Passion Flower Health Benefits, Properties, and Uses

Passion flower is a herbal remedy that is derived from a plant. The passion flower is a climbing vine plant that grows natively in southeastern Americas and now grows throughout Europe as well. Passion flower has been used as a traditional remedy to primarily treat personality and anxiety conditions. The stems, flowers or leaves of passion flower can all be used in medicinal treatment. ¹ Passion flower is available commonly as a tea, tincture, liquid extract and infusion. ³

Passion Flower Uses and Health Benefits

Passion flower is used as a medicinal treatment due to its variety of health benefits. Passion flower is thought to naturally help increase levels of a brain chemical known as gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). The increase in GABA can help to lower the risk of depression-like conditions.³ The primary passion flower health benefits include: ^2,3

• Use as a mild sedative
• Treatment for nervous restlessness
• Treatment for gastrointestinal spasms
• Anti-inflammatory for skin conditions
• Treatment for burns
• Easing menopause
• Reduce symptoms of ADHD and other mood disorders
• Reduce asthma and improve breathing
• Control high blood pressure

Because of these health benefits passion flower is used to treat a variety of conditions, including passion flower for sleep improvement and insomnia. Passion flower can also act as a natural remedy for the following conditions:

• Nail Biting - Nail biting is a condition that is often associated with anxiety, depression and other mood disorders or compulsive behaviors. Passion flower can help to prevent instances of nail biting by lowering stress levels and acting as a sedative.
• Stress - Stress can cause high cortisol levels in the body which creates intense feelings of tension. Passion flower can help alleviate these sensations by balancing bain chemicals which reduce stress.
• Anxiety Disorder - Anxiety disorder is a mental health condition that causes feelings of stress and tension, often uncontrollably. Passion flower for anxiety is a natural treatment that can help to reduce stress levels and control anxiety disorder.
• Epilepsy - Epilepsy is a condition that causes uncontrollable spasms which are triggered in the brain and affects the central nervous system. With the natural sedative and calming health benefits of passion flower, this natural remedy can help to control episodes of epilepsy.
• Paranoid Personality Disorder - Paranoid personality disorder causes paranoid and compulsive behavior due to chemical imbalances in the brain. Passion flower can help restore these chemicals imbalances with its natural sedative and anti-anxiety health benefits.
• Indigestion - Honey and cinnamon work together to treat a variety of indigestion symptoms such as constipation and nausea.

Passion Flower Side Effects and Precautions

While there are several passion flower benefits, there are also passion flower side effects to be aware of when using this medicinal treatment. Passion flower may cause nausea, dizziness and confusion when self-administered in inappropriate doses. Passion flower may also cause excessive sleepiness when used as a sedative. ⁴

Passion flower is not known to be safe during pregnancy or breastfeeding and so it is not advised to take during these scenarios.⁴

References

1.https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/p/passion-flower.php
2.http://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/hn-2142002
3.https://draxe.com/passion-flower/
4.https://nccih.nih.gov/health/passionflower