Lavender

Scientific name: Lavender angustifolia, Lavender officinalis, Lavender vera, Lavandula vera

Common names: Common Lavender, Garden Lavender, Spike Lavender

Ayurvedic names: Lavender

Chinese names: Xun yi cao

Bangladesh names: Tuntuna 

Arabic names:   الضرم ( Adarem)

Rain Forest names:

Family: Fabaceae?

Approximate number of species known:

Common parts used: Flower, leaf, oil

Collection: Flowers are often collected just before opening in early summer, and early autumn.

Annual/Perennial: Perennial

Height: 1-2 feet

Actions: Carminative, anti-spasmodic, anti-depressant, rubefaciant, antiemetic, aromatic, carminative, chologogue, sedative, fragrant, stimulant, stomachic, tonic, nervine

Known Constituents: linalyl acetate, linalol, geraniol, cineole, limenene, sesquiterpenes

Constituents Explained:

Description: 

It is gray-brown with angular stems.  The bark often has a flaking appearance.  The leavbes are normally gray or grey-green/  The leaves are opposite (picture), sesile (picture)downy (picture) laneolate to oblong linear (picture).  The flowers have apurple colour and are tubular (picture). It sends to grow in light soil, sand, gravel or open sun.

Traditional Use:

Popularised by its use as a pleasant smelling oil, its action on the nervous system seems to promote relaxation and calm any tensions.  Used as a mild sedative and mild anti depressant. Its used as a tonic to build tolerance in the nervous system.

Its calming properties make it quite useful in treatment of headaches and migraines.

The flowers are used to prevent fainting and for nausea.1  The flowers have also been used as a gargle for sore throat, gas migraine headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, fainting, stomach problems, intestinal bacteria.  The flowers have also been used to prevent moths into clothing.

Externally the oil has been used for muscle aches and pains, and as a relaxant.

It is popularised as an oil.

Clinical Studies:

Lavender essential oil has been used as an anxiolytic drug, a mood stabilizer, a sedative, spasmolytic, antihypertensive, antimicrobial, analgesic agent as well as a wound healing accelerator. 

A study conducted on the efficacy of lavender essential oil inhalation for the treatment of migraine in a placebo-controlled clinical trial.

orty-seven patients with definite diagnosis of migraine headache were divided into cases and controls. Cases inhaled lavender essential oil for 15 min, whereas the control group used liquid paraffin for the same time period. 

Patients were asked to record their headache severity and associated symptoms in 30-min intervals for a total of 2 h. The mean reduction of headache severity in cases was 3.6 ± 2.8 based on Visual Analogue Scale score. The reduction was 1.6 ± 1.6 in controls. This difference between the controls and cases was statistically significant.

From 129 headache attacks in cases, 92 responded entirely or partially to lavender. In the control group, 32 out of 68 recorded headache attacks responded to placebo. The percentage of responders was significantly higher in the lavender group than the placebo group.

This study suggests that inhalation of lavender essential oil may be an effective and safe treatment modality in acute management of migraine headaches.

Another study was performed to investigate the anxiolytic efficacy of silexan, a new oral lavender oil capsule preparation, in comparison to placebo in primary care. 

In 27 general and psychiatric practices 221 adults suffering from anxiety disorder not otherwise specified were randomized to 80 mg/day of a defined, orally administered preparation from Lavandula species or placebo for 10 weeks with visits every 2 weeks. 

A Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) total score >or=18 and a total score >5 for the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) were required. The primary outcome measures were HAMA and PSQI total score decrease between baseline and week 10. 

Secondary efficacy measures included the Clinical Global Impressions scale, the Zung Self-rating Anxiety Scale, and the SF-36 Health Survey Questionnaire.

Lavandula oil preparation had a significant beneficial influence on quality and duration of sleep and improved general mental and physical health without causing any unwanted sedative or other drug specific effects.

Lavandula oil preparation silexan is both efficacious and safe for the relief of anxiety disorder not otherwise specified. It has a clinically meaningful anxiolytic effect and alleviates anxiety related disturbed sleep.

References:

Sasannejad P, Saeedi M, Shoeibi A, Gorji A, Abbasi M, Foroughipour M. “Lavender Essential Oil In The Treatment Of Migraine Headache: A Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial.” 2012 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22517298

Kasper S, Gastpar M, Muller WE, Volz HP, Muller HJ, Dienel A, Schlafke S. “Silexan, An Orally Administered Lavandula Oil Preparation, Is Effective In The treatment Of ‘Subsyndromal’ Anxiety Disorder: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial.” 2010 September http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20512042

Source:

Herb Name:  Lavender 

Other Names: Lavandula officinalis  

Latin Name:      Lavandula Angustifolia

Family:  Labiatae

Common parts Used: Leaves, flower, petals

Lavender belongs to the family Labiatae. There are many other genus of this family similar to lavender.  Plant usually grows in sunlight. It usually grow up to 17-18 inches. The flower of Lavender are hermaphrodite and pollination occurs through insects.

Lavender is edible. Its flower tips and petals are used as salad. It is also added to soups, it give very pleasant flavor and aroma. Dried lavender is used as a Tea. It is also used in jams, ice creams flavors and the oil taken from the flower is also used as a flavor for different things.

Lavender is also used for medicinal purpose. The Tea made from the young flower of the Lavender is considered to be a good anti depressant.  With combination of some other herbs it is widely used as a remedy for stress. Lavender tea could also be used while having headache. Lavender is considered to give peace and spirituality in home. The flowers are burnt to induce sleep. in different religion it is believed that carrying lavender increases strength and courage.

Lavender

Herb Name: Lavender


Other names: 

Lavande,
Levanta,
Lavanda,
Lavanda, 

Alhucema, 

Espliego,
Lavânta çiçegi

Latin name: Lavandula angustifolia

Family: Lamiaceae


Common part used: 

Flower

The lavenders  are a genus of 39 species of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae, native to the Mediterranean region south to tropical Africa and to the southeast regions of India. The genus includes annuals, herbaceous plants, subshrubs, and small shrubs. The native range extends across the Canary Islands, North and East Africa, Southern Europe and the Mediterranean, Arabia and India. Because the cultivated forms are planted in gardens world-wide, they are occasionally found growing wild as garden escapees, well beyond their natural range. However, since lavendercross-pollinates easily, there are countless variations within the species. The color of its flowers has come to be called lavender.

Lavender is actually a shrub with heavy branches that grows up to about 60 cm. Wood-like branches grow from the broad rootstock and green leaf-like shoots resembling rods protrude out from the branches. The narrow, grayish green leaves covered in a silver blanket-like substance taper down from the base. The leaves are oblong in shape and attach directly at the base in curled spiral-like patterns.

Medicinal Uses:

Lavender can be used in connection with the following conditions and symptoms:

• Restlessness

• Insomnia

• Abdominal complaints

• Rheumatism

• Loss of appetite Dosage and Administration

The oil from lavender may be used externally or topically for a wide variety of ailments. Aroma therapists frequently use lavender as a promising tonic for inhalation therapy to help with nervous disorders and exhaustion. Herbalists have also used lavender oil to treat skin ailments including fungal infections, burns, wounds, eczema, and even acne. Lavender oil can also be applied externally for circulatory disorders by adding the oil to a healing bath, or it is also used as a rub to treat rheumatic ailments.

While lavender may be used topically and as an aromatherapy for children, oral supplementation is not recommended.

There is scientific evidence to support the effectiveness of some of these remedies, especially the anti-inflammatory effects, but they should be used with caution since lavender oil can also be a powerful allergen. Ingesting lavender should be avoided during pregnancy and breastfeeding.