Talk:Valerian (herb)

message: It says citation is needed. I know that one book at least mentions this, Five Little Pigs, and it is mentioned in the article. I am not sure how to cite this properly. I hope to eventually read the 2nd novel, and cite them both here then. olya 05:58, 6 May 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Cite the page, ISBN, author and name of the book and create a Trivia or In popular culture section and write a relative paragraph. When citing, you can do everything automatically after your written paragraph by using the icon at the top of the edit page. Hope that helps.--78.86.159.199 (talk) 00:36, 21 August 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: Valerian in Agatha Christie novels

message: An anon keeps putting the following phrase into the article:
:May produce sensations of "strangeness" in some individuals. These persons should not use valerian.
This statement is also found on several other non-wikipedia websites, word for word or nearly so.  
Questions and Answers About Valerian for Insomnia and Other Sleep Disorders Office of Dietary Supplements * National Institutes of Health notes that problems have been reported in clinical trials, but not confirmed as being due to valerian.  A very old reference, A Compend of Materia Medica, Therapeutics, and Prescription Writing by Sam'l O. L. Potter, M.D., M.R.C.P.L., 1902., notes that it can cause "mental disturbance" which can "proceed even to delirium, while hallucinations and excitement are usually produced, together with great restlessness and spasmodic movements of the limbs." -- WormRunner | Talk 20:47, 24 October 2005 (UTC)
thread_title: strangeness

message: Any reason for the anti-confusion Valium note?  I really can't see anyone making this connection, any more than thinking the drug is called "Valium" because it's a good "value".  Any objections to removing it? Alvis 02:33, 9 May 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I object.  Just because you can't see anyone making that connection does not mean it has not been made.  I have corrected people confused on this point more than a few times. -- WormRunner 03:16, 9 May 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Fair enough.  I've never ran into anyone who's made that confusion, but if they're out there, then let's leave it in.  Alvis 05:07, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

text: Was that valium or valerian that caused the dreams and the errr accident?--I don't like football 03:45, 9 January 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Valium 

message: Is it named after St. Valerian (perhaps because of when it blooms, like St. John's Wort)? That would be a good thing to add to the Valerian/Valium note. Also, the St. Valerian article is a major stub. Snowboardpunk
:I heard similarly. Try to find some sources and get back. So far, the Latin explanation for Valerian is without a source and could well be false. --78.86.159.199 (talk) 01:13, 21 August 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: The Online Etymology Dictionary gives the Latin name as the origin as well and doesn't relate it to any specific Valerius (saint or otherwise). aineolach (u · d · c) 15:51, 6 February 2011 (UTC)
thread_title:  St. Valerian 

message: Its a small thing I know but i cringe every time I see or hear 'so much so...' as in "Valerian is also very attractive to rats, so much so that it has been used to bait traps." its just sounds like the author (no discredit to you) just couldn't think up the best words to express the sentence. Perhaps ' Rats are highly attracted to it, to the extent that it has been used as rat trap bait' or somthing along those lines maybe. --I don't like football 03:42, 9 January 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I agree. Many people today are using substandard English, whether they are mentally lazy to speak or write properly or whether the media is to be blamed is up for question. But one thing is certain, and that is an encyclopedic article needs to retain subjective lingual correctiveness and to state "is very attractive", "so much so" are incorrect in this context. A more correct way is to state that "Most rats are olfactorily attracted by Valerian odor which is one of the main reasons many rat traps and baits incorporate a valerian derivative as an olfactory attractant". --78.86.159.199 (talk) 01:26, 21 August 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: Effects on Cats and Rats

