.001) after treatment.
  • The BDI-II scores were significantly lower in the rosemary group compared to the control at baseline (p-value = 0.003), 4 weeks (p-value = 0.001), and 8 weeks (p-value = 0.001) after the therapy.

Findings of the study show that rosemary effectively reduces anxiety and depression symptoms in adults with MDD when used as an adjunctive therapy to SSRIs. Further research should continue to explore the anti-depressant and neuroprotective effects of rosemary. Study limitations include the small sample size and short study duration, and the lack of measuring biological parameters such as inflammatory markers.

Source: Azizi, Saeed, Neda Mohamadi, Fariba Sharififar, Gholamreza Dehghannoudeh, Farzaneh Jahanbakhsh, and Fatemeh Dabaghzadeh. “Rosemary as an adjunctive treatment in patients with major depressive disorder: A randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled trial.” Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice 49 (2022): 101685.

© 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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Posted January 10, 2023.

Taylor Woosley studied biology at Purdue University before becoming a 2016 graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a major in Writing. She currently resides in Glen Ellyn, IL.

References:

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