Rhodiola rosea, a medicinal herb for stress, mild to moderate depression and neuro-protection

Rhodiola rosea is an ancient medicinal herb used to combat stress, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and cognitive impairment, including brain injury. It can also promote strength, endurance, and physical and mental performance. When combined with tricyclic antidepressants, rhodiola use has been associated with reduction in antidepressant side effects, particularly fatigue and sexual dysfunction, as well as an improvement in depressive symptoms. Gerbarg and Brown find that in their clinical experience rhodiola can be beneficial in attention deficit disorder, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and recovery from Lyme Disease, since it activates cognition and tends to improve accuracy, alertness and attention. Iovieno et al. note that rhodiola is effective in treating physical exhaustion, decreased motivation, daytime sleepiness, decreased libido, sleep disturbances, and cognitive complaints such as concentration deficiencies, forgetfulness, decreased memory, susceptibility to stress, and irritability. Rhodiola has an excellent safety profile. Side effects are uncommon and mild, and drug interactions are few and easily managed. Dr. Gerbarg will discuss the history, research, and clinical applications of Rhodiola rosea.