message: My Personal experience with this, 
I took it for the first time Sunday, and again today, the calming effect came on smooth and subtle, and faded away a few hours later just the same. I am not taking this to help me sleep, I am taking it to try to prevent another panic/anxiety attack from occuring. which I had went to the ER for a few weeks ago.
I want to try an herbal route before I end up having to take some prescription pill like atavan every day for the rest of my life. I dont want that, and I would rather have tried everything else first.
Valerian root , and valium, have NOTHING TO DO WITH EACH OTHER, chemically or otherwise.
The only thing similar between the 2 is the letters VAL in the names.
thats it.
I'm only on day 2 of this stuff, (500mg Sundown Brand, capsules )
It could be in my head, or it could be physical, but I did feel pretty relaxed about 45 minutes after taking one pill.
not to the point of laying down, just ..relaxed.. peaceful. I felt good.
Again, it could be in my head, it could be from the pill. A few more days and I will have a better idea if Valerian Root is 
a joke or has some real effects.
John L
valium and valerian affect the same receptors in the brain, but the names have no relation, if you want natrual valium try a potato. also what if you drank alcohol while on valerian?
:Yes, Valerian and Valium both affect the GABA receptors, however in detail, they do differ in their mechanism of action, Diazepam does not directly affect GABA levels, but affects the benzodiazepine GABA complex where as Valerenic acid is a GABA agonist. Valerian also has a few active alkaloids and acids whereas Valium (Diazepam) is singular in its method of action, so its comparing a cocktail of active substances (Valerian extract) with just one substance (Diazepam). Well done for sticking with natural remedies, most pharmaceutical remedies for conditions similar to yours are addictive both mentally and physically with withdrawals that sometimes surpass that of an opioid or alcohol withdrawal. I do however think 500mg may be a too of a safe dose, if you feel that you cannot distinguish its effects, then try to up your dose until you can. Good luck, and remember, panic attacks can be cured by mental training, self hypnosis, meditation and changing the way you handle and grasp situations that may induce panic. --78.86.159.199 (talk) 01:35, 21 August 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: Personal Account

message: I propose that Valerian (medication) and Valerian (plant) be merged into a new page "Valerian".—Who123 18:33, 12 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Due to the clear redundancy of the two articles and lack of response, I will probably proceed with the merger. Any help is appreciated. If the page "Valerian" is not available then "Valerian (herb)" may be used. Any suggestions on the page name would be appreciated.—Who123 12:21, 15 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Merger begun under the page name Valerian (herb).—Who123 14:14, 15 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Although the merger is complete, there is still cleanup to do. For example, I included all of the articles that linked to the article before the merger in "See also". I will help with this as time allows.—Who123 14:51, 17 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Greetings! I'm not sure anyone saw your proposed merger before you completed it. I happened along from patrolling the Plant articles by quality log. Proposed mergers and things of that nature can also be discussed at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Plants. (Why not join our project if you haven't already?) As for the merger, I didn't take the time to see if the two articles were redundant, but in general things of this nature should be guided by the flora naming convention. The preference in this case is to have two separate articles--one to describe the plant product or use in society (such as coffee) and another to describe the species that are used to create the familiar product (i.e. Coffea arabica). For example, aside from the taxobox, this article really doesn't discuss the plant at all. I would remove the taxobox from this page and create the Valeriana officinalis article to discuss the botanical history, taxonomy, species description, etc. there. Durian is another great example of a page that would benefit from splitting. In fact, I should go work on that. Cheers, --Rkitko (talk) 05:57, 21 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Hi! The two articles were redundant. I suspect that most of the general public interest in Valerian is as an herb rather than as a plant. It is similar to St John's wort in this respect. Although I like plants, my interest leans more to how they can be used in health and nutrition. If you wish to create a Valeriana officinalis article to discuss the pure botanical aspects that seems reasonable. I find it odd to have the boxes at the top of this page saying that this article is part of Plants and Cats projects. Perhaps they should be removed?—Who123 16:23, 22 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: That's fine, then. For now it can stay as one article, but perhaps it would be pertinent to move toward the goal of having two articles and then removing the taxobox from this one. It doesn't matter what your interests in plants are--it matters more what is considered to be encyclopedic when thinking about inclusion. Botanical information is certainly encyclopedic. The project tags are used by WikiProjects to assess and keep track of article progress. They are very important. Cheers, --Rkitko (talk) 01:50, 26 April 2007 (UTC)

text: Just tried Valerian root - xanax combination for insomnia/anxiety. In my case it resulted in the worst night terrors of my life, and interrupted sleep as a result. It has been suggested that some people cannot absorb the herbal suppliment as others and may cause adverse effects such as those of which i've mentioned. Personally, I'd say use caution.—Who123 16:23, 22 April 2007 (UTC)

text: Valerian should remain synonymous with similar plants such as the St. Johns Wort article. The constituents of Valerian (Valerenic Acid, Valeric Acid) having their own article is enough to explain the activity of each alkaloid/acid in detail with a collective description on the Valerian article in regards to its medicinal values. There is no need for a seperate article in regards to its medicinal purposes. --78.86.159.199 (talk) 02:58, 21 August 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Proposed merger 

