Abstract
BackgroundMagnolia (Magnolia officinalis) and Phellodendron (Phellodendron amurense) barks are medicinal plants commonly used as traditional remedies for reducing stress and anxiety. Modern dietary supplements are intended to induce relaxation and reduce stress as well as stress-related eating. Previous studies have shown the combination of Magnolia/Phellodendron (MP) to reduce both cortisol exposure and the perception of stress/anxiety, while improving weight loss in subjects with stress-related eating. Competitive athletes are “stressed” by their intense exercise regimens in addition to their normal activities of daily living and thus may benefit from a natural therapy intended to modulate baseline perceptions of stress and stress hormone exposure.MethodsWe assessed salivary cortisol exposure and psychological mood state in 56 subjects (35 men and 21 women) screened for moderate stress and supplemented with a standardized/patented MP combination (Relora®, Next Pharmaceuticals) or Placebo for 4 weeks.ResultsAfter 4 weeks of supplementation, salivary cortisol exposure was significantly (p<0.05) lower (−18%) in the Relora group compared to Placebo. Compared to Placebo, the Relora group had significantly better (p<0.05) mood state parameters, including lower indices of Overall Stress (−11%), Tension (−13%), Depression (−20%), Anger (−42%), Fatigue (−31%), and Confusion (−27%), and higher indices of Global Mood State (+11%) and Vigor (+18%).ConclusionThese results indicate that daily supplementation with a combination of Magnolia bark extract and Phellodendron bark extract (Relora®) reduces cortisol exposure and perceived daily stress, while improving a variety of mood state parameters, including lower fatigue and higher vigor. These results suggest an effective natural approach to modulating the detrimental health effects of chronic stress in moderately stressed adults. Future studies should examine the possible performance and recovery benefits of Relora supplementation in athletes overstressed by the physical and psychological demands of training and competition.
Highlights
Magnolia (Magnolia officinalis) and Phellodendron (Phellodendron amurense) barks are medicinal plants commonly used as traditional remedies for reducing stress and anxiety
We report the effects of using the Relora combination of magnolia bark and phellodendron bark on salivary cortisol and psychological well-being of healthy subjects under moderate levels of perceived psychological stress
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Summary
Magnolia (Magnolia officinalis) and Phellodendron (Phellodendron amurense) barks are medicinal plants commonly used as traditional remedies for reducing stress and anxiety. Previous studies have shown the combination of Magnolia/Phellodendron (MP) to reduce both cortisol exposure and the perception of stress/ anxiety, while improving weight loss in subjects with stress-related eating. A United States Patent (No 6,582,735) has been granted for the use of an extract of Magnolia officinalis bark for stress related conditions involving elevated cortisol, such as control of body weight, sleep disturbances and restlessness [9]. Extracts of Magnolia officinalis bark and its active constituent, honokiol, have been studied in animal models with comparable anxiolytic activity to diazepam (a benzodiazepine anxiolytic used to treat anxiety), but without associated side effects such as sedation [10,11,12,13]. The combination of magnolia plus phellodendron appears to be even more effective in controlling stress/anxiety compared to either herb used separately [16,17,18,19]
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