St. John's Wort

A CBS 2 News Special Assignment

It's an herb, which means you can buy it over the counter -- and a lot of people are doing just that. But is this so-called natural antidepressant a feel-good pill that could add joy to your life? CBS 2 News' Drew Griffin has a warning for those already taking the herb, along with some encouraging news for those who believe it may a path to a happier life.

Special Assignment: St. John's Wort aired Monday, October 20, 1997 at 11 p.m.

Elizabeth Dante lives in a huge house in Laguna Hills with her children and plenty of money. But five years ago, when she was diagnosed with polio, she became depressed.

"I thought something was wrong with me," Dante told CBS 2 News' Drew Griffin. "How could I be depressed when I have so much?"

Meanwhile, bookkeeper Karen Dardick also recently found her life wrapped in depression.

"I was having trouble focusing, I was having trouble sleeping, I wasn't eating and there was no pleasure in my life," Dardick told Griffin. "I had general depression."

But both Dane and Dardick are smiling and enjoying life more than ever today.

"I get up in the morning and feel great. I'm ready to start the day," Dante told Griffin.

What has turned their lives around? It's not a medical breakthrough or a radical new treatment. Instead, it's a remedy said to have once been prescribed by the Greek physician Hippocrates. The prescription is an herb called St. John's Wort, and its success in treating mild depression is forcing modern medicine to take a second look at some age-old cures, reports CBS 2 News.

"The exciting thing is St. John's Wort is becoming the poster plant for researching these age old remedies and so far it's turned out to be really solid," Corona Del Mar pyschiatrist Harold Bloomfield told Griffin.

If St. John's Wort is the poster plant for bringing old herbal remedies into mainstream modern medicine, it's Bloomfield who has planted the seed, said Griffin. His book, Hypericum & Depression, is named after the botanical name for St. John's Wort and has quickly become a best seller.

And the herb itself is selling faster than most stores can keep it on the shelf, said Griffin. Why? According to Bloomfield's book, German medical research seems to show a strikingly high number of mild to moderately depressed patients now happier because they are eating this plant. According to the book, 75 to 80 percent of people with mild to moderate depression have good results, with apparently little or no side effects.

Elizabeth Dante takes 3,000 milligrams per day with no trouble at all, reports Griffin. And Karen Dardick, who considered taking Prozac for her depression, says St. John's Wort is the all-natural alternative that has turned her life around.

"It feels great, I feel lighter," Dardick told Griffin.

All of this, of course, is old news to those who follow the ancient practices of herbal remedies. Now there's actual medical proof that St. John's Wort triggers something in the brain that helps people produce a hormone that makes them happy.

"What this herb does is stimulate the serotonin hormone, which we need," Ema, a strong believer in the healing powers of herbs, told CBS 2 News.

If our bodies produce enough serotonin, we feel better, have more energy and are better able to cope with modern-day stress, said Griffin. So what is the down side? No one really knows, and that's slightly troubling to psychiatrist Ronald Podell.

"Don't be confused that it's called an herb," said Podell. "It's a medication."

Dr. Podell worries that too many people are now taking St. John's Wort on their own, said Griffin. You don't need a prescription, and can buy the herb almost anywhere. Sales this year have skyrocketed with more than $25 million in sales in the U.S. alone. Dr. Podell says too many people are looking for a quick fix in their lives, and will no doubt rush out to a store hoping this so-called miracle herb will cure what they think is depression.

"When you say you're depressed, it could be you're suffering from compulsive disorder, anxiety or any number of things," Podell told Griffin. "There's so many variations where depression is not the primary illness."

Dr. Podell added that although St. John's Wort appears safe, there may be side effects we don't know about yet -- especially if it's mixed with other drugs or taken long-term.

The federal government has now decided to study St. John's Wort to find out what the secrets and pitfalls are of this so-called all-natural antidepressant. Dr. Bloomfield told Griffin that, for a plant once prescribed by the father of medicine, it's about time.

"We do need more research, however we've had hypericum on this planet a lot longer than we've had Prozac," he told Griffin.

As wonderful as this herb sounds for people suffering from depression, there is absolutely no evidence it does anything for those who aren't depressed. According to Griffin, it's not a pick-me-up. So if you're looking for something to boost your happiness, try something else.