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Valerian-lemon Balm Extract Aids Children With Restlessness

By: Darrell Miller Dyssomnia consists of many different sleep disorders. Those with dyssomnia may have difficulty falling asleep, may wake up during the night, may have night terrors, or may walk in their sleep. Even though these sleep disturbances may be temporary, up to thirty percent of children suffer from them. Another condition that affects many children is motor restlessness, in which children are unable to sit still and concentrate, especially in situations demanding discipline and attention. Some situations of general motor restlessness may be temporary, but it can also be a personality characteristic that continues beyond childhood. Clinical trials that have occurred in the past have shown that the combination of valerian root and lemon balm herb can improve sleep quality and mood in those adults who have sleep disorders. Both of these herbs have been approved by the Commission E of the German government to be taken for sleep disorders.

The purpose of the following study was the test the effectiveness and tolerability of valerian and lemon balm on children who have motor restlessness and nervous dyskoimesis sleep disturbance. The study was conducted in 207 pediatric clinics across Germany on 938 children under the age of twelve. Each child was asked to complete a baseline study visit which included a complete medical history, a review of his or her current diagnosis, and documentation of the incidence and severity of symptoms by the doctor. Each child was instructed to take four tablets daily of valerian and lemon balm tabs, which contains 160 mg of valerian root dry extract and 80 mg of lemon balm leaf dry extract. The child was instructed to return for a second and final visit after four weeks. During the visit, the child was examined and his or her doctor recorded the incidence while assessing the tolerability of the product. Both the doctor and the child’s parent had to complete a questionnaire to evaluate the child’s response to the product.

With a total of 918 children evaluated in the study and the average age being 8.3 years, the average duration of this study was 31.9 days. The percentage of children who were reporting daily symptoms dropped from 61.7% to 12.5% after taking valerian and lemon balm tabs for four weeks. At the final visit, symptoms of restlessness or dyssomnia were rated as absent or mild in the majority of children, compared to the moderate or severe symptoms reported in the majority of the children at the beginning of the study. Most of the doctors and parents rated the efficacy of the product as being good, while doctors rated the tolerability of the product as very good or good for 96.7% of the children. Only two adverse events were noted, vomiting and urinary tract infection, but neither was attributed to the valerian and lemon balm tabs
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The authors of the study believe that taking the valerian and lemon balm combination for four weeks allowed children to experience fast and significant improvement of their symptoms. They also concluded that valerian and lemon balm tabs are well-tolerated and effective in the treatment of children who have restlessness or dyssomnia. Because current treatments for restlessness and dyssomnia include synthetic psychotropic drugs which may cause addiction or adverse side effects, authors recommend conducting a head-to-head comparison of valerian and lemon balm tabs with synthetic drugs in children.