message: There's some repetition of information between Mechanism of action and Medicinal use. Perhaps the redundant passages can be edited out and Mechanism of action can be made into a subsection of Medicinal use.--71.105.214.189 (talk) 16:12, 20 September 2009 (UTC)
thread_title: Section Merger

message: There is a paper out (Khom et al. 2007, Neuropharmacology, doi: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2007.04.018) reporting that valerenic acid has a stimulatory effect on GABAA receptors containing β2 subunits, similar to that of barbiturates. In contrast to barbiturates, however, high concentrations of valerenic acid block the receptor. This may explain its mechanism of action and why it is much less toxic than barbiturates.
GABA itslef won't cross the blood-brain barrier and therefore the high GABA content in valerian cannot explain its mechanism of action in vivo. 193.171.174.141 13:06, 23 May 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Please read the Valerenic Acid article. Yes, Valerenic Acid and Valeric Acid (If the Iran study is true) are one of the main active substances in Valerian. It's also scientifically false to base Valerians effects on just valerenic acid when there are further active alkaloids and acids in Valerian. This study would be true for Valerenic Acid and less so for Valerian as a whole. Also, a study in Iran found that Valeric Acid in the body can be transformed into an active acid. And yes, the phenobarbital activity has been proven. --78.86.159.199 (talk) 01:51, 21 August 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Mechanism of Action 

message: i have taken valerian after drinking and it seems to reverse the effects of alcohol, 3 valerians (500mg) seemed to reverse all of the effects of 2 shots of whisky. maybe it antagonises whichever receptor alcohol binds to, it maybe reduce the effects of anxiogenic chemicals in the brain.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by The Right Honourable (talk • contribs) 05:57, 6 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  booze antidote 

message: this article says "Typical dosages of the crude herb vary from 2-10 grams per day. Valerian root is non-toxic but may cause side effects in excessive doses."
but then goes on to say
"Large doses (500+mg) or chronic use may result in stomach ache, apathy, and a feeling of mental dullness or mild depression"
this should be cleaned up, I am guessing that it is some confusion between the raw herb and concentrate, but I am not a herbalist.--UltraMagnus (talk) 13:09, 11 September 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: Yes, the 500mg refers to Valerian Extracts, and the gram dosages refer to the raw herb itself. However, even the Valerian Extract (500mg) dose is uncertain, as there exists many different types and potency of extracts, the typical being 30%. 500mg is by no means a large dose for Valerian Extract in the form of capsules/pills. The typical capsule is 450mg itself, so the 500+mg is very doubtful as it would mean 1 pill is already hitting the 500mg "large dose". I guess the chronic use aspect to that sentence may be true, but it certainly is not dependent on the dose but rather the frequency of use. --93.97.181.187 (talk) 23:09, 16 October 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Contradiction? 

message: The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASMnet.org) provides accreditation for sleep clinics and academic sleep programs.  The December 31, 2006 AASM position statement “Treating Insomnia with Over-the-Counter Sleep Aids” states:  “The primary forms of treatment for insomnia are cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and prescription medications. Research shows that both of these treatment options can improve the quality and quantity of sleep for people with insomnia.” 
The chapter on insomnia by Kypri and Cunningham in The Handbook of Self-Help Therapies (edited by Patti Lou Watkins and George A. Clum, Routledge, 2007), says that while many people with insomnia find it difficult to access CBT for this problem, studies have shown self-help treatments to be effective.  Several popular books, they say, are based on tested principles, including No More Sleepless Nights by Hauri, Say Goodnight to Insomnia by Jacobs, and Can’t Sleep, Can’t Stay Awake: A Woman’s Guide to Sleep Disorders, by Kryger. R Waldo WCU (talk) 15:07, 7 March 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  AASM Position Statement, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Self-Help 

message: Could we get some actual science content here rather than a bunch of anecdotes and an article with more "citation needed" than anything I've seen in weeks on Wikipedia?
Yes, I'm sure this works for some people, but I'd like to see some facts to back up how and why it works.
Ddiggler2000 (talk) 11:24, 10 September 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Science 

