A REVIEW ON HERBS WITH ANTIDEPRESSANT PROPERTIES

Since the dawn of civilization, plants have been the basis of a medicine and a major resource for human health care for curative and palliative functions. Man in today times has always been in quest of that herb that heals the body and soothes the mind as stress has begun to become a part and parcel of modern day life. Medicinal plants have been used to treat such psychotropic and behavioural conditions as anxiety, depression, seizures, poor memory, dementia, insomnia and drug intoxication. There have been limited studies on herbs having antidepression property. The aim of this article is to review the medicinal plants having such components that help in treating stress, psychotropic and behavioural disorders. A number of species and genera have been identified that are in use for treating such ailments directly or indirectly. However, further studies need to be conducted to explore and provide scientific credence to the folklore traditional use of medicines that could become helpful in developing effective green remedies sans side effects.