Motion Sickness: the First Evidence for a Little known Herb

The scientific literature is bursting with exciting new studies on well-known herbs; but it is not very often that there is an exciting study on an unknown, new herb. Though quite an obscure and unknown herb, Griffonia simplicifolia is actually commonly used as the natural source of the important nutrient, 5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP): 5-HTP is derived from the seeds of Griffonia. Although there have been many studies on 5-HTP, this new study may be the first ever study on the whole herb administered orally in pill form. The few previous studies of Griffonia have used a spray that was combined with a number of other herbs. This study, then, provides some of the first evidence for use of this little known herb.

The study found that Griffonia can ease motion sickness. . . .

People who suffer from motion sickness can feel nausea, headache, fatigue, vertigo and dizziness when moving in cars, trains, planes or boats. They may experience cold sweats and even vomiting. It can make travel very difficult.

Children are especially susceptible to motion sickness: especially between the ages of two and twelve. So, researchers tried giving either griffonia or no treatment at all to 254 prepubescent children who suffered from motion sickness. The dose of griffonia was 50mg twice a day for three months. 200mg of magnesium was added to the griffonia because it may enhance its effectiveness.

At the end of the three months, the kids in the griffonia group had significantly lower motion sickness scores than the kids in the control group. Their motion sickness scores dropped from 7.42 to just 2.59. Only 36% of the griffonia group still complained of motion sickness compared to a full 73% who were still bothered in the control group.

So griffonia is an intriguing new herb to keep in mind before family vacations.

J Med Food 2015;18:916-920

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