L-Theanine vs Skullcap for anxiety
Short answer: For anxiety, more users report improvement with Skullcap — 100% of 31 reports, versus 91% of 1289 for L-Theanine.
L-Theanine has 18 meta-analyses and 78 randomized trials on PubMed; Skullcap has 5 and 3.
Based on 3,475 reports about L-Theanine and 97 about Skullcap. Not medical advice.
| L-Theanine Supplement | Skullcap Supplement | |
|---|---|---|
| Users say it helped | 65%helped1,807 reports · high confidence | 81%helped46 reports · medium confidence |
| Verdict | Mostly positive | Mostly positive |
| Research | AResearch: Strong | BResearch: Moderate |
| Meta-analyses / RCTs | 18 / 78 | 5 / 3 |
| Mainly used for | ||
| Anxiety % reporting improvement | 91% (1289) | 100% (31) |
| Focus % reporting improvement | 88% (501) | — |
| Sleep % reporting improvement | 78% (370) | 100% (12) |
| Mood % reporting improvement | 77% (223) | 67% (3) |
| Energy % reporting improvement | 68% (97) | 100% (2) |
| Common side effects | drowsiness, vivid dreams, fatigue, headache | dysphoria, drowsiness, liver damage, unusual next |
| Typical dose reported | 200 mg / bedtime | 2-4 g / PRN |
This meta-analysis provides evidence that theanine plus caffeine, and theanine alone, could be beneficial for cognitive and mood outcomes. More research using tea beverages or tea-equivalent bioactive doses and research in free-living participants is needed.
Nutr Rev, 2025 ↗“This morning was my first time taking this combination along with my other daily vitamins and wow, what a difference it has made in my overall mood and anxiety!”
Besides, no severe adverse effects was identified by CHM. CHM, especially classical Chinese herbal formulas, could be used as potential candidates for COVID-19 in this battle.
Pharmacol Res, 2020 ↗“St. John's Wort, Passion Flower, Hops, and Skullcap. My sleep improved with those.”
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Percentages come from first-hand user reports and are not clinical outcomes. Talk to a doctor before starting, stopping or combining anything. How we rate