message: I have found no scientific evidence that Valeriana officialis  contains valeric acid (a.k.a. pentanoic acid); however, many scientific studies confirm the presence of isovaleric acid.  (For example:  (1)  M. Morvai and I. Molnár-Perl (January 1988) "Gas chromatographic analysis of the carboxylic acid composition of valeriana extracts," Chromatographia, vol. 25, no. 1, page 37-42;  see especially page 40 ; (2)  A. Safaralie, S. Fatemi, and F. Sefidkon (8 February 2008) "Essential oil composition of Valeriana officinalis L. roots cultivated in Iran:  Comparative analysis between supercritical CO2 extraction and hydrodistillation," Journal of Chromatography A, vol. 1180, pages 159-164.)  Only herbal medicine Web sites claim that valeric acid is present in Valeriana officialis.   Accordng to Houghton, valeric acid appears merely as a breakdown product of valepotriates when the later are heated above 40 C.  (See:  Peter J. Houghton, ed., Valerian:  the genus Valeriana (Boca Raton, Florida:  CRC Press, 1997), page 123.)  The confusion between valeric and isovaleric acid may be due to the fact that in the nineteenth century, "valeric acid" referred to any compound having the empirical formula C4H9CO2H, and there are 4 isomers that have that formula -- including both valeric acid (pentanoic acid) and isovaleric acid.  (See Encyclopaedia Britannica (1911), vol. 27, page 859.)
Cwkmail (talk) 11:55, 16 December 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Valeric acid or Isovaleric acid ? 

message: The word gets avoided. Why? Is Valerian addictive or not? The article should address this with proper citations.
Telemachus.forward (talk) 10:14, 9 January 2011 (UTC)
replies: text: What makes you think it's avoided? aineolach (u · d · c) 15:39, 6 February 2011 (UTC)
thread_title: Addiction

message: Have just removed a line that was in History reading 'Also, in Iran it is smoked and injected for recreational purposes.'
Feel free to post again with citation  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.210.96.48 (talk) 23:33, 28 January 2011 (UTC)
thread_title:  Valerian use in Iran? 

message: "The main some evidence of effectiveness." The sentence is incomplete. JmCor (talk) 03:42, 6 September 2011 (UTC)
thread_title:  "The main some evidence of effectiveness" 

message: I realize studies can product conflicting results, but there are simply too many contradictions in this subsection for it to be of much use to anyone. Also, as you've probably already noticed, there are tons of unverified claims here without citations. Some have been tagged for over 6 months. If anyone has citations that you can add, please do so before the unverified material is removed from the article. Thank you! 5-HT8 (talk) 22:58, 14 March 2013 (UTC)
thread_title: Insomnia

message: This was good content that could remain in the article if the claims were adequately supported by references and properly cited, and if necessary, re-written to avoid blatant contradictions. 
5-HT8 (talk) 23:35, 14 March 2013 (UTC)
thread_title: Content pulled from article, needs verifiable citations

message: The article reads "Though some people remain partial to the earthy scent, some may find it to be unpleasant, comparing the odor to that of unwashed feet"
Not only is earthy a misleading adjective, the use of the word scent is also much too polite.  
Valerian root that has been prepared in a form for oral use has an odor.  Other people agree with me that, when incidentally sniffing it after the container was first opened, it has all the characteristics of young and active (i.e. not fully decomposed) vegetable compost.  I have no information about the effect it has upon the breath of a person who has taken the root orally.  But if the above is anything to go by, it would be unpleasant.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.226.103.17 (talk) 07:15, 2 November 2013 (UTC)
thread_title:  Fragrance and other nasalities 

message: There are some explainations: in Latin "valere"" was a verb that indicates "to be healty" http://www.treccani.it/vocabolario/valere/ from which we have "valeo" ("sano") and valerian http://www.etimo.it/?term=valeriana  Another explanation is the herb was found richly in Pannonia Valeria today south Hungary http://www.treccani.it/vocabolario/valeriana/ Last there was a folk tale about the first user named Valerio http://books.google.it/books?id=VBz8ayaYxfcC&pg=PA355&dq=valeriana+valerio&hl=it&sa=X&ei=KUM0U4PCE-bI4ASgmIGACw&ved=0CEkQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=valeriana%20valerio&f=false --Adriano G. V. Esposito (talk) 15:27, 27 March 2014 (UTC)
replies: text: I have added on that to the article, using other references though. Materialscientist (talk) 00:13, 28 March 2014 (UTC)
thread_title:  Valerian etymology 

message: is repeatedly adding content to this article which is biomedical in nature yet is not sourced to sources which are WP:MEDRS compliant. Please ensure any such content is backed by good sources. Alexbrn talk|contribs|COI 16:31, 3 November 2014 (UTC)
replies: text: Are you saying that I cannot cite from any of the sources I've used? Hkim0488 talk|contribs|COI 16:31, 3 November 2014 (UTC)
replies: text: Correct. We can't use primary research to source health information, as it may be unsound. Alexbrn talk|contribs|COI 18:14, 3 November 2014 (UTC)
thread_title:  Recent edits 

