Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) is a member of the mint family that has been used medicinally for centuries.
The benefits of lemon balm have been suggested to include as a sedative, carminative, fever reducer, anti-bacterial, blood pressure reducer, and to increase memory, reduce menstrual bleeding and affect the thyroid gland
Clinical studies have suggested that a herbal tea can increase the antioxidant defense system.
A recent study in the Journal of Herbal Medicine evaluate the role of lemon balm for improving lab markers evaluated by echocardiography, exercise stress test, cardiovascular serum biomarkers (LDH and NO), and blood pressure in patients with with chronic stable angina.
Read here about plant medicine that has been studied in clinical trials for heart health benefits.
Here are the details of the study:
Study design: Double blind clinical trial in 73 men and women with chronic stable angina.
Lemon Balm: Patients consumed 3 grams of lemon balm in the form of capsules for 2 months. Lemon balm was dried in shade at room temperature for 12 days, powdered and put into capsules.
Ages: 40 to 75 years old
Study agent: Aerial parts of the plant were collected. Patients took 3 grams in the form of capsules per day.
Endpoints: Evaluated on the results of echocardiography, exercise stress test, cardiovascular serum biomarkers (LDH and NO), and blood pressure in patients with CSA.
Here are the main results
Ejection faction (EF) was significantly improved with lemon balm by 2.86% *
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Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) was significantly lowered with lemon balm from 308 to 251 (units per liter)*
Nitric oxide (NO) was significantly higher with lemon balm from 21 to 29 micromolar
Systolic and diastolic pressure were significantly lower with lemon balm. Systolic blood pressure was decreased by 4 points and diastolic aby 4 points.*
*Statistically significant
Here is what the authors had to say
In this randomized short-term intervention study significant improvements were observed in EF, maximum workload, LDH, and NO in patients with CSA receiving lemon balm supplementation.
And
The MO effect on blood pressure could be related to inhibition and/or modulation of ACE by rosmarinic acid (Lee et al., Karthik et al) or the endothelium dependent vasodilatore effect of rosmarinic acid
Take away message
The results of this study suggest that a dried lemon balm product taken at a dose of three grams per day may provide clinical benefits to patients with chronic stable angina. Further studies will be needed to confirm these findings, however, they are consistent with lemon balm studies performed in laboratory models.
Reference
Javid et al. The effects of melissa officinalis on echocardiography, exercise test, serum biomarkers, and blood pressure in patients with chronic stable angina. Journal of Herbal Medicine
His research on plant medicine has led to more than 45 publications and abstracts.This research has been presented at international meetings in the USA, France, Turkey, Peru, Israel, Austria, and Italy.
Categories: Blood Pressure, Clinical Trials, Heart
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