Sleepless: Valeriana.

Newsgroups: alt.folklore.herbs
Subject: Valerian
From: snyderlab (Elaine Thompson)
Date: 2 Jun 1994 22:38:00 GMT

I have been using a sleep formula containing, among other things, tincture of valerian. (Other ingredients are balm, wild oats, chamomile, orange peel, california poppy leaves.) I have an herbal book that says not to use valerian continuously for more than two weeks, but it does not say why. The book is called "The Herb Book," and I can't remember the author. I have checked the labels on many herbal preparations that contain valerian, and they do not have any warning about long-term use.

Is my book just incorrect, or is there really a reason to avoid using valerian for extended periods of time? I'd like to know because this formula works great, and I would like to keep using it if I can.

From: dww5.email.cac.psu.edu (Dale Woika)

Mark Farone writes:
>> I have an herbal book that says not to use valerian continuously for more than two weeks, but it does not say why.
>CONCLUSION
> The good news is, valerian root or valerian root tea will cause drowsiness. However, certain naturally-occurring substances within the root are toxic to rapidly-growing cells (like the cells lining your stomach and your liver!). If you must consume valerian, don't drink too much. Remember that the most toxic substances known to man were produced by 'Mother Nature.'

Also, it is not particularly a good idea to use any sleep med every day--one tends to become dependent on the treatment.

Have you tried getting up earlier & getting more excercise? Both of these methods work, & they both have positive side effects other than sleep-inducing.

Dale

From: Paul Bergner <pbergner.delphi.com>

Valerian is not actually that strong. The mistake most people make is to underdose with it and then say it doesn't work well enough. And unlike many pharmaceutical sleep aids, it doesn't have much of a hangover ie the active constituents and their metabolits are usually aout of the bloodstream by morning. If you take too much and it does cause a mild hangover, you can usually reduce the dose without losing its sleep-inducing properties.

From: Paul Bergner <pbergner.delphi.com>

Another strategy for taking herabl sleep aids is to take one dose about an hour before bed and a second dose at bedtime. If you have the kind of insomnia that wakes you in the middle of the night, keep a third dose by your bed. If you do it this way, you can take lighter doses, and they reinforce your natural sleep curve.

From: sandy.twg.com (Sandy Vrooman)

>Valerian is not actually that strong. The mistake most people make

The problem I had with valarian (I do have an addictive personality) was that the first time I took one cap it was great. The third time I needed to double the dosage to get the same effect. This continued for about 5 to 6 times and then I decided addiction was around the corner, so I quit. Usually my tolerance build up takes more time than this.

Sandy Vrooman