message: Although valerian is a popular herbal medicine used for treating insomnia, there is no good evidence it is effective for this purpose, and there is some concern it may be harmful.[23]
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved the claim that valerian can be used as a traditional herbal medicinal product in order to relieve mild symptoms of mental stress and to aid sleep. The EMA stated that there is a substantial body of evidence available that makes the traditional use of valerian plausible.[26]
these paragraphs directly contradict each other,and lead to a very confusing section of article. 184.170.93.22 (talk) 04:02, 7 September 2016 (UTC)
replies: text: It needs re-writing, but actually these are not entirely contradictory. The EMA says that "traditional use" is not harmful and there's evidence that it's "plausible". There is no good evidence that it's actually "effective". "Plausible" is not "effective". Peter coxhead (talk) 08:02, 7 September 2016 (UTC)
replies: text: EMA has a (very) low bar for accepting a claim, in this instance traditional use. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is the EU organization charged with evaluating dietary supplements. As of August 2017, the EFSA has not evaluated valerian. David notMD (talk) 20:49, 11 August 2017 (UTC)
thread_title:  No evidence, but a substantial body of evidence? Which is it?  

message: Whether it's a sedative or not, this stuff smells absolutely wonderful IMHO. 24.51.217.118 (talk) 03:45, 8 October 2016 (UTC)
thread_title:  Smell 

message: Hi. The cited edit "Its roots and leaves are one of three alternatives for the one-third of domesticated or medium-sized cats who do not feel the effects of catnip." was removed from the lead. A few points in favor of returning the sentence and cites. It summarizes information appearing later in the page, which is the purpose of a good lead. It's an important fact for the readers, as this use is beneficial and interesting, and most cat owners may not know about it (from personal conversations). And it's an appropriate topic for the sentence in the lead which discusses uses of the plant, as it quickly summarizes a major use. I hope the striking editor can reconsider, thanks. Randy Kryn (talk) 15:28, 11 May 2018 (UTC)
replies: text: It's a low-weight topic, WP:UNDUE. --Zefr (talk) 15:35, 11 May 2018 (UTC)
replies: text: Seems like a very good topic in terms of uses, inter-species social connections, and potential reader interest. Doesn't seem undue, unless you have a source which refutes the statement. And if you need to put more uses in the lead, please do so (I see you've trimmed the lead quite a bit), but this one seems appropriate for lead mention. Randy Kryn (talk) 15:39, 11 May 2018 (UTC)
replies: text: No response in this discussion in eight days, so I added it back (again, with asked-for sources) and  promptly deleted it. Not only not low-weight, but not UNDUE. Will get back to this tomorrow. Randy Kryn (talk) 22:44, 19 May 2018 (UTC)

text: I agree that it doesn't belong in the lede, but it does belong in the cats section. Readding. MarshallKe (talk) 15:29, 24 October 2021 (UTC)
thread_title: Effect on cats in lead

message: Need to remove "Regulation" section, as it deceives the lay user into believing that the substance is "approved"  Also, the entry is not properly cited. 4Cancer (talk) 01:38, 28 August 2019 (UTC)
replies: text: Done. In addition, a valid "Regulation" section would need to address not just U.S. David notMD (talk) 02:51, 28 August 2019 (UTC)
thread_title:  Regulation 

message: "...I derived no benefit from any medicine, except one prescribed to me by an
Edinburgh surgeon of great eminence, viz., ammoniated tincture of valerian."
-Thomas De Quincey, Confessions of an English Opium Eater
2601:188:C501:6494:20DC:2404:1618:6CD (talk) 19:13, 7 September 2019 (UTC)
thread_title:  De Quincey 

message: Hello! This is to let editors know that :File:Valeriana officinalis_-_Niitvälja.jpg, a featured picture used in this article, has been selected as the English Wikipedia's picture of the day (POTD) for May 31, 2023. A preview of the POTD is displayed below and can be edited at Template:POTD/2023-05-31. For the greater benefit of readers, any potential improvements or maintenance that could benefit the quality of this article should be done before its scheduled appearance on the Main Page.  If you have any concerns, please place a message at Wikipedia talk:Picture of the day. Thank you!  — Amakuru (talk) 14:24, 24 May 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  Featured picture scheduled for POTD